Indiana women’s basketball was selected to finish fifth in the preseason Big Ten polls, according to a Big Ten release Thursday.
The Hoosiers, coming off a 26-6 overall record in 2023-24, enter the upcoming season with five new players on the roster –– three freshmen and two transfers.
Junior guard Shay Ciezki transferred from Penn State, while senior forward Karoline Striplin comes to Bloomington from the University of Tennessee.
Freshman forwards Sydney Fenn and Faith Wiseman join the program from Buffalo, New York, and Martinsville, Indiana, respectively. Freshman guard Valentyna Kadlecova hails from Kadan, Czech Republic.
With guards Sydney Parrish and Chloe Moore-McNeil returning for their fifth seasons, Indiana looks to return to the top of the Big Ten where it finished two seasons ago. However, with the additions of UCLA, USC, Oregon and Washington, the challenge increases.
USC was picked to finish first in the conference while UCLA trailed just one spot behind. Trojan sophomore guard JuJu Watkins was selected as the Preseason Player of the Year by the coaches and the media.
No Hoosiers were selected to the coaches’ nor the media’s preseason All-Big Ten Team.
Indiana’s lone exhibition contest is slated for Oct. 30 against Maryville University in Bloomington. The Hoosiers will open the regular season Nov. 4 against Brown University inside Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.
Follow reporter Dalton James (@DaltonMJames) and columnist Ryan Canfield (@RyanCanfieldOnX) for updates throughout the Indiana women’s basketball season.
