GREEN BAY (NBC 26) — With significant roster turnover on both the men’s and women’s sides, UW–Green Bay basketball enters its 2025–26 season focused on building chemistry, establishing identity, and laying the foundation for long-term success.
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL: A NEW ROSTER, SAME “GREEN BAY WAY”
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After a Horizon League title and NCAA Tournament appearance, the Phoenix women’s team lost more than half of its roster to graduation, including its top five scorers. Head Coach Kayla Karius, now entering her second year, said this summer felt entirely different from her first.
“It was a great summer. It was a really productive one,” Karius said. “We added eight new players, so there was a lot of on-the-court teaching that had to be done and familiarity and culture building.”
“Really, the newcomers got a crash course in what the Green Bay Way looks like,” she added. “It’s hard to talk about. It’s really, you just have to be in it and do it every day.”
Six of the team’s new players came through the transfer portal, and five of those are from Northeast Wisconsin. For Karius, it wasn’t just about talent. It was about fit.
“We really found people that fit this place,” she said. “The people that they are, the high character that they are — they’re funny, they’re fun to be around, they’ve got a lot of personality, and yet they’re really hardworking.”
“I think that they carry on the Green Bay Way tradition and culture extremely well,” Karius added. “We might look really different from what you’ve seen in the past. But we’re just forging our own identity.”
Senior center Jenna Guyer said that identity is starting to take shape.
“We’re learning to play with each other, so that’s been a lot of fun,” Guyer said. “Obviously, different players, we’re different pieces, but it is cool to see that we can still be Green Bay basketball with the pieces we have now.”
MEN’S BASKETBALL: REBUILDING WITH PHYSICALITY AND PURPOSE
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On the men’s side, the program is trying to reset after a four-win season that included a 21-game losing streak. Head Coach Doug Gottlieb made immediate changes, starting with himself.
“We started by, ‘Let’s look at our roster.’ We started by, ‘let's look at our coaching staff.’ I look in the mirror — what do I need to do better?” Gottlieb said. “At the end of the year, we had what, 10 guys dressing at times, and eight of them were freshmen. That was hard.”
Gottlieb and his staff brought in 10 new players and three new assistant coaches. It’s a major reset and a work in progress.
“When you factor in there’s 10 new guys, three new assistants, two guys who kind of just got here, and one guy who’s gonna play a lot and missed a substantial amount of time, some days it looks really good. Some groups look really good, and some groups, it looks like we’re herding cats,” Gottlieb said.
“But we’ve spent an inordinate amount of time on being more physical, on playing a little bit different brand of defense in terms of style from last year, and rebounding the basketball,” he added. “So what we’re looking for Saturday is: how hard they play, how physical they play, will they compete?”
The message has resonated with players like senior guard Preston Ruedinger, who said the team’s shared mentality is rooted in resilience.
“Something that we like to talk about is everyone on the team has been told no in their college career,” Ruedinger said. “We only have a handful of guys that had Division I scholarships coming out of high school. And we all worked hard to get to where we are today. So why can’t we work hard to get where we want to in five months?”
For both Phoenix programs, the pieces are new. The approach is not.
“Our goal,” Gottlieb said, “is to be the most physical team in the league. And this is a very, very physical, well-coached league.”
