Iowa will enter the 2025-26 women’s college basketball season off a 23-11 (10-8 Big Ten) season in which the Hawkeyes reached their seventh straight NCAA Tournament.
It was the ninth consecutive tournament appearance in which Iowa earned a No. 6 seed or better. Iowa topped 11th-seeded Murray State before falling to host Oklahoma, the No. 3 seed.
Iowa is replacing a pair of starters, guards Lucy Olsen and Sydney Affolter. It is also replacing center Addison O’Grady, who started 18 games last season and played in 136 during her Hawkeye career.
To address those departures, Iowa added a pair out of the transfer portal to go along with its 2025 signing class. Now that next season’s roster has fully materialized, let’s take a look at a projected starting lineup and rotation.
Iowa women’s basketball projected starting lineup
Chazadi ‘Chit-Chat’ Wright, 5-foot-4, Point Guard
Iowa found much-needed backcourt help with its first transfer portal addition. The Hawkeyes signed Georgia Tech transfer guard Chazadi “Chit-Chat” Wright.
The 5-foot-4 guard started 12 games and played in all 33 with the Yellow Jackets last year as a freshman, averaging 7.2 points, 2.6 assists and 2.2 rebounds per game while shooting 37.1% from the field, 32.3% from 3-point range and 88.6% from the free-throw line.
According to ESPN, Wright was a four-star signee in the 2024 class and the nation’s No. 49 player overall. With Olsen and Aaliyah Guyton moving on from the program, Iowa needed a steady hand at point guard, and the Hawkeyes found that with Wright.
A native of Atlanta, Georgia, Wright will have three seasons of eligibility remaining.
Addie Deal, 6-foot, Guard
A five-star signee and a member of the McDonald’s All-American Team, Addie Deal averaged 19.9 points, 7.0 rebounds, 5.9 assists and 3.4 steals per game as a senior.
The Mater Dei High School alumna from California was ranked as ESPN’s No. 23 player nationally in the 2025 class. Though she could handle the point guard duties if called upon, Deal gets to play off the ball to start thanks to the addition of Wright.
Emely Rodriguez, 6-foot, Small Forward
Emely Rodriguez was an All-Big 12 Freshman Team member last season with UCF after averaging 11.9 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game on 40.9% shooting from the floor, 33.3% from the 3-point arc and 75.3% from the free-throw line.
The 6-foot guard and forward can handle the basketball, drive to the bucket and step out and connect from deep. Rodriguez looks like a natural replacement for Affolter, although the Dominican Republic native will need to improve her 3-point accuracy. But, the ability to get on the glass and be a three-level scorer is there.
Hannah Stuelke, 6-foot-2, Forward
A key cog for Iowa in each of the past three seasons, Hannah Stuelke will now be looked to for senior leadership and consistent production. The 6-foot-2 big needs to elevate her game for Iowa to be the best version of itself.
Stuelke earned All-Big Ten second-team honors from the media last season after averaging 12.7 points, 7.7 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game on 49.8% shooting and 67.5% foul marksmanship. The Cedar Rapids native has registered 61 double-figure games, 11 double-doubles and 10 20-point performances during her Hawkeye career.
Stuelke’s field goal percentage from last season was down more than 10 percentage points compared to her first two seasons on campus when Caitlin Clark created easy looks inside and in transition.
Stuelke has one season without Clark under her belt and can hopefully find some of those easier bunnies with Deal and Wright directing traffic.
Ava Heiden, 6-foot-4, Center
The Sherwood, Oregon, native demonstrated plenty of reasons to be excited about her future during her freshman campaign, including a trio of breakout performances down the home stretch.
Heiden scored in double-figures with 11 and 10 points, respectively, during the Hawkeyes’ Big Ten Tournament games against Michigan State and Ohio State. Then, in Iowa’s NCAA Tournament opener, Heiden scored 15 points and grabbed seven boards.
Heiden played in 28 games last season, averaging 5.0 points and 2.6 rebounds per game on 56.1% field goal shooting and 70.5% from the free-throw line.
Iowa women’s basketball bench, rotation
Journey Houston, 5-foot-11, Guard
Can Journey Houston factor into the equation straight away? The 5-foot-11 guard from Davenport North was tracking to be one of the highest-rated players in the 2025 class before a knee injury cost her the final half of her junior year and the subsequent AAU season.
Iowa will need someone to handle the basketball that isn’t either Deal or Wright. Could Houston morph into that third ball-handler with the Hawkeyes’ second wave?
Chances are either Deal or Wright will spend time with Iowa’s second unit, but finding another ball-handler that can give each of those two a breather at the same time would free Iowa up to comfortably start Deal and Wright together.
Kylie Feuerbach, 6-foot, Guard
Kylie Feuerbach decided to return for the Hawkeyes, and that’s huge for Jan Jensen and Iowa. A starter over the past two seasons, Feuerbach is one of Iowa’s defensive stoppers. The 6-foot guard led the Hawkeyes with 43 steals last season.
If Feuerbach is willing to accept a different role, it could help Iowa rejoin that group at the top of the Big Ten. After combining to start 58 games over the past two seasons, it wouldn’t be surprising to see coach Jensen keep Feuerbach in Iowa’s starting five.
But, if Feuerbach moves to the second five, her defense and scoring would help to build one of the Big Ten’s best bench units.
Taylor McCabe, 5-foot-9, Guard
The sharpshooter started 19 games last season and has played in 85 over the course of her career. Taylor McCabe has 10 career games where she’s knocked down four or more 3-pointers and 17 in which she’s connected on three or more 3-pointers.
The 5-foot-9 guard averaged 6.7 points per game and shot 40.5% from beyond the arc last season.
Taylor Stremlow, 5-foot-10, Guard
Taylor Stremlow started a pair of games and played in 32 during her freshman season in Iowa City. The Verona, Wisconsin, native registered a career-high 10 points and knocked down a pair of 3-pointers in the Hawkeyes’ NCAA Tournament win over Murray State.
Stremlow averaged 2.4 points, 2.5 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game while shooting 46.3% from the field and 30.8% from 3-point distance.
Teagan Mallegni, 6-foot-1, Guard
Teagan Mallegni completed her freshman season averaging 3.2 points and 2.1 rebounds per game on 34.4% field goal shooting. The 6-foot-1 guard needs to improve her 3-point percentage from 22.8%, but Mallegni did knock down at least a pair of 3-pointers in three contests.
The McFarland, Wisconsin, native scored a career-high 13 points against Drake in November of last year.
Layla Hays, 6-foot-5, Center
Layla Hays was a four-star signee and the nation’s No. 71 player according to ESPN. Out of Wasilla, Alaska, Hays averaged 16.2 points, 11.9 rebounds and 2 blocked shots per game as a junior.
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This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire: Projecting Iowa women’s basketball starters, rotation for 2025-26 season
Reporting by Josh Helmer, Hawkeyes Wire / Hawkeyes Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
