LSU women's basketball practiced without the ball after losing streak

Feb 4, 2024; Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA; LSU Lady Tigers head coach Kim Mulkey yells during the second half against the Florida Gators at Pete Maravich Assembly Center. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Hinton-USA TODAY Sports

LSU’s women’s basketball hit a bit of an inflection point last week.

With a loss to Mississippi State on the road, the Tigers had dropped back-to-back games and three of their last five. For a team that began the year as the No. 1 team in the country, something needed to change.

Coach Kim Mulkey seemingly had the answer in practice during LSU’s bye week. After a win over Vanderbilt on Thursday night, she said the team practiced without a ball during that week, putting offense aside for the time being to focus on the defense.

The result has been back-to-back impressive wins over Florida and, most recently, Vanderbilt.

“I’ve done that a lot,” Mulkey said. “Maybe not with this particular team, but after the Mississippi State loss it was time. We can score the ball, going a day or two without the ball in your hands isn’t going to stop you from being a great scorer. It was a bye week also, and we have a bye week after Sunday’s game too, so we may do that again. When we’re all in the ready position with our knees bent and guarding the basketball, you know you’re getting through and you’re going to win some basketball games. Also, our bench players getting more minutes and coming in and doing something has been good of late. We need to make sure they continue with their confidence.”

LSU has gotten back on track, and it will hope that continues when it returns home to host Alabama on Sunday afternoon.

Contact/Follow us @LSUTigersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Louisiana State news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Tyler to continue the conversation on Twitter: @TylerNettuno

This article originally appeared on LSU Wire: LSU women’s basketball practiced without the ball after losing streak