The LSU Tigers are on fire, blasting past Alcorn State Lady Braves with a commanding 112-49 win, which is now termed as one of the most dominant games in recent times. Flau’jae Johnson powered the charge with 18 points as LSU secured its sixth straight victory of the season. Yet senior guard Kailyn Gilbert was nowhere in the lineup, raising immediate questions about her status.

Offering an emotional update on the situation following the win, LSU head coach Kim Mulkey revealed that Gilbert missed the game due to personal family matters.

“(KG), I’m going to try not to get emotional, has been dealing with family issues for a long time,” Mulkey said in the post-game interview, with tears in her eyes. “A 22-year-old should not have to be dealing with what she’s dealing with. And she needs to help somebody in her family. She’s so mature. We just ask everybody to pray for her because she always does the right thing.”

While this makes it clear that Kailyn Gilbert’s absence wasn’t disciplinary, there has been no update regarding the family problems she is dealing with or when she will be back. What we do know is that her absence felt even heavier considering how much she has meant to LSU over the past year.

One of just four returning players for the No. 5 Tigers, Kailyn Gilbert transferred from Arizona ahead of the 2024-25 season and immediately carved out a place in Mulkey’s rotation. She delivered some of LSU’s most clutch moments last season, hitting two game-winning shots, one against Washington in The Bahamas and another on the road at Tennessee. She also poured in a season-high 25 points in a December win over Stanford.

Mulkey even made it clear earlier this season that she wanted Gilbert to step into more responsibility. After LSU’s season opener on Nov. 4, she said she was challenging the senior to embrace additional ball-handling duties behind freshman starting point guard Jada Richard.

“I think she likes it,” Mulkey said, as per Nola.com, “and it’s different because of her game – she holds on to the ball a lot. She dribbles a lot. She can’t do that as a point guard. You gotta share it, you gotta get rid of it, you gotta demand what defense we’re in.”

We’ll see if Gilbert acts on her coach’s advice when she’s back, but for now, even without her, the Lady Tigers cruised through and how! The win secured their sixth straight 100-point game to start the season. The last team to put together a streak like this was Louisiana Tech, back when Mulkey was still wearing a jersey rather than a headset, and they went on to win the first-ever NCAA title. Now at 6‑0, their only direction is up.

What’s next for the LSU Tigers?

Kim Mulkey-led Tigers have played six matches so far in the 2025-26 NCAA season, and they have won every single one of them with an average score difference of 57.8 per game. However, the season is far from over, as the upcoming Tigers will face some of the top-ranked teams in the league.

• Against the No. 20-ranked Kentucky Wildcats on January 1st
• Against the No. 17-ranked Vanderbilt Commodores on January 4th
• Against the No. 4-ranked Texas Longhorns on January 11th
• Against the No. 8-ranked Oklahoma Sooners on January 18th.

For now, the Tigers will face off against the Duke Blue Devils in a much-anticipated game on December 4. With tough matchups against ranked teams looming, the Tigers will need to stay focused and resilient as they aim to maintain their dominant start and prove they can handle the pressures of a challenging schedule now that they will be playing without their veteran star Kailyn Gilbert.