Back in April 2026, when the University of Washington moved quickly to extend head coach Tina Langley through 2032, the decision felt bigger than a contract.
At the time, the move signaled that Washington was unwilling to risk the instability that has derailed so many promising programs across women’s college basketball. Rather than reset, the Huskies doubled down on continuity, betting that Langley’s culture, player development model, and long-term vision could sustain Washington’s rise in an increasingly ruthless Big Ten landscape.
Six months later, the national rankings suggest that bet is already paying dividends.
For the first time under head coach Tina Langley, the Washington Huskies will begin a season ranked in the Associated Press Top 25.
Washington checked in at No. 16 in the preseason AP Poll released this week, marking another significant milestone for a program that continues to climb the national landscape after its breakthrough 2025-26 campaign. The ranking places the Huskies among the nation’s elite heading into the 2026-27 season and makes them one of nine Big Ten programs represented in the poll.
Earlier this month, ESPN’s Charlie Creme ranked Washington No. 12 in his preseason Top 25, placing the Huskies four spots higher than their AP ranking.
The rankings are significant on their own. Washington has not been ranked this highly at any point since the 2016-17 season, when the Huskies reached the Sweet 16 and climbed as high as No. 7 nationally.
But the numbers themselves tell only part of the story.
More than anything, the rankings serve as evidence of something Washington has been working toward for years: transforming from a rebuilding program into a legitimate national contender.
When Tina Langley arrived at Washington, the Huskies were a program searching for stability and postseason relevance. Now, entering the 2026-27 season, the national conversation has changed dramatically.
The rankings represent more than preseason expectations. They serve as a reflection of how far Washington has come under Langley’s leadership.
More importantly, they validate Washington’s long-term vision and affirm that university leadership recognized what was being built before the rest of the country fully noticed.
When Langley arrived in Seattle, she inherited a program that had won just 25 games over the previous four seasons. The rebuild required patience, roster development, and a willingness to take a longer view than many programs are willing to embrace in today’s transfer portal era.
The Payoff of Staying the Course with Purpose
When Washington moved to extend Langley through 2032 earlier this year, the decision represented more than a vote of confidence in a successful coach.
It was a commitment to continuity.
That commitment felt particularly important in an era when coaching changes can trigger roster upheaval almost overnight. In today’s transfer portal environment, retaining a coach often means retaining an entire program identity. Washington’s administration recognized that what Langley had built was worth protecting.
At the time, the move reflected a belief that the Huskies were only beginning to realize their potential.
The preseason polls suggest that belief was well-founded.
A Breakthrough Season That Changed Expectations
Last season marked Washington’s most successful campaign in nearly a decade.
The Huskies won 22 games, earned a second consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance and captured the program’s first NCAA Tournament victory in 10 years. Their season ultimately ended with a heartbreaking 62-59 overtime loss to TCU in the Round of 32 — a painful, yet promising, defeat to end the season.
Players and fans alike were left disappointed but also believing the program had reached a significant inflection point. The loss felt less like an ending and more like the start of a new chapter.
Washington proved it could compete on the national stage.
The challenge then became sustaining that momentum.
Rather than taking a step backward after a breakthrough season, the Huskies spent the offseason positioning themselves to take another leap forward.
A Powerful Huskies Core Remained Intact
Perhaps Washington’s biggest offseason victory happened before a single transfer was added.
The Huskies kept their foundation together.
Washington returns all three of its all-conference honorees from last season, providing a level of continuity that has become increasingly rare in modern college basketball.
Sellers returns after averaging 18.0 points per game and earning First Team All-Big Ten honors. One of the conference’s premier players, Sellers enters her final collegiate season as the face of Washington’s championship aspirations.
Yet despite her production and leadership, Sellers has often remained somewhat overlooked on the national stage as an elite player.
In their preseason ranking of the Huskies at #12,ESPN highlighted Sellers as one of the country’s most underappreciated stars, noting that Washington’s rise has closely mirrored her impact on the program.
If Washington continues its ascent, Sellers may finally receive the nationwide recognition her play has long deserved.
Alongside Sellers, junior guard Avery Howell returns after averaging 14.2 points per game and earning honorable mention All-Big Ten recognition last season.
Sophomore forward Brynn McGaughy is also back after a breakout freshman campaign that landed her on the Big Ten All-Freshman Team.
Together, they form one of the strongest returning cores in the conference.
For a program entering the season with top-20 expectations, bringing back all three all-conference honorees was the most significant roster move.
In the current era of college basketball, roster continuity is no longer something programs can assume; yet Washington secured it.
Reloading Rather Than Just Replacing
The offseason story did not stop with retention.
Programs struggling to keep up in the portal era often spend their offseasons merely replacing departures.
On the other hand, elite programs positioned to contend spend their offseason adding pieces to an already established core.
This offseason was about more than retention. Washington supplemented its returning core with experienced, high-impact additions capable of elevating the program’s ceiling.
Langley, associate coach/recruiting lead Latara King and the rest of the coaching staff spent the offseason aggressively strengthening a roster that was already positioned among the Big Ten’s top teams via the transfer portal.
Washington added several experienced players expected to make an immediate impact.
The approach reflects how Washington’s expectations have evolved.
A few years ago, the program was focused on building a roster capable of reaching the NCAA Tournament.
Now the focus is advancing deeper into it by reloading.
The additions were made with that goal in mind.
The distinction is important.
Amid Clear Signs of Progress, B1G NIL Arms Race Continues
Of course, the rankings don’t answer every question surrounding Washington’s championship trajectory. As significant as the coaching extension was, one of the central issues facing the program remains unchanged: whether Washington can continue matching the resource commitments and NIL infrastructure of the Big Ten conference’s biggest powers.
The extension was Step One.
The subsequent national spotlight suggests it was the correct first step.
Now comes the next phase.
Washington has made important strides.
The university secured its head coach. The roster largely stayed together. Key contributors returned. Impact transfers arrived.
But sustaining a place among the nation’s elite will require continued investment.
Sustaining success in the Big Ten requires continued investment in coaching salaries, facilities, recruiting infrastructure, and athlete NIL opportunities. The conference’s top programs are backed by substantial resources and increasingly sophisticated NIL operations.
The lesson of the modern era is clear: success attracts attention and higher stakes.
Winning seasons attract outside interest in coaches. Talented players attract interest from other programs. Maintaining momentum requires institutional alignment and a commitment to supporting a program that’s no longer trying to reach the top, but stay there.
That is the challenge Washington now faces.
The encouraging reality for the Huskies is that the university appears to understand what’s at stake.
The AP, USA Today and ESPN evaluations are, in many ways, the first visible returns on those investments.
Now, the Dawgs’ rebuild is over. The foundation has been laid. National credibility has been earned.
For the first time in years, Washington enters a season with something more valuable than potential: well-earned expectations.
Washington has continuity; Washington has talent; Washington has national credibility.
For the first time in nearly a decade, the Huskies enter a season not as a program hoping to break through, but as one with the belief it will compete among the nation’s best.
