‘Let’s go run it back.’ Washington State’s Krystal Leger-Walker announces return to Cougars in 2021-22

There will still be two players wearing “Leger-Walker” on the back of their jersey when the Washington State women open their 2021-22 basketball season.

Krystal Leger-Walker, a starting guard who was critical to WSU’s first NCAA Tournament berth in three decades, announced Friday night on Twitter she’ll return to the Cougars next season as a sixth-year senior.

Because of COVID-19, all NCAA athletes participating in winter sports were afforded an extra year of eligibility, allowing Leger-Walker an opportunity to return to the Cougars for a second senior season and shoot for her third appearance in the Big Dance.

“You’ve all been asking, so I thought I’d let you know,” Leger-Walker said in a 25-second video posted her Twitter account. “Pullman is still the place to be, so let’s go run it back. And as always, go Cougs.”

Leger-Walker and her younger sister, Charlisse, the Pac-12’s Freshman of the Year, were the top two scorers for a WSU team that broke a 30-year drought at the NCAA Tournament. The siblings from New Zealand were key to the Cougars’ three upsets of Top 25 teams – one a 71-69 overtime win over Arizona, which wound up playing for a national title against Stanford.

A former Northern Colorado player, Krystal followed third-year WSU coach Kamie Ethridge to the Palouse after helping the Bears reach the NCAA Tournament. Last season, she averaged 9.8 points per game and ranked second in the conference with 4.5 assists per game. Leger-Walker was also one of the conference’s best defenders and finished No. 8 in the Pac-12 at 1.67 steals per game.