Ryan Beasley is expected to be back for Washington’s season opener, a welcome development for a Huskies team that has already spent the preseason without one of its key new pieces.
Head coach Danny Sprinkle said Wednesday that the fourth-year point guard is on track to play when Washington opens the 2026-27 regular season against Colgate at 7 p.m. PT on Nov. 2 at Alaska Airlines Arena in Seattle.
“I anticipate him playing,” Sprinkle said in a news conference Wednesday at Alaska Airlines Arena. “He'll practice (Wednesday) and then have tomorrow off and then, he'll have three days to hopefully prepare and kind of really get himself into shape.”
Beasley has missed both of Washington’s exhibition losses - against Boise State and Washington State - because of a concussion, but the expectation is that he’ll be back in the rotation once the games count for real.
The transfer guard arrived in Seattle this offseason after three years at San Francisco, where he grew from a role player into a starter at point guard. The 5-foot-11, 180-pound San Ramon, Calif., native spent his time in the West Coast Conference, facing familiar NCAA tournament-caliber programs such as Gonzaga and Saint Mary’s even though the Dons did not reach the tournament.
Washington is counting on Beasley to be a major piece of this roster, which is shorter than Sprinkle’s previous teams. Even without having played a game for the Huskies, he has already earned a significant level of trust from Sprinkle, a sign that he’s picked up the offense quickly.
Last season, Beasley’s first as a full-time starter, he averaged 13.6 points over 31 games, all starts, while shooting 40.7% from the field and 32.7% from 3-point range. He also added four assists, 3.4 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game.
Sprinkle has also said Beasley could split minutes with fifth-year guard and Nevada transfer Tayshawn Comer. Fifth-year wing and Texas Tech transfer LeJuan Watts could also see time as a “point-forward” because of his playmaking ability.
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