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Iowa Women's Basketball Preseason Bracketology Projection

On3 imageby: Kyle Huesmann10/08/25HuesmannKyle
The Hawkeyes are a 5 seed in ESPN's preseason projection.
The Hawkeyes are a 5 seed in ESPN's preseason projection.

Year two of the Jan Jensen era is set to get underway in just under four weeks, with the Hawkeyes set to open the season on November 4th against Southern. Coming off of a 23-11 season a year ago, there’s plenty of optimism surrounding the team with the pieces they return, as well as some of the newcomers they’ve added.

ESPN Bracketologist Charlie Creme agrees that Iowa is in position to have a successful 2025-26 campaign. His preseason bracket projection has the Hawkeyes headed to Louisville as a 5-seed, with a first-round matchup against 12-seed Belmont. The winner would take on the winner of 4-seed Louisville and 13-seed James Madison in the Round of 32.

Creme projects Iowa will be one of 13 Big Ten teams to make the 68-team bracket. The Hawkeyes are scheduled to face 17 projected NCAA Tournament teams this season, while they will face Nebraska both home and away in Big Ten play.

Last season, Iowa entered the NCAA Tournament as a 5-seed, failing to host a regional for the first time since 2018. They defeated 12-seed Murray State 92-57 in the opening round, but fell to 4-seed and host Oklahoma 96-62 with a spot in the Sweet Sixteen on the line.

Big Ten Teams in the projected 68-team field

REGION 1 FORTH WORTH

#3 Maryland Terrapins vs #14 Chattanooga Mocs

#5 Iowa Hawkeyes vs #12 Belmont Bruins

#9 Nebraska Cornhuskers vs #8 Miami FL Hurricanes

REGION 4 SACRAMENTO

#5 USC Trojans vs #12 Green Bay Phoenix

#7 Washington Huskies vs #10 Virginia Tech Hokies

#8 Minnesota Golden Gophers vs #9 Stanford Cardinal

#11 Illinois/Georgia vs #6 TCU Horned Frogs

REGION 2 FORTH WORTH

#8 Indiana Hoosiers vs #9 Virginia Cavaliers

REGION 3 SACRAMENTO

#1 UCLA Bruins vs #16 UC Irvine

#4 Michigan Wolverines vs #13 Gonzaga Zags

#6 Michigan State Spartans vs #11 South Dakota State Jackrabbits

#7 Ohio State Buckeyes vs #10 Florida State Seminoles

#9 Oregon Ducks vs #8 West Virginia Mountaineers

The Hawkeyes begin the 2025-26 season on October 30th, hosting DII Ashland College for an exhibition game at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Tipoff is set for 6:30pm on BTN+.

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