"Wish she would have pushed Angel Reese": LSU HC Kim Mulkey has a bullish take on heated exchange between Tigers and Gamecocks amid SEC title loss

LSU lost the SEC Tournament championship game to South Carolina 79-72 on Sunday. Aside from the usual trash-talking, the game was halted for 20 minutes owing to a near-brawl between the Tigers and Gamecocks. LSU Coach Kim Mulkey later addressed the media about the brawl.

“No one wants to be a part of that. No one wants to see that ugliness. But I can tell you this. I wish she would have pushed Angel Reese. Don’t push a kid. You’re 6-8, don’t push somebody that little," Mulkey said via ESPN.

"That was uncalled for in my opinion. Let those two girls that were jawing, let them go at it.”

Mulkey was referring to South Carolina's Kamilla Cardoso and her actions toward LSU's 5-foot-10 guard, Flau'jae Johnson. Things went south in the fourth quarter, with two minutes left on the clock.

Gamecocks guard MiLaysia Fulwiley had the ball when Johnson wrapped her up. A foul was called and the LSU guard was sent to the bench. On her way out, Johnson bumped into South Carolina's Ashlyn Watkins, causing Cardoso to step in and shove Flau'jae Johnson down to the ground.

Immediately after, players from both sides, including the bench, joined in, with even Johnson's brother jumping in from the stands to defend his sister. He was arrested for this as coaching staff and officials took control of the situation.

South Carolina HC Dawn Staley also spoke on this incident, sharing her apologies for her team's actions.

“I just want to apologize to the basketball community. When you’re playing in championship games like this in our league, things get heated. No bad intentions. Their emotions got so far ahead of them that sometimes these things happen," Staley said via ESPN.

"So I want to apologize for us playing a part in that. That’s not who we are. That’s not what we’re about, but I’m happy for the players that were able to finish the game to get us another championship.”

LSU and South Carolina players ejected with potential suspension

Kamilla Cardoso was ejected for starting the altercation, and five bench players from both sides were ejected for entering the court. According to the rules, the bench is barred from leaving the area during a fight, and doing so will result in an ejection. This meant that LSU was down to its starting five for the last few minutes of the contest.

As per reports from ESPN, Cardoso faces the risk of suspension and could miss the first round of the NCAA Tournament. She has since apologized for her actions via Twitter.

At the time of publishing, there was no official response to the suspension reports.

What did you think of this? Do you agree with Kim Mulkey's statements? Let us know in the comments section.