First as a player and then a coach, Kim Mulkey has never not wanted to win a basketball game.

If somebody’s keeping score, well, then game on.

But when it comes to postseason conference tournaments, Mulkey has rarely been in the situation of playing on or coaching a team that had to win the league tourney or at least a couple of games to assure her team would get an NCAA tournament invite.

And it’s also that way in her first year as head coach at LSU after playing in the NCAA tourney all but two (one in 2020 when COVID called the postseason) of her 21 seasons as Baylor’s head coach.

“I just have been fortunate to coach teams that by the time the conference tournaments rolled around, I felt like we were already in the NCAA tournament and a lock in our seeding," said Mulkey, whose 25-4 No. 6 ranked Tigers headed to Nashville on Wednesday where they’ll play Friday night at 6 p.m. in the SEC tournament quarterfinals vs. Kentucky or Mississippi State in Nashville. “I feel that way with this team."

The Tigers, unranked in preseason polls and picked to finish eighth in the SEC by the league's coaches, finished in second place with a 13-3 record two games behind regular season champ No. 1 nationally ranked South Carolina.

LSU is predicted to land no worse than a No. 3 seed in the NCAA tournament and is expected to host first and second round regional games.

“I just have to trust and believe through the years it’s been proven that if you’re one of the top teams, your seeding is pretty much set in stone for the postseason," Mulkey said. "Even if you lose the first game (in the SEC tourney), how would that knock you out of what you’ve done in the regular season?

“I’m not going to play (injured starting guard) Alexis Morris because I’m worried about the (NCAA tournament) selection committee?"

Morris, a redshirt junior guard who’s LSU second leading scorer averaging 15.8 points a game, strained at MCL in her left knee early in LSU’s regular season home finale vs. Alabama on Feb. 24. Teammate Jailin Cherry fell into Morris’ knee after taking a charge.

Mulkey said Morris will make the trip to Nashville, but it doesn’t sound like Mulkey will risk playing her.

“I’m going to have to decide if I'm gonna let her dress out or not,” Mulkey said. “She's one of those that might go check herself into the ballgame. If you on have a uniform, she'll be like, `Let me go shoot those free throws.’”

Mulkey said she told her team that its 12½-game turnaround (and counting) over last season, the largest in SEC history and the fifth largest ever in college basketball, is something that should be celebrated.

“I told the team they are a part of SEC history,” Mulkey said. “That’s not voted on. That’s something you earned. That’s the reward we all get.”

Grad student point guard Khayla Pointer, named All-SEC first team by the league coaches for the second consecutive season, said she had no idea she was part of a history-making team.

“It’s amazing, I can’t even put it into words,” Pointer said. “It’s really how we’ve been talking about this whole season. I think it’s just a testament to how much hard work we put in the offseason.

“Nobody expected to be where we are today. But we always knew we had a chance of being pretty good. When we put that chemistry and love and being able to play for Coach (Mulkey), look at everything we’ve been able to accomplish.

“It’s been really, really fun. Obviously, we’re not ready for it to end yet.”

Mulkey also addressed the backlash from the LSU fan base over her not winning SEC Coach of the Year. League coaches selected Dawn Staley of South Carolina for the fifth time.

“As far as me being Coach of the Year, I’ve got enough of those to collect dust,” said Mulkey, who has won seven national Coach of the Year awards and who's a seven-time Big 12 Coach of the Year honoree.

No. 7 seed Kentucky (15-11, 8-8 SEC) plays 10th seeded Mississippi State (15-13, 6-10 SEC) in Thursday’s second round with the winner playing the Tigers Friday night.

This season, LSU beat Kentucky 78-69 in Baton Rouge on Jan. 30 and defeated Mississippi State 71-59 in Starkville on Feb. 17.

“Kentucky is on a roll,” Mulkey said. "All their players are healthy now. They’ve had some COVID situations. Suspensions seem to be lifted and you know they've won a lot of games in-a-row (6) to finish .500 in the league. They have everybody back and playing very well.

“We recently played Mississippi State so we know they’re guard-oriented. They're not going to take many mid-range (jumpers). Their shots are 3’s and layups.”