Dawn Staley vs Kim Mulkey: Top NCAA coaches spark debate with opposing takes on SEC tournament

Dawn Staley and Kim Mulkey will go down in history as two of the greatest coaches in NCAA women's basketball. The respective leaders of the South Carolina and LSU programs grabbed headlines with their opposing takes on the SEC Tournament, which started its 2025 edition on Wednesday night.

A reporter asked Staley during a news conference about how the SEC tournament, which she said is going to be a difficult one, could be a final tuneup for the Gamecocks before the NCAA Tournament. Staley lent her support for the SEC and its season-ending tournament, saying that it has helped put her team in position to compete for an NCAA title.

"Our league is tough in itself. The conference tournament is tougher," Staley said (Timestamp 1:02).

Staley explained that the SEC tournament is tougher than the league because it's so condensed and that they are going to get "the best of the best" playing their best on that weekend. Staley won't have it any other way, though, saying that their national championships were realized because of the tough SEC schedule.

Staley added that the addition of powerhouse teams Texas and Oklahoma to the SEC got them even more prepared for the NCAA Tournament.

"We always are putting each other in a position of having to compete, having to adjust, having to play different styles. Bringing in Oklahoma and Texas really gets us even more prepared," Staley said.

Kim Mulkey, though, had a contrasting take on the SEC Tournament, arguing that the event only benefits the Cinderella teams and not the stronger teams like LSU. She mentioned that she always had a tough time with conference tournaments, questioning how they benefit the higher seeds ahead of the NCAA Tournament.

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Dawn Staley and Kim Mulkey's next opponents in the SEC Tournament

South Carolina Gamecocks coach Dawn Staley (Photo: Imagn)

Dawn Staley and the South Carolina Gamecocks are the top seed in the 2025 SEC Tournament after finishing the conference with a 15-1 record. They face the winner of the clash between Vanderbilt and Tennessee on Friday.

Meanwhile, Kim Mulkey and the LSU Tigers are the third seed in this year's SEC Tournament after finishing the conference with a 12-4 slate. They face the winner of the showdown between Florida and Alabama in the quarterfinals.