The 2023 women’s NCAA tournament’s Most Outstanding Player, LSU forward Angel Reese, was absent from the team on Friday night when the Tigers traveled to Southeastern Louisiana.
Angel didn’t wear a uniform. Coach Kim Mulkey of LSU stated following her team’s 73-50 victory, “Angel is a part of this basketball team, and we hope to see her sooner rather than later.”
Mulkey interjected, saying, “I’m not going to answer any more, that’s it, that’s all you need to know,” when a reporter began to probe more.
Reese was benched in the second half of the Tigers’ game against Kent State on Tuesday, which Mulkey later described as a “coach’s decision.” This is why she is not playing on Friday. Mulkey gave the same explanation for why veteran Kateri Poole, who did not play on Tuesday, did not.
When asked on Thursday if Reese would start Friday versus Southeastern Louisiana and Poole would play, Mulkey said, “You better get a ticket and see.”
After starting her career at Maryland, Reese is in her second season with the Tigers and has averaged 17.0 points and 10.3 rebounds in four games.
She led the Tigers to their first-ever national championship and their first Final Four since 2008 last season, averaging 23.0 points and 15.4 rebounds while setting an NCAA single-season record 34 double-doubles. Her play helped LSU become relevant again after a long absence.
Following their championship victory, LSU signed two of the biggest names in the transfer portal—Hailey Van Lith and Aneesah Morrow—and signed the top recruiting class, raising hopes that the Tigers would be ready to contend in 2023–2024. After losing their season opener to Colorado, 92-78, the preseason top-ranked Tigers went on to defeat their next three opponents by a combined score of at least 30 points.