Husky Roster Review: Peterson Took One For the Team

At the beginning of the season, Danny Sprinkle emphasized how many of the new players brought in for the University of Washington basketball team would have to make sacrifices in their games for everything to work out.

Give up points. Game minutes. Starting assignments.

Quimari Peterson cashed in almost everything.

The 2025 Southern Conference Player of the Year went from averaging a league-leading 19.5 points per game for East Tennessee State to just 9.2 for the Huskies.

The 6-foot-1 guard from Gary, Indiana, dropped from 15 20-point games the year before to none in Montlake.

He dipped from a high game of 31 points at his previous stop to 18 for the Huskies.

He went from scoring double figures in 31 of 32 games for his Tennessee team to twice going scoreless for the Huskies.

Most of all, Peterson went from starting all 67 games over two seasons for the Buccaneers to opening just 18 of 33 for the UW.

"He doesn't have a selfish bone in his body," UW coach Danny Sprinkle said.

Quimari Peterson gets in a defensive stance against Iowa. | Dave Sizer photo

This is one in a series of articles -- going from 0 to 16 on the Husky basketball roster -- examining what each scholarship and walk-on player did this past winter and whether he lived up to expectations.

While some snidely might say that Peterson simply ran into tougher competition, hence all the big numbers drop-offs, those who know him recognized his basketball generosity that would have been more beneficial had injuries not ruined the UW season.

At the Big Ten Tournament, he was called on to address the media following an 83-79 overtime victory over USC in his team's opener and he continued down his all-for-one pathway.

"I feel that relationship with each other," Peterson said. "I'm just glad to have these guys, glad to be a part of it."

Quimari Peterson drives for a score against Oregon. | Dave Sizer photo

Rather than reach for the glory at all times, he did the dirty work.

He played all 50 minutes of a 99-93 double-overtime victory over Southern.

He finished sixth in the Big Ten in steals with 44.

He played the second-most minutes of all the Huskies, finishing with 1,018, or 21 fewer than Hannes Steinbach.

He and Zoom Diallo were the only UW players to appear in every outing.

It wasn't as glamorous as before, but Peterson changed his game to try and make things work in Montlake.

Quimari Peterson points to put someone in position against Minnesota. | Dave Sizer photo

Recognizing his me-last attitude, the Huskies made him a team captain before the season began.

"When you have 15 players like him," Sprinkle said, "that's when you have a special team."