You’re either in, or you’re out.

That’s the message emblazoned on a set of T-shirts that Washington women’s basketball coach Tia Jackson ordered for her squad this season — part of her lesson on commitment — as the second-year coach continues to mold the program in accordance with her expectations.

It’s an attitude that wasn’t well received in Jackson’s first season. Four of the six players in June Daugherty’s final recruiting class have transferred since Jackson took over, some saying afterward that Jackson’s demanding practice regiment and sometimes abrasive demeanor contributed to their departure.

Last year’s leading scorer, Katelan Redmon, has gone to Gonzaga. Jess McCormack, a promising talent from New Zealand, is now at Connecticut.

Candice Nichols left for Loyola Marymount. Kali Bennett is at Arizona State.

So Jackson is starting over. Her first recruiting class at the UW includes eight players — three of them transfers, some of them from far-reaching places such as Oklahoma, Detroit and New Zealand. She says this year, things are different.

“I think one of the advantages to why we have such a great group right now is there was an understanding before the players got there that this is kind of how it’s going to be,” Jackson said. “There’s no in-between and these kids know what I’m about, what this program’s about, where we’re trying to take it. And they’re on board.”

Kristi Kingma is one of three Seattle-area newcomers for the Huskies this year. Originally from Mill Creek, Wash., Kingma says that in talking to some of the older players, the change in attitude from last year’s team is obvious.

“I think that this year there isn’t one person on the team that doesn’t have that commitment,” Kingma said. “And I think last year a lot of players left and a lot of them probably just didn’t agree with that, that they had to come ready to practice every day.”

Jackson says this feels like her true first year, since she has a roster full of players she recruited — players who buy into her system and want to put in the required effort in practice.

She praises the balance this class provides, lauding Lydia Young’s rebounding prowess, Kingma’s scoring mentality and Nicole Romeo’s anywhere-on-the-floor shooting range.

More importantly, they’re all willing to work.

“Definitely,” said redshirt freshman Mackenzie Argens, one of two members of Daugherty’s final class who accepted Jackson’s system and stuck around. “These people are ready to work hard and ready to go at basketball and be successful. There’s a lot of improvement, and we’ve kind of bonded on the court and know where each other is going to be.”

Reach reporter Christian Caple at sports@dailyuw.com.