UCLA, Betts Headline Big Ten Women's Basketball Preseason Honors
ROSEMONT, Ill. – With the start of the 2025-26 season on the horizon, UCLA has been voted as the preseason Big Ten women’s basketball favorite by both the league’s 18 head coaches and a select media panel, the conference office announced Thursday. The coaches and media also tabbed Bruin senior center Lauren Betts as the 2025-26 Big Ten Preseason Player of the Year.
The coaches preseason poll ranked Maryland second, followed by Michigan at third, USC slated fourth and Ohio State checked in at fifth. The media poll mirrored the selections for the Terps and Buckeyes but ranked USC in third place and shifted Michigan into the fourth spot.
Betts and teammate Kiki Rice were unanimous choices by the coaches for their preseason All-Big Ten Team. They were joined by Iowa’s Hannah Stuelke, Maryland’s Yarden Garzon and Kaylene Smikle, Michigan’s Olivia Olson and Syla Swords, Michigan State’s Grace VanSlooten, Ohio State’s Jaloni Cambridge and Washington’s Sayvia Sellers.
Nine of the 10 honorees garnered a spot on the media’s preseason team. Betts was the only unanimous selection and Washington’s Elle Ladine replaced her teammate on the media’s list.
Ten of the 11 players recognized were all-conference selections a season ago, including four who earned first team honors in Betts, Rice, Cambridge and Smikle. Among the returners, Betts was named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year by the coaches and media. Cambridge and Olson were voted Big Ten Co-Freshmen of the Year by the coaches, while Cambridge claimed the honor outright from the media.
The Big Ten Conference is coming off another successful season that included sending a record 12 programs to the 2025 NCAA Tournament, the most among all Division I conferences. UCLA advanced to the NCAA Final Four for the first time in program history. Minnesota continued the conference’s WBIT streak by defeating Belmont to capture the 2025 WBIT Championship title.
Preseason practices are underway for Big Ten member institutions. All 18 Big Ten head coaches and selected student-athletes from each school are preparing to make their way to Rosemont, Ill., for the 2025 Big Ten Basketball Media Day on Oct. 8 at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center. The 2025-26 campaign tips off Nov. 3, while the 33rd Big Ten Women’s Basketball Tournament is headed back to Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis for March 4-8.
The 2025-26 Preseason All-Big Ten Teams and rankings are below:
2025-26 Coaches Big Ten Preseason Rankings
- UCLA
- Maryland
- Michigan
- USC
- Ohio State
2025-26 Coaches Preseason All-Big Ten Team
Hannah Stuelke, Sr., F, Iowa
Yarden Garzon, Sr., G, Maryland
Kaylene Smikle, Sr., G, Maryland
Olivia Olson, So., G, Michigan
Syla Swords, So., G, Michigan
Grace VanSlooten, Sr., F, Michigan State
Jaloni Cambridge, So., G, Ohio State
LAUREN BETTS, SR., C, UCLA
KIKI RICE, SR., G, UCLA
Sayvia Sellers, Jr., G, Washington
2025-26 Coaches Preseason Player of the Year
LAUREN BETTS, SR., C, UCLA
2025-26 Media Big Ten Preseason Rankings
- UCLA
- Maryland
- USC
- Michigan
- Ohio State
2025-26 Media Preseason All-Big Ten Team
Hannah Stuelke, Sr., F, Iowa
Yarden Garzon, Sr., G, Maryland
Kaylene Smikle, Sr., G, Maryland
Olivia Olson, So., G, Michigan
Syla Swords, So., G, Michigan
Grace VanSlooten, Sr., F, Michigan State
Jaloni Cambridge, So., G, Ohio State
LAUREN BETTS, SR., C, UCLA
Kiki Rice, Sr., G, UCLA
Elle Ladine, Sr., G, Washington
2025-26 Media Preseason Player of the Year
Lauren Betts, Sr., C, UCLA
Unanimous selections listed in ALL CAPS