Kim Mulkey and Co. wanted to send a message to start their March Madness. The ruthless baton rouge crowd and the Tigers went hard at Jacksonville, establishing a 20 point lead in the first quarter and never looking back. Eventually, LSU won their first round 116-58 with the 10000+ PMAC crowd backing them. As they move into the second round, Mulkey has revealed a request to their fans to show up for one specific player: Flau’jae Johnson.
That is true, especially after how they are getting there. Johnson led the way with 20 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists. Now, they will face the winner of No. 7 Texas Tech versus No. 10 Villanova. Considering Johnson’s history with the program, Mulkey has appealed to the crowd to show up at her last home game in numbers.
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“Flau’jae Johnson deserves to have this place sold out,” Kim Mulkey told the media. “What she has meant to our community, to women’s basketball, to all sports at LSU. When you think about LSU sports, we can all sit here and start naming people that played in all the sports. Flau’jae may be the only one that we don’t need to know what her last name is. You just say Flau’jae.”
Johnson was the first McDonald’s All-American Mulkey recruited to the program. She is one of five Tigers women’s players to score 2,000 career points, setting the stage for future players to build on it. She did it all while maintaining a successful career as a hip-hop artist.
And it’s not even just about her success but also about her loyalty to the program. She could have taken the leap to the WNBA last year, but she stayed to win a championship of her own. Winning it for LSU was a big part of her decision to return. For Mulkey, Johnson will go down in the history books as one of the best athletes to play for LSU.
“She’ll go down in the history of LSU athletics as not only a young lady that stayed four years, first McDonald’s All-American I signed here, won a national championship and Elite Eights she’s been in, what she gives and does in the community with all her money,” Mulkey further said. “She’s a joy, and as a coach, you hope you can just coach those kinds of kids in your lifetime.”
Beyond just the court, Johnson has formed a meaningful connection with fans. She has been helping the community throughout her career and was selected for the 2026 SEC Community Service team as well. Johnson has completed 176 hours of community service, including 6 hours in her senior season thus far.
That includes distributing candy to local students while engaging in fun basketball activities with Boozar. Or, assisting athletes in the Miracle League. For Empower 225 and Thankful Tiger, she donates toys and food to nonprofit organizations. So her impact goes very much beyond the court. “We need to sell this place out. It was a great crowd today, but I saw a few empty seats,” Mulkey appealed. “So I’m going to harp on that tonight and tomorrow, and hopefully it’ll be a memorable day or night.”
Few love Baton Rouge like Flau’jae does. Even as she is leaving after her final game. The fans can expect her to return. Not as a player, but as a member of their society. When it’s time to hang up her boots, Johnson plans to build a house in the area. Baton Rouge is that special to her. “I’ve been to a lot of places, different continents and countries now, and nothing tastes like the food here,” Johnson says. “The people are the friendliest here, and I just love the energy of this place. It’s different than anything in the world.”
Naturally, even the fans would want to show out for one of their own. You can expect an even louder crowd filled to the brim for LSU’s second-round game. However, as Kim Mulkey challenges for the title, she has some qualms regarding their dominating win over Jacksonville.
Kim Mulkey Unimpressed At LSU’s Record Offensive Performance
The first round was a night of history for the Tigers as they tied the record for most 100-point games in a single season with 15. They dominated with 7 players in the double digits and even had a 99 point lead at one point. It was their best scoring performance since December last year. But at this point Mulkey is used to that, as she called for a better defense.
“The offense is not surprising. We have seen it all year,” She said. “I feel like I am a recorder. We can score the ball. We just have to keep committing to things defensively when you play the great things that are as good as you or better than you. And we have to make sure not to show them turnovers. We have to make sure that the defensive help is there. We got sloppy doing that.”
Mulkey is particularly referring to the second quarter, where they conceded 22 points. Against a team you are so much better than, the team got a little lax. And they can’t afford to make it a habit. The opponents will only get stronger from here on. LSU is currently the 7th best defense per Barttorvik, but at their best they can be much better. The team needs to push itself to the limits if they want a chance at the trophy.
