BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — LSU forward Angel Reese went straight back to the Tigers’ starting lineup upon her return from a four-game absence.
Reese, whose two-week departure from the team stemmed from unspecified “locker room issues” that coach Kim Mulkey has declined to divulge, rejoined her teammates at practice this week as the seventh-ranked Tigers prepared to host No. 9 Virginia Tech on Thursday night.
Before the game, it was almost as if Reese had never left. She was presented with a commemorative basketball during a pregame ceremony recognizing her 1,000th career rebound earlier this season.
When the starting lineup was announced, Reese was introduced last, as she usually is during home games. And the crowd, which included LSU football quarterback Jayden Daniels and receiver Malik Nabers, cheered enthusiastically.
Reese started LSU’s first four games, averaging 17 points and 10.3 rebounds as the Tigers went 3-1 — the lone loss coming in their opener to now fellow No. 7 Colorado.
LSU won all four games she missed, three of them by lopsided margins.
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