After earning a spot in the First Four in 2025, coach Tina Langley’s team took a big step forward this season, going 21-10 on the season and 10-8 in Big Ten play, including a win over the USC Trojans in the conference tournament before falling to the top-seeded UCLA Bruins on Sunday. They will now have to compete with the South Dakota State Jackrabbits, who went 27-6 during the 2025-26 season.
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Coach Aaron Johnston’s team won the Summit League Tournament to secure an automatic bid after an impressive regular season, where the Jackrabbits were led by First Team All-Conference honoree Brooklyn Meyer. The 6-foot-2 forward led her team in virtually every category, posting 22.4 points, 8 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.9 blocks per game.
She was flanked on the All-Summit League first team by guard Madison Mathiowetz, who added 13.6 points, 3.6 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game, which should present a formidable challenge, but the Huskies have a reliable core to lean on.
All season long, the Huskies have been led by junior guard Sayvia Sellers. The First Team All-Big Ten honoree averaged 18.5 points and a team-high 3.7 assists while contributing 2.7 rebounds per game and played stellar defense with 48 steals and a career-high 24 blocks, even though her three-point shooting took a step back from her sophomore season at 35.9 percent.Advertisement
Sellers has gotten plenty of help from All-Big Ten honorable mention Avery Howell, who averaged 13.7 points and a team-high 8.3 rebounds per game after transferring to Seattle after one season at USC. Former five-star recruit forward Brynn McGaughy, who earned a spot on the conference’s All-Freshman team after her freshman season, has also made a significant impact primarily coming off the bench, averaging 9 points and 4.4 rebounds per game with a team-high 34 blocks.
The Huskies and Jackrabbits will meet in Sacramento, California on Friday, March 20, time to be determined.
This article originally appeared on Huskies Wire: Washington Huskies WBB Receives No. 6 Seed in 2026 NCAA Tournament