Kim Mulkey delivered on her promise of bringing a national title to LSU, but the year that followed felt like anything but a winning scenario.
The LSU head coach spoke for roughly 30 minutes at an end-of-year banquet in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center, during which she thanked coaches and players and discussed the season at large, but also pushed back on "lies" that had been spread and the emotions of a year that began with surgery to clear a blocked artery.
“The distractions that came from winning that national championship. I don't think I've ever seen in my entire life. The things that have been printed, the lies that have been told — for what reason?" Mulkey said in a report from The Advocate, though she did not elaborate on any specific lies to which she was referring.
Dust-ups with the media are not uncommon for Mulkey or coaches around the nation, though they did appear early on this year during Angel Reese's unexplained absence. The coach declined to elaborate despite repeated questioning.
Mulkey was also the subject of a long-form Washington Post article that printed during the team's NCAA Tournament run that ended at the hands of Iowa in the Elite Eight. Her team was also the subject of L.A. Times column that was widely panned for sexist language. It has since been edited and apologies were issued by both the writer and publication, though it does still exist online in a form that paints Mulkey's team as the "villain" in no uncertain terms.
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The team has also been subject to rampant and manufactured criticism for not being on the court during the national anthem ahead of the matchup with Iowa, which Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry was more than happy to leap in on, suggesting that players should be subject to the loss of scholarships for such an act. The Tigers, and many other college programs, are not on the court of field for the anthem as they prepare to play in the upcoming game.
“Most of you feel me right now. Most of you are standing here going, ‘My God, she's been attacked. She comes home, she gets attacked. What is she gonna say?’ " she continued, as reported by The Advocate. “I'm gonna say I came back to this state to make a difference, and I promise you I will.”
For the full report from The Advocate, click here.