These victories came at the end of a dominant series sweep, where the Bears defeated the Maroons via the mercy rule in all three games. The three wins marked their first University Athletic Association (UAA) series win and seventh series sweep of the season.

After finishing the regular season on such a high note, the Bears will enter the NCAA tournament hot.

However, the Bears refused to let the weekend end in failure. Two days later against Brandeis University, WashU responded with determination, defeating the Judges 67-59 in a tight game that stayed up for grabs for three quarters. 

While the juniors are the centerpiece of the Bears team, the six members of the class are also leaders off the court. The juniors are close friends, roommates, and lift each other up when things go wrong on the court.

WashU would go on to lose the game against Carnegie Mellon by a close margin, 64-61. However, the Bears bounced back two days later when they took on Case Western Reserve University, a strong third quarter propelling them to a 66-52 victory on Jan. 18.

With these victories, the Bears improve to 10-2 on the season, boasting a current five-game winning streak.

While this loss marked the end of WashU’s season, their tournament was not without success. Both Buckley and Laird were named to the All-Tournament Team after their impressive performances. Most significantly, the Bears made it to the third round — their deepest run since 2016.

This weekend, five WashU teams will compete in postseason action. Here’s a look ahead to an exciting weekend in the world of WashU sports.

The match against UW–Whitewater marked the Bears’ 2025 season opener, which, despite the final score, resulted in two small victories for WashU.

With the two wins, WashU’s conference slate is complete. They are second in the UAA standings with a 5-2 conference record and have three weeks of preparation ahead of the UAA championships on Nov. 15.