Dawn Staley Makes Her Opinion On Rivalry With Kim Mulkey Clear
01/23/2025 04:08 PM
This Friday, South Carolina and LSU women's basketball will renew their rivalry.
The Gamecocks, who enter the game ranked second in the AP poll, are the defending national champions and the premier program in the country. They've won 16 in a row against LSU, but the Tigers are No. 5 in the nation and have given Dawn Staley's team fits in some of their more recent matchups.
Ahead of tomorrow's game, Staley spoke with SEC Network, addressing the rivalry and the role she and LSU head coach Kim Mulkey play in it.
"I mean, Kim's Kim, and I'm me," Staley said. "We both have strong personalities. We both want to win and are super competitive, but we also know it is not about us. It's more about the players and their ability to execute out there on Friday at 5 p.m."
Staley and Mulkey have combined to win the last three national championships and have seven titles between each other overall. They are the two of the most recognizable coaches in the sport.
"I can't even think about South Carolina, I got to think about snow and ice when I get home," Mulkey said after Sunday's win over Florida. "So, we're going to enjoy this victory today. Any victory on the road in our league is an accomplishment. But, we know what we face next, a tremendous challenge to play the defending champions and do it at their place."
Mulkey's comments about ice and snow proved prescient. The showdown between the Gamecocks and Tigers was originally scheduled for tonight but got pushed back one day because of the unprecedented winter storms throughout the Southeast this week.
"It's a rivalry, it really is, with how many people on the Tigers, their fans, our fans," Dawn Staley said. "It's not only a rivalry between the programs on the floor, but it's a rivalry with the fanbases, because you can't say one bad thing about LSU without LSU fans hopping on our fans.
"You can't say nothing about Gamecocks fans, like, nothing that is not positive, or else they're jawing back and forth."
LSU and South Carolina will face off at 5 p.m. ET tomorrow night on ESPN.
[ On3 Sports ]
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