After bringing in a highly-skilled freshman class following a red-hot finish to the 2024-25 campaign that ended in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, Iowa women’s basketball earned its highest position nationally within On3’s preseason top 25 rankings.
According to the poll, shared by On3’s national women’s college basketball and recruiting reporter, Talia Goodman, the Hawkeyes are ranked No. 18 and are among the eight Big Ten programs on the list. That group includes UCLA, Michigan, Maryland, Michigan State, Washington, Minnesota, and Ohio State.
Here’s what Goodman and On3 wrote about the Hawkeyes entering the season:
There’s some newness at Iowa, but the Hawkeyes still have enough talent to stay firmly in the NCAA Tournament mix. Hannah Stuelke continues to be a focal point of this offense after averaging 12.7 PPG and 7.7 RPG last season. Surrounding her are proven shooters like Taylor McCabe (41% from three) and highly-regarded freshman Addie Deal.
The backcourt gets even stronger through the portal with Emely Rodriguez from UCF (11.9 PPG) and Chit-Chat Wright from Georgia Tech (7.2 PPG), who can both handle the ball and create shots. Meanwhile, promising young players like Ava Heiden and Teagan Mallegni are expected to take on larger roles. One more frontcourt addition of note is that of 6-5 freshman Layla Hays, a top recruit from Alaska, who could see significant minutes. – Goodman, On3
Although the Hawkeyes’ new stars may experience some growing pains, the wisdom of the team’s upperclassmen should keep the program firmly in the mix for a solid NCAA Tournament showing.
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In its Thursday exhibition, Iowa rolled past Division II power Ashland, 104-63. Iowa senior forward Hannah Stuelke led all scorers with 23 points on 10-of-16 shooting. Emely Rodriguez scored 17, Ava Heiden added 14, Chazadi Wright chipped in with 12 and Layla Hays dropped 10 points to round out the Hawkeyes’ double-figure scorers.
Iowa opens its regular season on Nov. 3 against the Southern Jaguars at 6:30 p.m. CT and the contest will stream on Big Ten Plus (subscription required).
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This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire: Iowa women’s basketball inside preseason On3 top 25 rankings
