LSU and Kim Mulkey add a top-notch reinforcement ahead of upcoming season

Kim Mulkey is reuniting with a former player ahead of what looks to be a challenging 2025-26 NCAA season. The veteran coach, who will enter her fifth season leading the LSU Tigers, will be reuniting with a member of the 2023 NCAA championship team. 

Emily Ward, part of the squad that took down Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes in the championship game, is the new Director of Women’s Basketball Operations ahead of the new campaign. 

Ward played with the Tigers from 2019-20 through the magical 2022-23 campaign, recording 38 games, although she only averaged 3.3 minutes and 1.0 points per outing. The forward, however, retired as an NCAA champion. 

Emily Ward ecstatic with return to LSU 

“I’m very excited to welcome Emily Ward back to LSU in her new role as our Director of Women’s Basketball Operations,” Mulkey said in a statement. “Her experience as a National Champion and as a team captain during her playing career will be instrumental in her new role. We’re fortunate to have Emily return to our family, and I can’t wait to see her shine in this position!”

Kim Mulkey

Emily Ward was over the moon with her return to LSU. Talking about her decision to join the Tigers again, she didn’t mince words and hyped up a new partnership with Kim Mulkey.

“Playing for Coach Mulkey pushed me to become the best version of myself,” Ward said. “She believed in me, challenged me, and taught me what it means to lead with intensity, discipline and heart. Not many people can say they played for a Hall of Fame coach, and now I’m honored to say I get to work with her, too.“

After two championship-less seasons, the Tigers are eager to compete for another title and make life difficult for Geno Auriemma’s UConn Huskies and Dawn Staley’s South Carolina Gamecocks.