LARAMIE – Sundance Wicks was hired only 675 days ago to rebuild Wyoming basketball.

Now, less than two years later, the Cowboys have momentum, a foundation and a belief inside the program that this climb is leading somewhere — to the kind of March where nets are cut down. 

Wicks – who had a cobbled together roster that produced 12 wins after he accepted the challenge on May 12, 2024 – saw UW conclude the 2025-26 campaign at 18-15 after losing 74-70 to Wichita State in the first round of the NIT on Tuesday night at Koch Arena.
 
During his press conference at the Mountain West Tournament last week following an equally excruciating 73-70 loss to UNLV in its home arena in Las Vegas, Wicks said making a postseason tournament would be the first step in building to something special next season.
 
UW was selected for the NIT for the first time since 2003 and made its first postseason appearance since the 2022 NCAA Tournament.
 
"The next big thing is roster retention," Wicks said. "We survive year one, progress year two, championship advancement in year three. That's just our mindset. We're going to keep speaking that and speaking that and speaking that into existence. Then we have to have a locker room full of guys, not only coaches, who also believe in that vision and that mission and want to run it back.
 
"In the next couple of weeks here, we'll be in the fight of our lives to keep the guys that want to be Cowboys and retain the majority of this roster to be able to have that opportunity."
 
UW must say goodbye to Leland Walker, Kiani Saxon and Matija Belic. The trio provided outstanding leadership to help Wicks establish a winning culture.
 
The only regret for the coaching staff and the seniors is that they don't have more eligibility remaining.
 
"Honestly, I love Wicks," Walker said. "He's been on me from the day I got recruited. I wish I could have played for him four more years. He's been a great coach to me and my teammates, and he's one of the coaches that's going to let you know about yourself if you're not doing right. I feel that's something I needed in my college experience, and I'm going to take that with me as I go play professionally."
 
Wicks wants the leadership baton to be passed down to a young nucleus that includes juniors Khaden Bennett, Uriyah Rojas and Adam Harakow, sophomores Damarion Dennis and Abou Magassa and freshmen Gavin Gores, Nasir (Naz) Meyer and Simm-Marten Saadi.
 
Jared Harris, who did not play after an injury in December, would also have a chance for a prominent role if he returns. The staff is excited about the development and skill of 6-foot-9 freshman Neil Summers, who redshirted this season.
 
In an age of unlimited transfers and revenue sharing, it is rare for star players to remain at one school for four seasons as Fennis Dembo, Eric Leckner, Marcus Bailey, Josh Davis, Larry Nance Jr. and Josh Adams did on legendary Cowboy teams in the past.
 
The two-week spring transfer portal window for basketball opens April 7. By the time Wicks' two-year anniversary as UW head coach arrives, the plan is to have kept most of the roster intact and have the Pokes poised to make the 2026-27 season a memorable one in the new Mountain West.
 
"Our future is so bright with these young guys, and that's our biggest plight right now at Wyoming is retention so we can have the consistency to compete for championships," Wicks said. "I think that's the biggest thing going nowadays in college basketball is, can you retain? Because you can be consistent with your culture, and then you can compete for championships. That's going to be a massive emphasis here in this offseason and whatever this offseason is."
 
Moments after this season came to a sudden end in Wichita, Kan., Wicks had every player in the visiting locker room say a few words about what they learned about themselves and the team since arriving on campus as strangers in the summer.
 
"It's a waste if our guys aren't learning more about themselves. This is a journey of self. Self-awareness. Who am I? More importantly, who am I not? What am I not going to compromise? What are the hard things that I had to grow through and that I had to go through and grow through to get to this point right now?" Wicks said. "Reflect on your journey. Reflecting on this season is going to be awesome for me, just from where we were last year to our growth points this year.
 
"What an honor and privilege to be able to coach the University of Wyoming, but to also coach those men in that locker room."
 
Follow Ryan for more stories on Wyoming athletics on X at @By_RyanThorburn on Facebook at Wyoming Athletics and Instagram at wyoathletics. Also follow him at Pokes Insider at Gowyo.com/pokesinsider.
 
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