Stephen A. Smith calls out "condescending" Kim Mulkey after back and forth with reporter

LSU Tigers coach Kim Mulkey presided over a 72-65 loss to the No. 1-seeded UCLA Bruins in the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament in an ill-tempered game on Sunday. It was the Tigers' second consecutive loss at the same stage after last year's elimination at the hands of the Iowa Hawkeyes.

During her postgame news conference, the controversial Mulkey had a terse exchange with an LSU student reporter who reminded her that the Tigers had been eliminated in the Elite Eight for the second year in a row.

"Is that terrible, or is that good? How many Final Fours you play in?" Mulkey asked. "So, it's probably pretty good, huh?"

On "First Take" on Monday, ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith blasted the eccentric LSU coach for her behavior.

"I'm not gonna take away from the fact that Kim Mulkey is a great coach and an established coach," Smith said. "We just need to finally say this about her: She's very rude. She's very rude. She's very, very rude. I mean, she's rude, she's condescending, and unnecessarily so to too many people.

"But it's always with the right one. See, she don't go up to the wrong ones like that. It's almost like she knows who to do what to and who not to do that to. Because certain people you do that to, they gonna clap back at you."

Kim Mulkey under fire from analyst

It was not the first time that the outspoken Kim Mulkey has been at odds with the press. Last year, during the Big Dance, she blasted a Washington Post article about her controversial coaching style and abrasive manner with her former players.

After her latest confrontation with the reporter after her team lost against the UCLA Bruins, Mulkey caught flak about her exchange from analyst Shannon Sharpe during his "Nightcap" show.

“When emotion is high, logic is generally low — and we say things,” Sharpe said. “She probably doesn’t feel bad because, like I said, she’s a four-time national championship-winning head coach. And she’s gotten away with saying things.

"She’s gotten away with treating people nasty. But, for me, I just expect more from a coach. That’s all. When you’ve been in this situation for an extended period of time, and you expect your players to behave in a certain manner after the game, I think the coach should set the precedent, should set the example, should lead by example.”

Kim Mulkey is no stranger to controversy in her career, and the latest scrape with the press is just the latest in a long string of controversies for her.