Mercedes Wetmore knew it wouldn’t take long to make her mark as a Husky.
This season – her second with the University of Washington’s basketball program – the 5-foot-8 sophomore from Auburn Riverside is ready to step it up, both in the stat books and as a team leader.
Wetmore, who got the starting shooting guard spot after senior Kristi Kingma was sidelined with an ACL injury, already has earned a GoHuskies.com Student-Athlete of the Week award for her play between Nov. 14-20.
Wetmore scored 16 points with three assists and two steals in the Huskies’ first win of the season, against Seattle University, 72-53.
Three days later, Wetmore notched a career-high 17 points, three assists and a steal in a 73-67 win against Cal State Northridge.
“Everything was just working,” Wetmore said. “Sometimes the shots just really fall for you, and we were able to get a couple of nice wins. I was pretty excited about it. I felt like it was the first step of putting my mark on the school. I feel like my hard work is paying off.”
Wetmore saw limited time as a freshman, averaging just three points and 3.5 assists in 26 games.
“It was a big stepup, just the pace, the level of coaching,” Wetmore said. “You have to play amazing all the time. It’s always having to play hard all the time and not take any breaks. You’ll be exposed really quickly if you let down.”
Wetmore was well versed as a leader after guiding Auburn Riverside to state titles in 2007 and 2008. But as a young Husky, she took a supporting role. It proved to be a good opportunity to learn the college game.
“I was able to watch Sarah Morton and Kristi Kingma lead the team,” she said. “It was good to see two strong leaders and how they worked with the team.”
Wetmore prepared for the new season on the court by returning to her roots.
“I went back and worked out with Denn Pretz,” Wetmore said of the former director of the Auburn Riverside youth program. “He trained with me a lot this summer”
Coupled with a commitment to a regimen with the UW’s strength and conditioning coach, Wetmore was in top shape by the time the Huskies made their nine-day Scandinavian exhibition tour in August.
Wetmore expects to improve even more under new head coach Kevin McGuff, who replaced Tia Jackson this season. The Huskies are off to a 4-2 start.
“He’s awesome,” Wetmore said. “We’re just trying to implement his program.”
McGuff’s style hearkens back to the up-tempo, defense-first style Wetmore played at Auburn Riverside.
“We’re focused on defense, pushing the ball and making things happen in transition. It’s kind of nice to go back to that style for me,” she said. “We’ve been running up and down the floor at a quicker pace, and it’s a pretty fun style to watch.”
Whether on the court or in the classroom, Wetmore is enjoying the opportunity to play, learn and grow at UW.
“I’m really loving it here,” she said.
