Ole Miss Coach Reacts To LSU Freshman Grace Knox Apology After Block Taunt
The No. 6-ranked LSU Tigers women's basketball team has received some fantastic minutes from freshman forward Grace Knox to this point in the 2025-26 NCAA season.
Knox is currently averaging 9.2 points, 4.6 rebounds, and is shooting 66.4% from the field in 17.8 minutes per game. But those who have watched Knox and LSU this season know that her impact isn't confined to the box score or stat sheet.
The 19-year-old Knox (who is originally from Las Vegas, Nevada) plays with a ton of passion and enthusiasm on the floor. She's a fiery competitor who plays with an impressive degree of blue-collar grit, which has appeared to rub off on her teammates and cause head coach Kim Mulkey to give Knox more playing time than she might have initially imagined when the season began.
However, this passion and intensity can backfire at times. This was the case when Knox tried to block a shot during LSU's February 19 game against Ole Miss.
After Knox was called for a foul on the block, she stood over Ole Miss forward Christeen Iwuala and appeared to taunt her verbally. This caused the referees to issue a technical foul. Then, when Kim Mulkey sent Knox to the bench, cameras caught the freshman continuing to talk.
Allat for a foul bruh 😭😭😭😭 https://t.co/QB2SYaGYaO pic.twitter.com/whtw3cvqh0
— Shabazz 💫 (@ShowCaseShabazz) February 20, 2026
Grace Knox Issues Apology, Yolett McPhee-McCuin Responds
On February 24, a video of Knox apologizing for her actions surfaced on social media.
"I know I can kind of get in the moment. And I realize that hurt the team, and that really didn’t look that well for LSU, just as a school. So I did apologize to my teammates. I apologized to the coaches. Because that was never really my intention to shoot anybody down or just be seen as that kind of person all the time," Knox said in the apology, per an X post from WAFB.
“I realize that hurt the team” LSU’s Knox apologizes and learns from Ole Miss experience: https://t.co/foYlBpd0pv pic.twitter.com/HQf1b4fvPa
— WAFB (@WAFB) February 24, 2026
This apology prompted a response on social media from Ole Miss women's basketball head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin (who could be seen beckoning for a technical foul when Knox made the block taunt), who replied to Knox's apology on X and wrote, "This is high level! She was extremely respectful in the handshake line and we took none of it personally after the play. Let’s move on! These are young people ladies & gentlemen. 🤝🏽".
This is high level! She was extremely respectful in the handshake line and we took none of it personally after the play. Let’s move on! These are young people ladies & gentlemen. 🤝🏽 https://t.co/PqpPIlv4UO
— Coach Yo (@YolettMcCuin) February 24, 2026
Props to all sides involved for not letting this moment boil over into something worse than what it had to be. Now it can serve as a learning moment for Knox.
Grant Young covers Women’s Basketball, the New York Yankees, and the New York Mets for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco (USF), where he also graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and played on USF’s Division I baseball team for five years. However, he now prefers Angel Reese to Angels in the Outfield.
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