Can UC Bearcats women’s basketball move up in Big 12 in 2026-27?

KANSAS CITY, MO – It’s the preseason of Katrina Merriweather’s fourth campaign with University of Cincinnati women’s basketball and the Bearcats, according to coaches, still have a long climb.

At Big 12 Basketball Media Day at T-Mobile Arena, UC was picked to finish 14th of 16 teams. They are still young, with last year’s highly ranked freshmen now sophomores.

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“It does not go up in the locker room,” Merriweather said. “I do think our returners understand why (the No. 14 ranking). You’ve got to face your reality sometimes. We did not close out games. There are no excuses in this game. The job is to show up, perform, and play well so you can win. Other people do not define who we are or what our season is going to look like.”

Head coach Katrina Merriweather boards the charter for Kansas City as the Cincinnati Bearcats women’s basketball team head to Big 12 Basketball Media Days.

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Merriweather, who took two teams at Wright State to the NCAA Tournament, is plodding along, trying to get her alma mater into “The Dance” for the first time since 2003. Prior to UC, she had seven consecutive winning seasons at Wright State and Memphis.

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A year ago, UC knocked off No. 11 Iowa State and had tight contests at Fifth Third Arena with ranked teams Texas Tech and Baylor. Will the Bearcats get over the hump in 2026-27?

“If they (players) want the perception of Cincinnati basketball to be different, we have to have different results,” Merriweather said.

Cincinnati Bearcats women’s basketball players (from left) Calliyah DeVillasee, Reagan Jackson and Sahnya Jah answer questions at Monster Energy Big 12 Media Day in Kansas City Oct. 20.

What about former McDonald’s All-American Dee Alexander?

The Preseason Freshman of the Year in the Big 12 began last season injured and had to gradually get involved with the…

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Publish date : 2026-10-21 16:23:00

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