Class of 2024 SF Teagan Mallegni talks commitment to Iowa
Teagan Mallegni is #59 player in the 2024 ESPN HoopGurlz recruit rankings and the #2 player in Wisconsin by Prep Girls Hoops. The 6-foot-1 small forward out of McFarland, Wisconsin was offered by more than 50 schools, but has made her final decision. She will play basketball at the University of Iowa.
Mallegni committed to Iowa over Ohio State, Wisconsin, Oregon, Duke, North Carolina and Kansas.
“The whole process was so exciting and a really cool opportunity to learn about different places and people, so it was very hard for me to narrow down my list,” said Mallegni. “I just really needed to think about how I was going to fit in at the school with the people. All of the schools and coaches were really great and the further I narrowed down my list, the hard it was, but I think that this coaching staff (Iowa) stood out to me, which helped me in my decision.”
As a junior at McFarland High School this past season, Mallegni averaged 24.5 points, 11.9 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 4.1 steals and 1.7 blocks per game for a Spartans team that won the Rock Valley Conference Championship. She helped lead her team to the WIAA Division 2 State Semifinal, but the Spartans fell to Green Bay Notre Dame 76-70. Mallegni finished with a game-high 23 points, nine rebounds, ten assists and three blocks.
During her sophomore season in 2022, she was second in the state of Wisconsin, averaging 29.0 points per game, while also pulling down 8.9 boards per game. Her biggest highlight was a 62-point performance against East Troy High School. It’s the second-highest scoring output in Wisconsin state history. Mallegni was a Third-Team AP All-State selection, which includes all Wisconsin high school divisions. She was also named Rock Valley Conference Player of the Year.
Brady Peterson of Prep Girls Hoops Wisconsin put together a nice thread on Twitter that has several highlights from Mallegni during their state semifinal game back in March.
Her season-high this season came against Sun Prairie West, when she put up 40 points. Mallegni scored 710 points during her junior campaign and has 1,705 points for her career. For the second straight season, Teagan was named Rock Valley Conference Player of the Year. She was also a First Team AP All-State selection.
We caught up with the highly-sought after McFarland High School forward to discuss her recruitment and her decision to commit to Iowa.
Q: You had seven schools on your finalist list. What stood out about Iowa that made them a better spot than the other six schools?
MALLEGNI: I think the biggest thing that helped was decision was the coaching staff and how great they all are. The environment that the coaches were able to create is so cool. I also think that the girls coming in in the 2024 class helped me in my decision just because they all are able to play the same way that Iowa does now and their style of play is something that I think I can play well in.
Q: You visited Iowa for the season finale against Indiana. What was it like as a recruit to experience that environment?
MALLEGNI: That was such a cool experience for me and it was so fun to see how many people were there to watch women’s basketball and be a part of that. I have wanted to play in that environment at that level for my whole life and just seeing that as an option for me is just so surreal.
Q: Obviously you have trust in the Iowa coaching staff to commit to them, but what about the staff makes you want to play for them?
MALLEGNI: The biggest thing for me was how stable they wre and what they have built. It is so cool to see what they have done with the program and the people that they recruit.
Q: Iowa has been successful with Wisconsin players recently (Logic, Gustafson, Warnock). Did they bring that up during your recruitment?
MALLEGNI: Yes, the coaches talked a little bit about them and I think that it is cool to see the success that they have had during their time at Iowa.
Q: How would you describe yourself as a basketball player? What are the strengths of your game and what things are you looking to work on still?
MALLEGNI: I think that I would be a 2 or 3 guard in college and I think my shooting is a really big part of my game. My shooting and my ability to score is one of my strengths. This year I really focused on improving my ability to find my teammates and get them involved more, which is something that has helped me and my team so much this year. I also think that my rebounding and defense was something that is important for me to continue to work on.
Q: You had a really successful high school season this past winter, what areas of your game did you feel grow throughout the year?
MALLEGNI: I think the biggest thing that I improved on was my passing. Last year, I was mostly a scoring threat, but this year I really tried to expand my game past scoring and round out my abilities, including rebounding and defense.
Q: There are three other Iowa commits in your class, have you had a chance to talk to any of them since you committed?
MALLEGNI: I used to play AAU in the summer with Taylor Stremlow, so I talked with her about everything and I am so excited to get to play with her again in college. She is so fun to play with and I can’t wait.
Wisconsin to Iowa recruiting success
Mallegni joins 2024 commit Taylor Stremlow as the next in line out of Wisconsin to play for the Hawkeyes. It is a state that Iowa has had great recruiting success in over the past few years.
Samantha Logic (Racine) was a four-year starter for the Hawkeyes from 2011 to 2015 and was a two-time All-American. Logic scored 1,546 points over her career at Iowa and was selected by the Atlanta Dream in the First Round of the 2015 WNBA Draft.
Megan Gustafson (Port Wing) was a three-year starter for the Hawkeyes and is currently the program’s all-time leading scorer with 2,804 points. She holds six Iowa single season records and four Iowa career records. Gustafson was the National Player of the Year in 2019 and was drafted in the Second Round of the 2019 WNBA Draft by the Dallas Wings. Most recently,
McKenna Warnock (Monona Grove) was a three-year starter for the Hawkeyes, accumulating 1,277 points, 180 three-pointers and 755 rebounds over her Iowa career. She was a part of the three-year starting five that started 93 games together and made the Final Four this past season.
