BATON ROUGE, LA — LSU coach Kim Mulkey was at a loss to explain a key factor in South Carolina women's basketball's 79-72 win on Feb. 14.
What will haunt the No. 6 Tigers (22-4, 8-4) is a lack of success from the free throw line.
LSU was 14-of-23, and the No. 3 Gamecocks (25-2, 11-1 SEC) were 15-of-17.
"I'm not real sure, if I knew that I'd be in psychology," Mulkey said when asked why a team that shoots 74% from the line shot 61%. "Got to the free throw line, so reward yourself."
In the fourth quarter, LSU star Flau'Jae Johnson hit a jumper to make it a one-point game with 1:16 left, but then she missed two free throws with 45.2 seconds left.
"It was two of the best teams in our conference, in the country just trying to get a win," South Carolina coach Dawn Staley said. "I thought LSU got multiple offensive rebounds at the end of the game to put them in a position to close a gap, to go ahead and then at the end, we got lucky, Flau'jae doesn't miss free throws, we actually got a bucket after that and it's those kind of plays that are determining the game."
Of LSU's 18 total offensive rebounds, 12 were in the fourth quarter.
"Eighteen offensive rebounds from LSU means they win basketball games like this," Staley said. "So it's surprising to see just how bad it was after the game."
LSU was 5-of-8 from the free throw line in the fourth quarter. South Carolina was 8-of-8 in the final quarter, including two from Madina Okot and two from Raven Johnson in the last 16 seconds.
"Now you will focus on those two free throws, we missed nine, (that's) the difference in the ball game," Mulkey said when asked about Johnson's performance. "That's where the game was lost. Make your free throws. You win."
The Gamecocks were 47% from the 3-point line, led by Raven and Tessa Johnson who combined for seven, compared to only two total for the Tigers out of 12 attempts (17%).
Kim Mulkey grades MiLaysia Fulwiley vs South Carolina
LSU junior guard MiLaysia Fulwiley played her first two seasons at South Carolina, and this was her first time facing the Gamecocks.
She subbed into the game with a standing ovation with four minutes left in the first quarter.
She turned it over as Raven Johnson intercepted a pass for a transition layup, then moments later stole it from Johnson.
Fulwiley had six points in 24 minutes of 1-of-8 from the field with four steals and three turnovers.
"I thought she did typical Fulwiley, give you some outstanding plays, stripped Raven early in the game, got some layups then she turned it over," Mulkey said. "That's part of who she is and we've got to continue to make pluses when she's in the game not minuses because she has tremendous quickness."
Lulu Kesin covers South Carolina athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email her at [email protected]. Follow her on X@Lulukesin and Bluesky@bylulukesin.bsky.social
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: What Dawn Staley, Kim Mulkey said about South Carolina win vs LSU