Big Ten Weekly Women's Basketball Central - Feb. 24-March 2

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Big Ten Weekly Release - Feb. 24

Big Ten. Big News.

• The final week of the 2025-26 Big Ten Conference regular season tips off Wednesday with five games, including No. 8 Michigan taking on No. 13/12 Ohio State at 8 p.m. ET on Peacock. No. 9 Iowa will host RV/NR Illinois at 9 p.m. ET on the Big Ten Network for Thursday’s lone game. A 2:30 p.m. ET showdown on FOX is set for Saturday between No. 14/13 Maryland and No. 8 Michigan. Sunday features a doubleheader on BTN with No. 13/12 Ohio State at No. 15 Michigan State (12 p.m. ET) and No. 22 Minnesota at RV/NR Illinois (2 p.m. ET). No. 2 UCLA heads across town to face RV/NR USC at 6 p.m. ET on FS1. Remaining games will be streamed live on B1G+ (visit bigtenplus.com for more information).
• UCLA captured the 2025-26 Big Ten Women’s Basketball Championship outright for the first time in program history after defeating Wisconsin, 80-60, on Sunday. The Bruins finished the regular season undefeated on their home court for the first time since their 2016-17 campaign.
• Teams continue to clinch spots in the 2026 Allstate Big Ten Women’s Basketball Tournament, set for March 4-8 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. So far, 12 teams have earned a berth into the tournament (listed in alphabetical order) – Illinois, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Nebraska, Ohio State, Oregon, UCLA, USC and Washington.
• The NCAA had its first top 16 reveal on Feb. 15, which included six Big Ten teams. UCLA was tabbed as the No. 2 seed, while No. 6 Michigan and No. 9 Ohio State rounded out the top 10. Iowa was selected as the No. 11 seed, followed by No. 13 Maryland and No. 14 Michigan State. The final top 16 reveal will take place on Sunday, March 1.
• Iowa’s Ava Heiden swept the weekly awards after being named the AP National Player of the Week, Jersey Mike’s Naismith Women’s College Player of the Week, one of five USBWA Ann Meyers Drysdale National Players of the Week and the Big Ten Player of the Week. The sophomore led the Hawkeyes to a 3-0 week with wins over Nebraska, Purdue and No. 6 Michigan. She had 27 points, 11 rebounds, three assists and three blocks against the Huskers. Heiden netted 21 points while shooting 83.3 percent from the field with 13 rebounds, three steals and three assists versus the Boilermakers. She posted her third straight double-double (24 points, 10 rebounds) to go along with two blocks and two steals to upset the Wolverines.
• USC’s Jazzy Davidson was tabbed as the Tamika Catchings National Freshman of the Week by the U.S. Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) on Tuesday. Davidson, the Big Ten Co-Freshman of the Week, turned in 24 points, six assists, five rebounds, four steals and three blocks versus Wisconsin. She had a career-high 32 points against Ohio State with six three-pointers and 11 made field goals, both career marks. Davidson is the only Division I player leading her team in points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks.
• Illinois’ Cearah Parchment was selected as the Big Ten Co-Freshman of the Week on Monday, her fourth laurel of the season. She registered 20 points, 10 rebounds, four assists, four steals and one block with zero turnovers versus Rutgers. She followed up that performance with 19 points, 10 rebounds, three steals and three assists at Northwestern.
• The Big Ten currently leads all Division I conferences in assists (16.7 apg), field goal percentage (.454), three-point field goal percentage (.343) and free throw percentage (.738), while ranking second in scoring (75.5 ppg).
• Through games on Feb. 23, the Big Ten boasts nine teams in the top 25 and 12 in the top 50 of the NCAA’s NET Rankings, the top marks among all conferences. UCLA paces the Big Ten contingent at No. 2, followed by No. 6 Michigan, No. 8 Minnesota, No. 9 Iowa, No. 13 Michigan State, No. 14 Maryland, No. 17 Ohio State, No. 21 USC, No. 24 Oregon, No. 28 Nebraska, No. 29 Washington and No. 33 Illinois.
• Through Monday’s contests, Big Ten teams have combined to win 65 Quad 1 games, the most among Division I conferences, with 12 teams posting at least two Quad 1 wins. UCLA leads the country with 14 Quad 1 victories and the Big Ten is the only conference that has six teams with at least five Quad 1 wins.
• Every day is a battle as the Big Ten has 15 teams in the top 25 for NET strength of schedule – UCLA (1st), USC (2nd), Iowa (3rd), Penn State (6th), Michigan (7th), Nebraska (11th), Wisconsin (12th), Northwestern (13th), Indiana (16th), Ohio State (17th), Purdue (18th), Michigan State (20th), Rutgers (21st), Washington (23rd) and Minnesota (25th).
• This week’s Associated Press (AP) poll featured seven teams from the Big Ten. UCLA held steady at No. 2 and was joined by No. 8 Michigan, No. 9 Iowa, No. 13 Ohio State, No. 14 Maryland, No. 15 Michigan State and No. 22 Minnesota. USC, Washington and Illinois received votes.
• The same seven programs made an appearance in the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA)/USA Today Top 25 poll – No. 2 UCLA, No. 8 Michigan, No. 9 Iowa, No. 12 Ohio State, No. 13 Maryland, No. 15 Michigan State and No. 22 Minnesota. Washington garnered votes.
• Illinois currently stands second in the nation shooting 81.5 percent from the free throw line. UCLA ranks second in assist/turnover ratio (1.74), assists per game (22.2), field goal percentage (.514) and rebound margin (15.5). Iowa is third in assists per game (20.9) while Minnesota has a 1.59 assist/turnover ratio to come in fourth.
• Six of the nation’s best long-range shooters reside in the Big Ten. Indiana’s Shay Ciezki (5th – .461) leads the pack, followed by Iowa’s Chit-Chat Wright (6th – .460), UCLA’s Gianna Kneepkens (7th – .459), Minnesota’s Grace Grocholski (14th – .438), Nebraska’s Logan Nissley (15th – .433) and Washington’s Avery Howell (24th – .424).
• Offensive production continues to be the calling card of the Big Ten Conference. The league has eight teams ranked in the top 25 in field goal percentage – UCLA (2nd – .514), Iowa (6th – .494), Michigan State (10th – .485), Nebraska (13th – .478), Michigan (14th – .473), Indiana (16th – .472), Ohio State (20th – .464) and Penn State (22nd – .462).
• Sharing the rock comes naturally for the Big Ten with eight teams featured in the top 25 rankings for assists per game, including five in the top 15 – UCLA (2nd – 22.2), Iowa (3rd – 20.9), Michigan State (9th – 18.4), Nebraska (11th – 18.1), Ohio State (15th – 17.8), Northwestern (21st – 17.6), Oregon (22nd – 17.4) and Michigan (23rd – 17.4).
• HISTORY. MADE. The Big Ten is the first conference to ever have nine teams ranked in three different Associated Press (AP) polls in a single season – Dec. 8, Dec. 15 and Jan. 5. The Big Ten has had nine programs ranked in the AP poll four times, first achieved on Dec. 2, 2024, and is the only conference to have nine ranked teams since 1996.
• The Big Ten had a 170-33 (.837) combined record in non-conference play this season, which ranked second behind the SEC (197-24, .891) and ahead of the Big 12 (156-39, .800) and ACC (144-72, .667).
• Big Ten Conference Deputy Commissioner and Michigan women’s basketball great Diane Dietz was honored Jan. 11 with the lifting of her No. 21 jersey into the rafters at the Crisler Center. Dietz, who competed in Maize and Blue from 1979-82, was the program’s first 2,000-point scorer, a record that stood for more than 30 years. She still ranks fourth all-time in scoring with 2,076 points, a feat she achieved before the addition of the three-point line to the women’s game. Dietz is also second all-time in 30-point games (11) and in field goals made (940) and is only one of two players with at least 900 makes. She graduated as the Wolverines’ all-time leader in steals (229), a mark that currently ranks fourth in program history. Dietz was also a standout in the classroom and is one of only two Michigan student-athletes to have been inducted into the Academic All-America Hall of Fame (2009). The three-time Academic All-American was the first female recipient of the Big Ten Medal of Honor in 1982, which is considered the most prestigious honor a Big Ten student-athlete can receive. Dietz was inducted into the Michigan Athletics Hall of Fame in 1996 and is a member of the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame after her induction in 2019.
• The 2025-26 season will be the final ride for storied Northwestern head coach Joe McKeown, who announced on March 24 that he intends to retire at the conclusion of season. McKeown is the longest-tenured and winningest head women’s basketball coach in Northwestern history. This is his 18th season in Evanston and his 40th season overall as a head coach.
• Each Big Ten institution will play an 18-game conference schedule for the seventh time in eight seasons. During the conference season, each program will play one school both home and away, while facing 16 teams once. Of the single-play opponents, institutions will face eight at home and eight on the road.
• The 2026 Allstate Big Ten Women’s Basketball Tournament is set for March 4-8 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, marking the 27th time the tournament will be played in Circle City. Fifteen teams will qualify for the tournament, with three first-round games slated for Wednesday, March 4 on Peacock. The second-round, quarterfinal and semifinal contests on Thursday, Friday and Saturday will be carried on the Big Ten Network. CBS will broadcast the championship game for the third year in a row on Sunday.