"How important is a conference tournament": LSU's Kim Mulkey questions need of conference championships over player health concerns 

Kim Mulkey isn't happy with conference tournaments. The LSU coach questioned the need for such events over players' health concerns during Tuesday's interview with T-Bob Hebert and Jacob Hester on their "Off The Bench" show at 104.5 ESPN.

Mulkey shared her after the LSU Tigers lost to the Texas Longhorns in the semifinals of the 2025 SEC Tournament. Aneesah Morrow suffered an ankle injury in that contest, while Flau'jae Johnson missed this year's SEC tournament because of a shin injury.

"How important is a conference tournament versus a regular season?" Mulkey asked (Timestamp 2:40).

"I think conference tournaments should never be more important but where we are now with the way they do committee seeding, when you have teams that are close, they really use those to give them a higher seed and I’m not sure if that’s fair either.

Kim Mulkey, who was out all week in the SEC Tournament following a death in her family, praised the short-handed LSU Tigers for putting up a good fight against then-No. 1 Texas.

Mulkey noted that her players battled to win that semis game against the Longhorns.

"You’re still asking your team, 'next man up, next coach up, go in a game.' I don’t know how much people realize what we did against Texas without Flau’jae, without Morrow, when Mikaylah played very few minutes because of foul trouble.

"And for us to go toe-to-toe with at that time was the No. 1 team in the country. I’m not in the moral victories but our kids fought like hell to win that ballgame," Mulkey said.

Kim Mulkey's LSU falls short against Texas in SEC Tournament semifinals

The LSU Tigers headed into their semifinal clash against the Texas Longhorns feeling good about themselves after recording a 101-87 victory over the Florida Gators in the quarterfinals of the SEC Tournament. Aneesah Morrow starred in that contest, scoring 36 points and 14 rebounds.

Head coach Kim Mulkey of the LSU Tigers reacts from the bench against the Florida Gators in the quarterfinal round of the SEC Tournament at Bon Secours Wellness Arena. Photo: Getty

Morrow's SEC Tournament stint came to a disappointing end in the semis when she injured her left ankle in the third quarter against Texas. Morrow, who returned to LSU's bench with a walking boot in the final period, finished the game with 10 points.

Mikaylah Williams was the only other player to score in double figures for Kim Mulkey, dropping 11 points on 5-of-13 shooting. Despite the Tigers' limited scoring, they kept the game close against the Longhorns, who won 56-49.