Former South Carolina guard Milaysia Fulwiley already made her new coach, LSU’s Kim Mulkey, tweet a hysterical GIF, and that’s impressive. Fulwiley has yet to play a game for the Tigers.
In case you missed it, after South Carolina fell to UConn in the national championship, it was apparent the roster wouldn’t look the same. Several players declared for the WNBA, and days later, head coach Dawn Staley landed Florida State guard Ta’Niya Latson. Latson joining the South Carolina roster certainly made it unclear what the rotation might be like amongst the guards.
So, it wasn’t shocking when Greenville News reporter Lulu Kesin broke the story that Fulwiley intended to enter the transfer portal. Then, the questions started. Where would Fulwiley go? Who would she play with?
Now, we know the answer. Fulwiley announced on Instagram Friday that she is transferring to LSU. With a yellow and purple-themed graphic featuring Mulkey, the new LSU guard captioned the post “Geaux Tigers.”
Fulwiley’s news sent shockwaves through basketball circles, even garnering a fitting three-word homage to her Instagram handle from new teammate, Flau’jae Johnson. “With the butter”, Johnson simply said.
Still, perhaps nobody might be more excited than Mulkey, who landed one of the transfer portal’s best talents from a rival. She posted a rare tweet that was too hilarious not to share. It contained three alarm emojis and a GIF of her dancing.
It’s unclear who advised Mulkey to post the GIF, but give that person a raise.
MiLaysia Fulwiley joining LSU after two years at South Carolina
Fulwiley, who will be a junior next season, entered the portal shortly after South Carolina lost to UConn in the NCAA title game. A massive part of coach Dawn Staley’s rotation this past season, Fulwiley averaged 11.7 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 18.9 minutes per game. Those numbers were almost identical to the ones she posted her freshman year, when she averaged 11.7 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 18.4 minutes.
She started three of her 77 games in two seasons with the Gamecocks but built her role by coming off the bench and providing a major scoring spark with her ability to finish in transition. She shot 43.2% from the field and 30.2% from 3-point range over the past two seasons.
Fulwiley now joins a guard-heavy LSU squad headlined by Mikaylah Williams and Flau’jae Johnson, but she should be able to carve out a similar role with the Tigers, perhaps with more playing time.
LSU lost five players in the transfer portal, and between the portal and exhausted eligibility, it lost all five of its forwards and centers. Fulwiley is LSU’s third addition from the portal, joining Kate Koval and Amiya Joyner.