The Big Ten opened its basketball media days Wednesday in Rosemont with coaches and players from all of the conference’s women’s teams.
Illinois coach Shauna Green, Northwestern coach Carla Berube and many others offered insights into their upcoming seasons.
Here are five things we learned.
1. After major offseason retention, the Illini want their next step to be getting out of the NCAA Tournament’s first weekend.
Green has been intentional about reminding her players of the long game. As the youngest team in the NCAA Tournament a year ago, the Illini advanced to the second round for the second straight season.
Now, Illinois enters Green’s fifth season at the helm with every major piece of that team returning, including first-team all-Big Ten forward Berry Wallace, all-freshman team forward Cearah Parchment and point guard Destiny Jackson.
The group, which went 22-12 last season, has talked often about what could be possible if they continue to grow together.
“They understand the pieces we have, they understood the talent that we have, and what we could do if they all remained together, and they wanted to do that,” Green said. “That’s the most unique thing. They wanted to be here to do something that has not been done ever or has not been done in a long, long time. And they felt great loyalty to that and great love for the school and for each other.”
Senior guard Jasmine Brown-Hagger said the Illini are operating with the idea that advancing farther in the NCAA Tournament is the next step — and they can help themselves do that by hosting the first two rounds of the tournament, a right that goes to the top 16 seeds. That makes every game important as they try to climb in the rankings.
The Illini have benefited from the continuity as they prepare for the season. Green and her staff have been able to install things more quickly because of the previous knowledge. The chemistry and culture have already been established.
And the core goals are there too.
“We bought into this program because we believe in what coach stands for, and we believe in ourselves,” Brown-Hagger said. “We talk about it all the time in the locker room. We chose to stay because of each other and because of Coach.
“So it’s like, what are we going to do with that? What are our goals? How are we going to push each other every single day?”
2. Coach Carla Berube’s goal is to make Northwestern ‘a destination’ for women’s basketball.
Northwestern hired Berube in March to replace longtime coach Joe McKeown, who retired. She joined the Wildcats after going 147-29 with five NCAA Tournament appearances over six seasons at Princeton.
At her first Big Ten media days, Berube said part of her vision for Northwestern is to return to the tournament for the first time since 2021.
“To be back into the NCAA tournament, to be at the top of the Big Ten Conference,” Berube said. “To get Welsh-Ryan packed again with fans that really enjoy watching us play, that there’s a buzz around town about Northwestern women’s basketball.
“That this is a destination, right? This isn’t a place where players are coming in and out. We want players to stay at Northwestern and really care about what’s written across their chest.”
Berube has spent the last six months installing not just her offense and defense but also her culture. She said the most challenging part has been figuring out what makes her players tick and who complements each other well on the court.
Berube said she expects her team, which lost leading scorer Grace Sullivan (21.4 points per game average) to graduation, to out-tough and outwork opponents. And she wants the Wildcats to hang their hats on their defense.
“We’re going to be very gritty,” guard Xamiya Walton said. “We’re going to do whatever it takes to win. Very defense-focused and having a lot of energy. We know each other well on and off the court, so I think that chemistry is going to be reflected in our style of play.”
3. USC guard JuJu Watkins’ last 18 months have been a test of patience.
JuJu Watkins, the Big Ten preseason player of the year, is gearing up to return to a game for the first time since she tore her ACL in the second round of the NCAA Tournament in March 2025.
Watkins called her recovery “a big test” but said it was also fulfilling because she put in the work required. She was helped by her teammates and family, and also said WNBA star Paige Bueckers checked in on her often.
Watkins said it’s “going to be a learning curve” as she gets back into the swing with a USC team that is expected to be at the top of the Big Ten behind Watkins and preseason all-Big Ten sophomore guard Jazzy Davidson. But Watkins’ goal is to peak at the right time.
“The biggest thing is getting over that mental hurdle of, ‘OK, I haven’t played in a long time,’” Watkins said. “Just getting all the kinks out. It’s definitely been a process. I’m a very hard critic, so I’m definitely not at my peak yet. So I’ll continue to improve throughout the season.”
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Watkins said she used her time off the court to study the game more, and she thinks that will be beneficial.
“I’m definitely a smarter player coming back,” Watkins said. “I know more about the different reads and just was able to study a lot and insert myself in different situations while I wasn’t playing. So I expect to come back a smarter player and making better decisions.”
4. The Illini are again expecting big things from Berry Wallace after a strong offseason.
Wallace was named to both the coaches’ and media’s 10-player all-Big Ten preseason team after averaging 18.4 points and 6.2 rebounds per game last season.
Green said there’s “no drama with Berry.” Wallace returned to Champaign this offseason after her breakout sophomore year in great shape and with a mindset to attack the next challenge.
The Illini came up with a detailed plan for how to improve her game since she is now at the top of opposing teams’ scouting reports. They looked at how she can get her shot off more quickly, how they can make her handle tighter, how they can make her a better defender.
The 6-foot-1 Wallace said she has examined how she can better defend against players larger and smaller than her.
“Just continuing to grow my defensive game, learning from my teammates and just taking things from my coaches,” Wallace said. “And then just continuing to score at all three levels, taking what the defense is giving me, learning from last year, (when) people were kind of crowding me, being able to make better reads. When people are just crowding up the lane and helping off some of my teammates, hitting those passes to them.”
5. Players from defending national champion UCLA say they’re writing a new story.
In the spring, six players from national champion UCLA were selected in the WNBA draft — five in the first round. That included 2026 Big Ten player of the year Lauren Betts and Chicago Sky guard Gabriela Jaquez.
That means a new-look Bruins group with five transfers, including former Notre Dame guard KK Bransford, must try to carry on the standard set last season. Forward Timea Gardiner said the Bruins are trying to repeat the process rather than just the outcome.
“We’re very talented, and we’re a little bit overlooked,” Gardiner said. “So in that way, obviously having a great situation last year, we’re rewriting our story this year. It’s our story for this particular team.”
Sophomore forward Sienna Betts, Lauren’s younger sister, is the top returnee after averaging six points and four rebounds per game. She drew confidence from playing alongside the veterans last season.
“I learned a lot about how poised they were, how neutral they were and how they were able to bring the group together in hard situations in any game and practice,” Sienna Betts said. “I really hope I can take that over and bring that to my game and who I am.”