Women’s Basketball Travels to Southern Indiana for WNIT Second Round

Monday, March 23

Evansville, IN

7:00 p.m.

George Washington University

Southern Indiana

Women's Basketball Team Huddle vs. Bradley

Women’s Basketball Travels to Southern Indiana for WNIT Second Round

3/22/2026 9:23:00 AM | Women's Basketball

Following a thrilling 63-60 victory over Bradley in the opening round of the WNIT, the George Washington women's basketball team turns its attention to Southern Indiana for a second-round showdown on Monday night. Tip-off in Evansville, Ind., is set for 7:00 p.m. with live coverage available on ESPN+.

BOUNCED THE BRAVES
Behind 21 points and 12 rebounds from standout sophomore Gabby Reynolds, the Revolutionaries defeated Bradley in the opening round of the WNIT, bouncing the Braves from the postseason. The win is GW's 16^th of the year, continuing to top the previous mark of 13 set by the program in the two seasons prior.

Despite trailing for over 32 minutes on Thursday night, GW kept within striking distance, and in crunch time made enough big plays down the stretch to secure the victory. The Buff & Blue hang their hat on the defensive end, and that's exactly what led them to the win, holding the Braves to 3-of-14 shooting in the fourth quarter, erasing a 10-point deficit in the second half. The win is GW's third of the season when trailing at halftime, but it's the team's fifth this year in games decided by five points or less, going 5-3 in those instances. Along with Reynolds' monster double-double, Kamari Sims (12 points) and Sara Lewis (11 points) were catalysts for GW down the stretch, scoring the team's final nine points of the game.

FIRST SINCE '14
Thursday night's win marked the first postseason victory for the program since the 2014 season, when GW advanced to the Super Sixteen of the WNIT. The Revolutionaries are in the postseason for the first time since 2018 and are making the team's first trip back to the WNIT since 2017. In total, the Buff & Blue have competed in the postseason 24 times, including 18 trips to the NCAA Tournament and six appearances in the WNIT. GW's rich history of postseason basketball includes four trips to the NCAA Sweet Sixteen, one berth in the Elite Eight (1997) and 18 total NCAA Tournament wins.

Head Coach Ganiyat Adeduntan is making her third-consecutive trip to the WNIT after leading Colgate to the postseason in both 2024 and 2025. The Raiders won two games in '24, beating UAlbany and Providence to advance to the Super Sixteen.

POSTSEASON SUCCESS FOR THE A-10
Announced on Sunday, the 48-team field for the 2026 WNIT includes four teams from the Atlantic 10. Joining the Revolutionaries are La Salle, St. Bonaventure and Loyola Chicago, who all extended their respective seasons with berths into the tournament. Those four join Rhode Island (NCAA Tournament), Richmond (NCAA Tournament) and George Mason (WBIT), giving the A-10 seven teams playing in the postseason this year.

SCOUTING THE SCREAMING EAGLES
Southern Indiana enters Monday's matchup well-rested after receiving a first-round bye in the WNIT. The Screaming Eagles finished the regular season 20-9 overall and advanced to the semifinals of the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament before falling to Lindenwood, 82-79, on March 6. Monday's matchup will be a total of 17 days since USI's last game.

The Screaming Eagles are led by longtime Head Coach Rick Stein, who's in his 27^th year with the program. The Eagles are in just their fourth year at the NCAA Division I level, having joined the OVC prior to the 2022-23 season. Stein holds a 492-284 overall record during his tenure, including an 81-47 mark at the D-I level. The Screaming Eagles have won 20 or more games in the previous three seasons and have made appearances in the WNIT each year. USI won the OVC conference championship in 2024-25, but due to the NCAA's reclassification rules, the conference's automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament was given to the runner-up.

Southern Indiana's offense is led by Ali Saunders, who averages 18.0 ppg. The All-OVC selection shot the ball at a 39.2% clip from the floor this season and also led the team with 4.8 assists per game. Saunders was selected to the OVC's All-Tournament Team as well. OCV Second Team All-Conference selection Chloe Gannon averages 13.4 ppg for the Screaming Eagles and pulls down 6.8 boards a night, while Sophia Loden chips in 9.7 points and a team-best 6.9 rebounds per game. USI's 2025-26 season stats can be found here.