Kamie Ethridge stood at a podium last week and told us exactly what we needed to hear about 2026 women's basketball. No fluff. No coach-speak about "taking it one day at a time." She broke down the roster, the schedule, and the plan like someone who knows she has something real in Pullman. Our take? This team is going to be a pain in the ass for every ranked program that looks at the bracket and thinks they can sleep on the Cougs.
The timing matters. This Media Day came right after the Coug Women held steady at No. 13, still holding the top spot in the West, and right before Hall of Fame Weekend Gets a Top-25 Test for the Cougs. That Hall of Fame weekend is the kind of measuring stick you want early. Gubi has built a program that doesn't flinch at a top-25 opponent, and Ethridge's comments suggest the 2026 group has that same wiring. They aren't just trying to hold their ranking. They sound like they intend to climb.
What struck us most from Media Day was the specificity. Ethridge talked about individual players and their roles, not generalities about "effort" and "growth." That tells you the coaching staff already knows what they have. They've seen the practice film. They've run the sets. This isn't a team hoping to figure it out by November. This is a team that knows its identity and is now drilling it. For Cougs who remember the years when women's hoops was a good story but not a national story, this is the difference between hoping and knowing. The ranking at No. 13 is a reward for the work they've already done, but the real question is whether they can push through that ceiling. Ethridge's tone suggests she thinks they can.
One thing to watch: the schedule. Ethridge mentioned specific matchups that will test depth and conditioning early. If this group comes out of November with the same health and the same chemistry, they are going to be a bracket problem for someone seeded above them. And for the Cougs who can't make it back to Pullman for a game, keep an eye on the travel squad rotation. Ethridge hinted at a rotation that spreads minutes across the roster. That could mean a deeper bench come March, or it could mean the starting five hasn't fully separated yet. We'll know by December. Either way, this is the most confident a WSU women's basketball coach has sounded at a podium in a while. That's worth your attention. Go Cougs.