BALTIMORE — The sign held by a girl behind the LSU women’s basketball team’s bench Wednesday night was a tribute to the player the packed house was there to see. “Bayou Barbie,” it read — the nickname for one of the most popular players in the nation.

But Angel Reese, the 6-foot-3 LSU center and reigning Final Four most outstanding player, reminded reporters after the Tigers defeated Coppin State, 80-48, of a key detail.

“This is my home first,” said Reese, a native of Randallstown. “I’m the Baltimore Barbie before the Bayou Barbie.”

It might have been a Coppin State home game at the school’s Physical Education Complex, but it was Reese’s homecoming, and Baltimore was ready to welcome back one of its own.

Reese and No. 7 LSU, the defending national champions, made a rare trip to the HBCU campus as part of Tigers Coach Kim Mulkey’s effort to schedule road games in the home cities of her players. When LSU called in February, Coppin State immediately accepted.

By Wednesday, the school’s 4,100-capacity arena was sold out, with tickets reportedly going for four times face value. More than two hours before tip-off, the purple and gold had begun to fill the gym. Little girls lined balconies wearing Reese’s No. 10 jersey.

Few expected it to be much of a game — and it wasn’t — but it was an occasion. Reese made sure of that as she went well beyond her 20-person ticket allotment and had plenty more family members and friends in the stands.

The Baltimore embrace was a warm one as Mayor Brandon Scott (D) and Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) were in attendance.

“We’re a basketball town,” Scott said. “To have one of our hoopers who has gone on to do tremendous things come back, but come back to Coppin State, an HBCU that has meant so much to Baltimore, that has so much deep basketball history itself, means the world. We’re going to show up for our own. And both Angel and Coppin are our own.”

This wasn’t the first time Reese was on the Coppin State campus for a college game, but this occasion felt much different. Nearly two years ago, before Reese transferred from Maryland, she made the short trip north early in her sophomore season following an injury-played freshman campaign.

“Walking in here felt completely different than the first time coming in here,” Reese said. “In high school, I never played here. My sophomore year, I remember the first time I came here and there weren’t that many fans here. But then coming in tonight, just being able to see my impact and being able to see how much has changed and understanding my impact in this world. Baltimore has meant everything to me.”

She returned Wednesday as a two-time all-American with a national championship ring and an ESPY for best breakthrough athlete. She has appeared in a music video with Cardi B and Latto and has thrown out the first pitch at an Orioles game. Her name, image and likeness valuation, according to On3.com, is $1.7 million — ninth among all college athletes and second among women, behind only LSU gymnast Olivia Dunne.

Reese has become a star, and her return was an event. Even those wearing Coppin State gear cheered for Reese and gasped as she used a Euro step to get to the rim for an early layup.

“It’s rare that a big-time school comes to a small school, an HBCU at that,” said Derrick Morris, sporting a Coppin State sweatshirt, who hadn’t been to a game in at least eight years. “So that brought the spark back, like: ‘Hey, I’ve got to go. I’ve got to be here.’ It’s just remarkable. I feel the energy. Everyone is excited. People I haven’t seen in years are coming to the game. It’s good to see the support that the city is bringing to Coppin State University.”

Reese did not disappoint. She won the opening tip and had a pair of early steals and breakaway layups and banked in an ­off-balance runner in transition. She threw up three fingers after whipping a pass across court for a Flau’jae Johnson three-pointer. By the time she checked out for the final time with 3:18 remaining, she had 26 points, six rebounds, five steals, two assists and a block. The crowd showed its appreciation, showering her with applause.

“Angel has come back to Baltimore and done a lot of wonderful things, and this means a great deal to her,” Mulkey said. “And because it means a great deal to her, it means a great deal to us as a program.”

Despite LSU’s famed purple and gold — and Coppin’s blue and yellow — this game was dominated by pink. Both teams wore the color as part of a fundraising effort for the Kay Yow Cancer Fund. The Eagles wore all pink, head to toe, while the Tigers wore white jerseys with purple lettering and numerals and pink trim. Mulkey went the festive route with a black sweater with designs of tigers in pink and green rhinestones.

Coppin State Coach Jermaine Woods wore a pink blazer that he said Mulkey planned to sign and they would auction off for charity.

“We did something bigger than basketball,” Woods said. “We raised money — this is the first ‘Play for Kay’ game in HBCU history. And so that was a big deal.”
The vibes were overwhelmingly positive Wednesday even if the season has been a bit of a roller coaster for the Tigers, who won their 12th straight after losing their season opener to Colorado. Reese missed two weeks and Mulkey never explained her absence, which was not because of an injury. Mulkey was ejected on a double technical foul Sunday. Forward Sa’Myah Smith was lost for the season because of a knee injury, and guard Kateri Poole left the team earlier in December. Hailey Van Lith remains out with an injury. There was even a parental social media spat.

All the adversity hasn’t slowed the Tigers. And as Mulkey gives the players a holiday break, the “Baltimore Barbie” is staying home.

“Your home is where your roots are, and it’s where you usually become who you are,” Mulkey said. “No matter where you travel in your life, your roots are so deep. I went back to Louisiana for the same reason Angel feels good tonight — because we came back to her roots.”