The 2025-26 Ivy women’s basketball season tips off Friday, so it’s time for Ivy Hoops Online’s preseason poll – not to be confused with the Ivy League-released media preseason poll. Here’s how our contributors collectively predict the league will shake out, with select observations from some of them:
Brown
New year, same goal for Brown men’s hoops
Brown men’s basketball has not danced since 1986, but head coach Mike Martin is like a kid in a candy store when he talks about that goal. With year 14 fast approaching for Martin, it’s the furious pursuit of March magic that keeps his feet planted in Providence.
“The administration here, president [Christina] Paxson and [vice president for athletics and recreation] Grace Calhoun have been incredibly supportive in trying to help grow our program,” Martin told Ivy Hoops Online. “This is the job I’ve always wanted.”
Ivy Madness: Men’s Basketball Media Day
PROVIDENCE, R.I.- Day two at Ivy Madness started in the mid-morning with the four participants on the men’s side of the ledger.
In a very nice gesture, the Ivy League memorialized a seat for Washington Post sportswriter John Feinstein, who unexpectedly passed away at 68 Thursday. Despite attending Duke, John was a big fan of Ivy League sports, attending several Ivy League tournaments and writing about the conference’s gridiron in this past November’s “The Ancient Eight: College Football’s Ivy League and the Game They Play Today.”
Yale arrives as the regular season champion and heavy favorite to the be the first No. 1 seed to win the conference tournament since Princeton did it in 2017.
While this is the fifth time at Ivy Madness for No. 2 Cornell, it is the first time the Big Red enter as a semifinal favorite and are being led by former player and longtime assistant Jon Jaques.
Speaking of first timers, Dave McLaughlin and Dartmouth are making their inaugural appearance at the Ivy League’s Big Dance. The Big Green are looking to emulate Brown, which upset higher-seeded Princeton last year in its debut tournament last year.
Dartmouth was picked eighth in the preseason media poll and ended up third. On the other hand, the Tigers were picked to repeat as regular-season champions but ended up fourth. They clinched their seventh top-four finish in the tournament era on the final day of the season.
As the top seed, Yale opted to hang out for an extra hour and gave the opening slot to Princeton. After the Bulldogs’ press conference, Cornell and Dartmouth followed in the traditional No. 2 and No. 3-seed slots.
Below are highlights from the four media sessions:
Ivy Madness: Women’s Basketball Media Day
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Welcome to Ivy Madness VII (and Chag Sameach to those celebrating Purim)
This year, Ivy Hoops Online is coming to you from the heights of the Pizzitola Sports Center on the campus of Brown University.
Thoughts on the Ivy League’s All-Ivy awards for women’s basketball
Editor’s note: Here are Steve Silverman’s reactions to Ivy League All-Ivy awards for players and coaches for the 2024-25 women’s basketball season announced Tuesday. Ivy Hoops Online’s 2024-25 Men’s and Women’s All-Ivy Awards are soon to come.:
2025 Ivy Madness fields are set
The field is set for Ivy Madness.
Penn finished with a higher NCAA NET ranking (No. 162) than Brown (No. 184), the Ivy League confirmed Sunday morning, making the Quakers the fourth and final team to clinch an Ivy League Tournament berth with the Bears on the outside looking into the tourney to be held on their home floor at the Pizzitola Sports Center.
The full women’s and men’s slate for the Ivy League Tournaments are below, with automatic bids going to the tourney winners:
Princeton women’s basketball cruises past Penn, 67-53
Fadima Tall knocked down a career-high 20 points on 6-for-11 shooting along with 10 rebounds and four steals Saturday as Princeton women’s basketball warmed up for the Ivy League Tournament with a 67-53 win at Penn.
Penn’s loss, combined with Brown’s win, means that we won’t know which team will be the fourth entrant for Ivy Madness at Brown’s Pizzitola Sports Center till the NCAA releases its updated NET rankings to determine the tiebreaker. As the winner of the regular-season conference title, Columbia will play Penn or Brown in the tournament’s first round Friday, and Princeton will face Harvard; the championship game comes Saturday.Penn’s NET ranking was No. 162 as of Saturday night – 22 slots ahead of Brown at No. 184.
Yale men’s basketball bests Brown, 70-61
Brown men’s basketball had everything to gain at the Pizzitola Sports Center today. Yale had pride on the line.
Pride won out, as Yale defeated Brown, 70-61 on Senior Day.