The curious case of Angel Reese continues into its third week as LSU prepares for a rematch of last year’s Final Four matchup on Thursday. Will the Tigers have their First Team All-American on the floor?
We don’t know. Nobody knows.
Reese was benched against Kent State on Nov. 14. She has not played since.
She did not travel with her team to a game against Southeastern Louisiana. Nor did she fly to the Cayman Islands over Thanksgiving weekend. A timeline for return remains entirely unclear to those outside of the program.
Even though Reese has not played in games, she is not barred from team facilities. The 21-year-old was in the practice gym shortly after her benching. Her Instagram story on late Monday night indicated that she was in the PMAC — LSU’s home gym, the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.
The post could mean one of four things:
- Reese is practicing with her team and will play on Thursday night.
- Reese is practicing with her team but will not play on Thursday.
- Reese is back in the gym with her team but is not an active participant.
- Reese swung by the PMAC for something unrelated to team activities.
Based on her attire, it seems to be one of the latter two scenarios. She appeared to be wearing street clothes, which makes the update even more confusing. Is she allowed to attend practice but not play?
Does that indicate an injury? Might there be something else going on? Could the absence stem from an eligibility issue?
The door to speculation and conjecture is wide open. Nobody will shut it.
Head coach Kim Mulkey has not provided any clarity about Angel Reese to this point and refuses to do so. The same goes for Kateri Poole, who is also away from the team.
No further explanation will be provided on Tuesday.
Mulkey is set to speak with reporters at 1:00 p.m. CST on Wednesday afternoon. LSU will host Virginia Tech for a top-10 matchup at the PMAC on Thursday night.