LSU Head Coach Kim Mulkey found herself in the crosshairs of Shannon Sharpe’s criticism following the National Championship Game.

Sharpe, not one to mince words, expressed his discontent with Mulkey’s strategy. The LSU Tigers women’s basketball team suffered a defeat against Iowa in their Elite Eight showdown during the March Madness NCAA tournament. Despite a valiant effort, the Tigers fell short with a score of 94-87 against a formidable Hawkeyes squad spearheaded by Caitlin Clark, widely lauded as one of the greatest shooters in NCAA basketball history.

Sharpe, recognizing the tactical nuances at play, didn’t hesitate to voice his concerns. On ESPN’s “First Take,” he lauded Dawn Staley and the South Carolina Gamecocks for their adept coaching adjustments, contrasting them with Mulkey’s approach. Sharpe highlighted South Carolina’s strategic placement of their most athletic defender on Clark, while Mulkey’s defensive choices seemed less effective, resulting in Clark’s impressive performance.

“You see the difference between what LSU did and what South Carolina did,” Sharpe said on First Take. “South Carolina put their most athletic player on Caitlin Clark. What did LSU do? Put their least athletic player on Caitlin Clark. And you see the difference. They wore her down.”

South Carolina did a solid job of not only slowing down Clark’s scoring but also her facilitating to get her teammates involved as Shannon Sharpe further brought up.

“We’ve never seen a player in the women’s game bear more responsibility than Caitlin Clark. She has to score damn near all their points. And she has to facilitate,” Shannon Sharpe said. “And you saw at the end, Raven Johnson was picking her pockets, something we did not see all year long. They wore her down, and as the game got going, she got more and more frustrated because she knew she didn’t have the horses running alongside her that South Carolina did.”

The disparity between the two teams’ coaching strategies was evident throughout the game, prompting Sharpe to critique Mulkey’s coaching decisions. His sentiments were echoed on his podcast, “Nightcap with Unc and Ocho,” where he further dissected LSU’s defensive lapses and Mulkey’s perceived shortcomings in curtailing Clark’s impact on the game.

In contrast, Sharpe praised Staley’s composed demeanor and strategic acumen, particularly her decision not to call a timeout during challenging moments, allowing her players to navigate through adversity.

Sharpe’s candid assessment underscored the importance of coaching decisions in high-stakes games, sparking discussions about Mulkey’s approach and the contrasting successes of other coaches like Staley.