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The University of Saskatchewan Huskies women’s basketball team is ready to enjoy a banner night on Friday.
For a second year in a row, the Huskies will stand together as they watch a U Sports national championship banner raised at the school’s Physical Activity Complex.
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“I’m super excited,” said fifth-year guard Logan Reider. “I get to see a few of my past teammates again, so that will be super awesome for us. I think it also will set up a good goal for our team this year, to see what the end goal for us next year hopefully will be.”
The Huskies will chase a third consecutive national title this season, after they celebrated on the court in Quebec City, Que. in March with a 77-68 victory over the University of New Brunswick to defend their U Sports women’s basketball crown.
It was the final ride in green and white for several longtime Huskies stars, with Gage Grassick, Andrea Dodig, Téa DeMong, Ella Murphy Wiebe and Anna Maelde all graduating from the program.
While those departures left the 2026-27 Huskies a much younger team, they’ve gotten off to a 2-0 start this Canada West season, with a sweep on the road in Calgary last weekend against the Dinos.
“Coming into this year with such a new team, it was a little bit of an unknown,” Reider said. “It was great to get used to our new players a little bit and get the confidence going forward.”
Huskies head coach Lisa Thomaidis has been pleasantly surprised at how her first- and second-year players have seized their opportunities to play, a rare circumstance for the perennial national championship contenders.
“We have some young ones that are playing not like young ones,” Thomaidis said. “It’s very different, also very exciting to be able to see them get playing time early on in their careers. It’s something that doesn’t happen very often.”
Forwards Elliot Lieffers and Olivia Harm have stepped up into starting roles for the Huskies after primarily playing off the bench in previous seasons.
Harm, who led the Huskies with 15 points and seven rebounds in their 66-50 victory over the Dinos on Saturday, said she knows it’s important to share what she’s learned as a third-year player in Canada West.
University of Saskatchewan Huskies third-year forward Olivia Harm led the way with 15 points and seven rebounds against the Calgary Dinos on Saturday. (Stephanie Bunch/Calgary Dinos)
“It’s kind of a different role for me this year,” Harm said, “to try to teach the rookies everything that you can, while still learning so much.”
Delta, B.C. rookie forward Camryn Tait has also seized an early role for Saskatchewan with back-to-back starts, though Thomaidis said she hopes to get several of her first- and second-year players into that position.
That group includes guards Ryan Deutscher and Isabela Jickling, who both have averaged well over 10 minutes of game action.
“All of us contribute the way we can,” Harm said. “Having a bunch of rookies coming in and also contributing, it’s a different team. But we’re still competitive and still trying to work hard.”
Senior guards Reider and Maya Flindall will be the engines driving the Huskies offensively this year, with Flindall starting all 25 games last year and Reider being one of the conference’s top threats from off the bench.
“Me and Maya both feel like we’re still in first year a little bit,” Reider said.
“We have had great leaders before us that have taught us what we need to do with the future Huskies, and the ones that are first-years now. I think that’s our biggest focus this year is getting those first- and second-years up to par and teaching them all we can.”
The pair are being leaned on to fill the shoes of one of the program’s all-time greatest guards in Grassick, who graduated as a two-time Canada West women’s basketball player of the year and the top athlete in U Sports in 2024-25.
Thomaidis said Reider has adapted after switching to point guard, Grassick’s old position.
“She was so used to being the recipient of Gage penetrating, creating, drawing help and being able to kick out to her,” Thomaidis said.
“Full credit to Logan. She’s been handling the ball and creating for herself and others. Maya’s been outstanding offensively, and really putting a little more emphasis on her defence too.”
While the Huskies chase a third straight national championship, they aren’t the odds-on favourites to win the conference at the start of the season.
Saskatchewan earned five out of 17 first-place votes in the Canada West pre-season coaches poll and was ranked second in the conference, one spot behind the Alberta Pandas.
Thomaidis said she didn’t take the results of the poll as a slight.
“I think that’s a compliment, to be honest,” Thomaidis said. “Given the players that we lost, national championship tournament MVPs and a player of the year, I take it as a huge compliment.”
Even with a large part of their championship core now graduated from the program, Reider said she believes the framework is still in place to help lead the Huskies back to the top of the mountain this year.
“A hundred per cent,” Reider said. “I think a championship team is all about heart and work ethic, and work we put in day in, day out. I think it’s anybody’s goal this year, and it’s everybody’s goal this year.”
While Dodig and Murphy Wiebe won’t be on hand for the banner and ring ceremony on Friday, as they’re playing professionally overseas, the Huskies are expecting a few graduates to attend at 6 p.m. ahead of tip-off against the Manitoba Bisons.
It’s one more chance for the Huskies, their coaches and fans to celebrate a group which helped create a Canada West dynasty this decade.
“I don’t think I really appreciated them until I come into the locker room now and don’t see them as much as I used to,” Reider said. “I’m super excited to see them, be around them and laugh with them one more time.”
The University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s basketball team recovered from a season opening loss to the Calgary Dinos with an 85-75 victory on Saturday to earn its first win of the year. (Stephanie Bunch/Calgary Dinos)
Huskies men’s team bounces back
The Huskies men’s basketball team enters their home opener with a 1-1 record after splitting their pair of games last weekend in Calgary.
Star forward Easton Thimm led the team with a 25-point, 16-rebound double-double performance in the team’s season opener last Friday, as Huskies dropped an 84-73 decision to the Dinos.
Saskatchewan was able to spread out the ball the following night with its first win of the season, an 85-75 victory against Calgary, with Moe Osman, Jalen Glenn and Thimm all registering at least 17 points.
It will be a matinee start for the Huskies men’s team on Friday for their first home game of the year, as they host the Bisons at 12:30 p.m. at the Physical Activity Complex.
