The NCAA Tournament is fast-approaching, and the LSU Tigers are set to be without one of their top assistants in Gary Redus II.
Redus recently accepted a job with the Rutgers Scarlet Knights as their next head coach. It was not known whether or not he would continue working with the Tigers through the tournament, but Tigers head coach Kim Mulkey recently shared that he would not during an appearance on ESPN 104.5's Off the Bench.
"I know his love for our program and our team. He'd want to be on the bench for us, too. But as a mentor, I can't be selfish and ask him to stay with our team because this could be a long three- or four-week process with the playoffs. You need to be working," said Mulkey.
Being the head of a college basketball program since 2000, few people know more about what it takes to find success in Women's Basketball than Mulkey. Being able to learn from her is what has gotten Redus to the level of head coach so quickly, so now he will get this final lesson before moving on.
"You can't be married to two wives. I said, 'Get out of here, go to work, get your staff in place, get your kids that are there to stay.'"
This will certainly be a big loss for the tournament staff. While Redus' calling card has always been his ability to recruit, he is also a stellar guard coach, which is the strength of this LSU squad. Even past just Flau'jae Johnson and Mikaylah Williams, the development of Jada Richard and Bella Hines has been big for this year's team.
Mulkey will surely be on the lookout for the best full-time replacement possible after the tournament, but they'll need to find ways to make up for the loss in the meantime.