![Jan 7, 2026; West Lafayette, Indiana, USA; Washington Huskies head coach Danny Sprinkle reacts to game action ]during the second half against the Purdue Boilermakers at Mackey Arena. Mandatory Credit: Marc Lebryk-Imagn Images](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,x_0,y_88,w_4683,h_2634/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/163/01kgjgx1afqpveacgpr1.jpg "Jan 7, 2026; West Lafayette, Indiana, USA; Washington Huskies head coach Danny Sprinkle reacts to game action ]during the second half against the Purdue Boilermakers at Mackey Arena. Mandatory Credit: Marc Lebryk-Imagn Images")
The Washington Huskies are currently sitting at a 23% chance to make the NCAA Tournament. That's not great, but there's also a path forward to make March Madness, and it's not as hard as you'd think. ESPN posted a bubble watch article this week and walked through every team on the bubble, giving them a tier ranking: "Locks", "Should Be In", "Work To Do", and "Long Shots".
The Huskies found themselves in the "Work To Do" category with the caveat that they are borderline "Long Shots." Yet, there is a clear path forward and one that ESPN lays out, and this article will make it even clearer.
"They are just 4-7 in Big Ten play and rank 12th in the conference on résumé (66th nationally). But they also have a pair of Quadrant 1 wins, most recently adding what might have been their most impressive of the season with a 14-point road victory over Northwestern on Saturday. There's a ton of work left to do, but Washington could run up wins against the easiest remaining Big Ten schedule."ESPN "Bubble Watch"
ESPN says Washington still has work to do if they want to make the NCAA Tournament
Related: Iowa basketball fans are crying about tip-time update that favors Washington
The path is as clear as this with Washington's schedule. The next two games are quad-1 games against Iowa and UCLA. The Dawgs have to win at least one of those, but if they win them both them you'll start seeing their name on the bubble.
Then the schedule drastically opens up for them as they begin a stretch of games in which they are playing the bottom half of the Big Ten, facing off against teams like Rutgers, Maryland, Penn State, and Oregon. All of those are 100+ in the NET.
They need to run through those games like a hot knife in butter and find themselves sitting closer to 20 wins. That would set the stage for the Big Ten tournament, and simply winning one Big Ten Tournament game, the odds will go from 23% where it is right now to nearly 100% on Selection Sunday. That's the path, and ESPN is even giving them a chance, but they have to control their destiny with winning.