Shannon Sharpe Blasts Kim Mulkey: She Needs To Be Held ‘Accountable’ For Her Comments

A lot of people weren’t happy with the comments LSU head coach Kim Mulkey gave following the Tigers’ on-court altercation with the Gamecocks of South Carolina on Sunday.

“It’s ugly. It’s not good. No one wants to be a part of that. No one wants to see that ugliness. But I can tell you this, I wish she would have pushed Angel Reese,” Mulkey said about South Carolina’s Kamilla Cardoso during her post-game press conference.

“You’re 6-8, don’t push somebody that little. That was uncalled for in my opinion. Let those two girls that were jawing, let them go at it.”

On Monday, Shannon Sharpe took exception to Kim Mulkey’s comments during a segment on First Take.

“You mean it figuratively, not literally. ‘Oh, we’re gonna fight. We’re gonna fight them tooth and nail. We’re gonna scratch and claw. You give nothing, you allow them to take nothing,’” Sharpe began.

“But Kim Mulkey, instead of saying, ‘You know what, sometimes when emotion is high, logic is low. And that’s not what women’s college basketball is about. Especially, with the love and support the women’s game has received this year thanks to Caitlin Clark, thanks to USC, like JuJu Watkins, and some of the others.’

“But for you to take that stance, ‘I wish Cardoso could’ve pushed Angel Reese.’ Really? Is that what you want? You want to see a fight?” Sharpe continued. “You want the women’s game to be marred by a fight? Really? C’mon Kim Mulkey. You’ve got to be better. And we’ve got to start doing a better job of holding Kim Mulkey accountable and responsible for some of her comments. We let that stuff slide because she’s a national champion. I refuse to do that.

“I believe she was wrong in this instance and Dawn Staley showed the utmost class and respect, not only for the game, but for her team and the opposing team. I wish Kim Mulkey would have shown that level of respect.”

After he spoke, Shannon Sharpe was joined in his condemnation of Kim Mulkey by Stephen A. Smith.

“If a man had said that, we would hold him accountable,” Smith added. “Kim Mulkey has gone a long time and escaped criticism for a lot of things that she’s said… she says and does a lot of things that rub me the wrong way. And I’m not going to apologize for being as harsh and as stern as I am because of what she had to say yesterday.”

Even before the bench-clearing incident, Kim Mulkey had already drawn the ire of many fans for the way she handled an interview at halftime of the game.

“I imagine there must be a side to Kim Mulkey that is different. That is likeable and would make me want to send my child to play for her. But I certainly have never seen it,” another fan wrote on X.