As the excitement surrounding the 2025-26 Iowa women’s basketball program grows as the season approaches, the Hawkeyes earned themselves a spot in the preseason Associated Press Top 25 poll.
Iowa finished its 2024-25 season with a 23-11 (10-8 Big Ten) record and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament during head coach Jan Jensen’s first year at the helm.
Advertisement
After a strong inaugural season under coach Jensen, the Hawkeyes’ returning key pieces, its 2025 signing class and its transfer portal additions earned Iowa the preseason No. 21 ranking. That No. 21 preseason ranking by the AP is nearly identical to their slot in ESPN’s preseason top 25 rankings.
As a whole, the Big Ten had a strong presence in the preseason AP Top 25 poll, securing six spots and placing five more squads within the receiving votes category. Leading the conference in the AP poll are No. 3 UCLA, followed by No. 10 Maryland, No. 13 Michigan, No. 18 USC, No. 21 Iowa and No. 23 Michigan State.
The conference members receiving votes included Washington (79 points), Ohio State (46), Minnesota (15), Illinois (2), and Nebraska (2).
Advertisement
Iowa has an exhibition date on Oct. 30 against Ashland at 6:30 p.m. CT, and then Iowa opens the regular season on Nov. 3 versus the Southern Jaguars at 6:30 p.m. CT. Both games will take place at Carver-Hawkeye Arena and will stream on Big Ten Plus (subscription required).
Preseason AP Top 25 Women’s College Basketball Poll:
|
Rank |
Team |
Points |
|
1 |
UConn |
771 (27) |
|
2 |
South Carolina |
740 (4) |
|
3 |
UCLA |
705 |
|
4 |
Texas |
672 |
|
5 |
LSU |
647 |
|
6 |
Oklahoma |
593 |
|
7 |
Duke |
578 |
|
8 |
Tennessee |
559 |
|
9 |
North Carolina State |
510 |
|
10 |
Maryland |
461 |
|
11 |
North Carolina |
440 |
|
12 |
Ole Miss |
382 |
|
13 |
Michigan |
375 |
|
14 |
Iowa State |
363 |
|
15 |
Notre Dame |
289 |
|
16 |
Baylor |
280 |
|
17 |
TCU |
263 |
|
18 |
USC |
235 |
|
19 |
Vanderbilt |
229 |
|
20 |
Louisville |
228 |
|
21 |
Iowa |
130 |
|
22 |
Oklahoma State |
128 |
|
23 |
Michigan State |
103 |
|
24 |
Kentucky |
93 |
|
24 |
Richmond |
93 |
Others receiving votes:
Washington 79, Ohio St. 46, West Virginia 17, Princeton 17, Minnesota 15, Kansas St 15, Kansas 7, Stanford 3, South Dakota St. 3, Illinois 2, Nebraska 2, Columbia 2.
Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Iowa news, notes, and opinions. Follow Scout on X: @SpringgateNews
Advertisement
This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire: Iowa women’s basketball earns spot in preseason AP Top 25 rankings
