Washington teams ready for March Madness

MOSES LAKE — One of the most anticipated times of the year for sports has finally arrived as March Madness is set to begin this week. In this year’s bracket, several Washington teams are set to go dancing, one of which already has reached the Sweet 16. See below which Washington college basketball programs are competing in the tournament this season.

Central Washington

The madness has already started for the Wildcats women’s basketball team as they have already made it to the Sweet 16.

They started their tournament run by avenging a semifinal loss to Montana State Billings in the Greater Northwest Athletic Conference tournament in the first round. The Wildcats dominated the Yellowjackets 63-36 and advanced to the round of 32 to play Vanguard University. According to a statement by CWU Athletics, Head Coach Randi Richardson was very proud of her team overcoming MSUB.

“To come out and play the way we did tonight and on our home floor is exactly what we wanted and envisioned for this week. I’m just so proud of our girls for going out and executing and having the game that we did,” Richardson said.

CWU hosted Vanguard at home Saturday where it was a competitive bout between the two teams for the entirety of the game. At halftime, the Wildcats led by a narrow 41-38 margin. Much like the first half, CWU kept the defensive edge as they outscored Vanguard 40-35 to secure the win 81-73 and advance to the sweet-16.

“I’m so proud of how we came out in the second half, I feel like we defended them better than in the first and we made some adjustments, our girls stayed committed to it and kept the faith. I’m elated for our team; they’ve earned this moment and I’m so excited for them,” Richardson said.

The Wildcats return to Nicholson Arena to play California State Polytechnic University, Pomona at 7 p.m. Results of that game were not available at the time of press.

Gonzaga

The Bulldogs will be represented in the men’s and women’s brackets this year.

The men enter the Division 1 tournament at 30-3 as the third seed in the West Region. The Bulldogs bring a lot of momentum into the tournament after a dominant regular season that was concluded with a 79-68 West Coast Conference Championship win over Santa Clara on March 10. With their level of play as of late, Head Coach Mark Few expressed confidence in his team’s potential going into the tournament.

“We’ve won in a bunch of different ways this year, and I think that’s a great sign, and we’re rounding into better health right now,” Few said.

The Zags will be led by star players Graham Ike, Braden Huff and Tyon Grant-Foster. Ike averaged 19 points and eight rebounds this season, Huff averaged 17 and five while Grant-Foster averaged 11 and five.

They will play 14th seed Kennesaw State on March 19 at 7 p.m.

The Lady Zags also enter their tournament as the West Coast Conference champions after defeating Oregon State 76-66 in the WCC championship finals. Top it off with a 24-9 record this season and that puts them as the 12th seed in Regional 2, which is held in Sacramento.

In Gonzaga’s win over the Beavers, Lauren Whittaker led the team with 26 points and nine rebounds, including a trio of three-pointers. Allie Turner put up 14 points five assists and four rebounds. Ines Bettencourt made a difference on defense, forcing three turnovers on the Beavers.

Their tournament campaign begins March 20 against fifth seed Ole Miss at 12:30 p.m.

University of Washington

The Huskies women’s basketball squad will represent UW this March after a 21-10 record earned them the sixth seed in the Regional Four bracket which will also be held in Sacramento.

According to a statement by UW Athletics, the Huskies faced 15 opponents in the field of 68 this season — earning victories against nine of those squads. Washington also beat some of the Big Ten’s highest-ranked teams during the 2025-26 campaign – No. 6 Michigan, No. 9 Minnesota, No. 14 Maryland, No. 22 USC, and No. 24 Oregon.

Sayvia Sellers, Avery Howell and Brynn McGaughy are players to look out for as they embark on the madness. Sellers is their leading scorer with 18 points per game. Right behind her is Howell, averaging 13 per game while also leading the team in rebounding with eight per game this season. Defensively, McGaughy will be key for UW as she averages four rebounds and a steal per game this season.

They will play the 11th-seed South Dakota State Jackrabbits on March 20 at 11:30 a.m. in what will also be the first meeting between the two teams in program history.

    St. Mary's players pose for photographs with the West Coast Conference trophy after winning the conference's regular season championship, after an NCAA college basketball game against Gonzaga in Moraga, Calif., Saturday, Feb. 28, 2026.
  

    The Huskies react to making the bracket on Selection Sunday. They will play South Dakota State in the first round.
  

    The Zags women’s basketball team celebrates winning the West Coast Conference title over Oregon State. They will face Ole Miss in the first round of the Division 1 tournament.