LSU Women’s Basketball Schedule: Top 5 Takeaways As MiLaysia Fulwiley Takes On New Role for Kim Mulkey’s Tigers

    The LSU Tigers have finalized and released their schedule for the upcoming 2025-26 season. After last year ended in the Elite Eight, Kim Mulkey dove deep in the transfer portal, nabbing South Carolina standout MiLaysia Fulwiley in one of the most talked-about moves in the entire transfer portal. Not that the cupboard was exactly empty at LSU anyway.

    The Tigers were already set to return star guards, Mikaylah Williams and Flau’jae Johnson, giving them two elite scorers. Fulwiley will help, as will massive Notre Dame transfer Kate Koval and a banner freshman class. With the schedule now circulating, here are five takeaways from the full LSU slate.

    Top 5 LSU schedule takeaways ahead of the 2025-26 season

    LSU guard Flau'jae Johnson
    Flau’jae Johnson will lead LSU against an intriguing 2025-26 schedule, with a trip to the Virgin Islands, a road game at Duke and a challenging SEC slate. (Photo Credit: IMAGN)

    SEC/ACC Challenge is intriguing

    One exception to a lightweight pre-conference schedule is the annual SEC/ACC Challenge matchup. The Tigers will face Duke on the road on December 4th. The Blue Devils also reached the Elite Eight a year ago, falling to eventual national runner-up South Carolina in a 54-50 slugfest. The Blue Devils did lose plenty of talent, but still should be a competitive squad, particularly on the road.

    Tough Luck on the Double Dip

    The SEC schedule goes for 16 games, but it’s a 16-team league. This means that every SEC school will play every other team once… and then one other team twice. LSU certainly didn’t get an easy path here, as its double-up opponent is Texas, fresh off a Final Four season a year ago. The Tigers have a home-and-home battle with the Longhorns. Star scorer Madison Booker will be back with the ‘Horns and will make that battle a tough one.

    Plenty of Heavyweights Ahead

     

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    The usual SEC slate involves a ton of intriguing matchups. That first South Carolina/LSU game of the post-Fulwiley transfer era is certainly one to circle. It’s at LSU on Valentine’s Day. Likewise, the annual battle with Tennessee, something of a sleeping SEC giant, will take place at LSU on February 26th in the Tigers’ penultimate regular-season game.

    Some of the more notable road trips, aside from the aforementioned visit to Texas, would include at Oklahoma (and standout Reagan Beers) on January 18th and a battle at top scorer Mikayla Blakes and Vandy on January 4th.

    A fun trip definitely highlights the non-conference games

    Suffice it to say, Kim Mulkey won’t win any awards for playing a bulky non-conference schedule. Granted, a 16-game SEC slate awaits, but many of LSU’s non-conference foes could probably play with an extra player on the floor and not threaten the Tigers. But a trip to the U.S. Virgin Islands in late November is a highlight. LSU will play Marist and then either Miami of Ohio or Washington State. The hoops might not be epic, but the trip will be.

    Slate of Games Should Test LSU Well

    Yes, the Tigers could have been more adventurous in the pre-conference schedule. But with the nature of the women’s NCAA Tournament and the ensuing push for a Top 4 seed, it’s hard to blame Kim Mulkey for taking relatively few risks with a team that will be working out its chemistry in the early part of the season.

    But that SEC schedule will offer everything from talented backcourts to tough post players like Beers. If the SEC schedule won’t get LSU ready for postseason play, nothing will. The Tigers set up a path that’s both reasonably challenging but also shouldn’t stop them from claiming a top-four seed and two home games in the NCAA Tournament.

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