This week on The IX Sports Podcast College Basketball Edition, hosts Melissa Triebwasser and Michael Waterloo break down lots of news from across the college basketball world.
The pair started with a discussion of the announcement that Kate Koval is leaving the Louisiana State University (LSU) basketball program. Koval, who is Ukrainian, put out an announcement saying that she chose to step back from the team after Head Coach Kim Mulkey decided to recruit a player from Russia.
Koval’s father is fighting in the Ukrainian military in the war against Russia.
“My first reaction was Kim Mulkey is going to Kim Mulkey, and I think that it doesn’t come as a surprise to anybody that’s followed the sport that she has a bottom line, and that bottom line is winning,” Triebwasser said. “And I, while I do think that she cares about her players, there is a history of her asking players to fit in the boxes that make her comfortable and make the most sense for her.”
Triebwasser went on to say that she does not hold the Russian player responsible for the conflict or even know her views on the matter. But the situation, she said, could have been handled differently. Waterloo agreed.
“We don’t know how Koval would have felt about her if this was brought up a different way. But like she said, she has to stay true to herself because … This is something that is affecting her friends, her family, people close to her have died,” Waterloo said.
Non-conference games to look forward to
Then Waterloo and Triebwasser gave the audience a preview of some exciting non-conference matchups to come.
Texas and Texas Christian University will play Dec. 6, the same day that South Carolina will face off against Oklahoma State. Both of those games are expected to be fun to watch, the pair said.
Tune in to the episode to hear a break down of the state of five year NCAA eligibility rules and what it could mean for roster construction this year and next.
Make sure to subscribe to The IX Sports Podcast for in-depth coverage of women’s soccer, hockey and basketball; and tune in each weekday morning for a quick overview of the biggest headlines on Women’s Sports Daily, like WNBA news and PWHL expansion updates.
