PRINCETON, N.J. - Following a historic 2024–25 campaign that saw a league-record three Ivy League programs — Columbia, Harvard, and Princeton — earn berths to the NCAA Tournament, Princeton has been selected as the preseason favorite in the 2025–26 Ivy League Women’s Basketball Preseason Poll, as voted on by members of the media.

The Tigers earned 17 first-place votes and a total of 163 points to top this year’s poll. Princeton looks to continue its recent dominance after advancing to the NCAA Tournament in 2024–25. Returning to lead the Tigers is Madison St. Rose, joined by key contributors Skye Belker and Ashley Chea, who helped power Princeton to a 25–5 record last season.

Columbia was picked second, receiving 147 points and three first-place votes after another strong showing that saw the Lions return to NCAA postseason play. Columbia returns a talented core led by Riley Weiss and Perri Page, both key pieces in last season’s success. The Lions went 24-7 a year ago and captured a share of the Ivy League title before earning an NCAA Tournament victory over Washington in the First Four.  

Harvard rounds out the top three with 126 points and one first-place vote. Harvard will look to fill the shoes of Harmoni Turner, the 2025 Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year, but the Crimson aim to build on last year’s strong finish, which included capturing the Ivy League Tournament title.  

Penn was picked fourth with 106 points, positioning the Quakers as the final projected Ivy Madness qualifier. Brown, Dartmouth, Cornell, and Yale rounded out the predicted order of finish.

The 2025 Ivy League Women’s Basketball Media Day, hosted by the Field of 68, one of college basketball’s leading digital platforms, is set for Tuesday, October 28, beginning at 10 a.m. ET. The Field of 68 Ivy League basketball media day show will air live on the Field of 68 YouTube Channel (@TheFieldOf68) and X account (@TheFieldOf68).

The 2026 Ivy League Men’s and Women’s Basketball Tournaments will be held March 13–15 on the campus of Cornell University at Newman Arena at Bartells Hall in Ithaca, N.Y. The tournament champions will earn the league’s automatic berth to the NCAA Tournaments.

The Ivy League women’s basketball season tips off on Friday, November 7, with seven Ivy programs opening their 2025–26 campaigns.

IVY LEAGUE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL PRESEASON POLL
Predicted Order of Finish (First Place Votes)