Mulkey credits veteran buy-in for No. 8 LSU’s sudden climb

By BRETT MARTEL
AP Sports Writer

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — LSU coach Kim Mulkey is still trying to temper expectations for her women’s basketball team even as she oversees a dramatic one-year improvement in the No. 8 Tigers’ fortunes. LSU is 24-4 this season and is guaranteed at least a share of second place in the Southeastern Conference. That’s after winning just nine games a season ago. Now LSU is virtually guaranteed to be back in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2018. But Mulkey says LSU shouldn’t proclaim itself back among elite programs in women’s college basketball until it strings together several strong seasons. Mulkey credits leadership and buy-in from seniors including leading scorer Khayla Pointer for this season’s success.