The Ashland Eagles are atop the DII women’s basketball world once again. Winners of 15 in a row, the Eagles soar back to No. 1 after slipping in the previous Power 10 rankings. In the two weeks since the previous rankings, a slew of teams — including then-undefeated Southern Nazarene, Ferris State, Gannon, Union (TN), and Bentley — all lost, leading to quite the shakeup in the latest Power 10.
As a reminder, the DII women’s basketball Power 10 rankings are formulated by me, myself, and I. There is no voting body, just a bunch of stats, selection metrics, and the old-fashioned eye test. The goal is an overall picture of DII women's basketball and that means my rankings can look different from the national rankings. As with the DII men's basketball Power 10 rankings, this season I will be using stats from InkblotSports. You can see those metrics — which include RPI and PI amongst other selection metrics —hereor join theInkblot Sports Patreon here.
📝 FAQ AND HISTORY:Everything to know about the DII women's basketball championship
The fifth DII women's basketball Power 10 rankings of the regular season
(all stats and records through Saturday, Feb. 17)
No. 1 Ashland | Previous: 2
The Eagles have won 59 of their last 60 games — including an undefeated run to their third national championship and a DII record 37-game road winning streak — so it may be surprising to hear that there is actual debate as to who has the top spot. Per Inkblot, Ashland is third in the Midwest Region in RPI trailing both Ferris State and Grand Valley State, and its lone loss was to the Bulldogs, making the picture even murkier. But the Eagles are the Eagles — they have been to five of the last 11 national championship games and this team sure looks like it could be heading to No. 6.
No. 2 Grand Valley State | Previous: 6
The Lakers are 21-1 in DII play (which is all that matters come selection time) and like the Eagles, have suffered their lone loss at the hands of Ferris State. Unlike the Eagles, they will have a chance to avenge that loss on Thursday, Feb. 22. This defense is suffocating, currently No. 2 in DII women’s basketball allowing just 49.4 points per game.
No. 3 Harding | Previous: 8
The Bisons ended Southern Nazarene’s attempt at an undefeated season, utterly dominating the Crimson Storm in a 20-point victory to avenge one of its two losses earlier this season. While Southern Nazarene still holds an edge metrically in the Central Region, there is no denying that Harding — winners of 11 in a row — is red hot right now and looking like every bit of a contender in the stacked Central.
🏆 WINNER, WINNER:Programs with the most DII women's basketball titles
No. 4 Azusa Pacific | Previous: 9
The Cougars check all the boxes — they’ve played a challenging schedule, and they have the top RPI and PI in the West Region — and have been on an absolute tear, victorious in their last 19 games. Head coach T.J. Hardeman picked up his 400th career win at Azusa Pacific along the way. The starting five has incredible balance and which makes it tough to beat.
No. 5 Southern Nazarene | Previous: 1
The Crimson Storm still hold the top RPI and PI in DII women’s basketball, but the magnitude of that loss certainly stings. What was impressive is that this team quickly put it behind and rebounded with a 75-53 victory on Thursday and a 63-49 victory on Saturday. More attention needs to be paid to Hannah Giddey on the national level who is having an amazing season for one of the best teams in the sport.
No. 6 Valdosta State | Previous: Not ranked
The Blazers make one of the largest jumps of the entire season, rising from the unranked to No. 6. They last lost against Lee way back on Nov. 25 and have 19 wins in a row, including that dominating 18-point victory over Union (TN) for the season sweep. They also avenged that Lee loss in a 30-point blowout. This team is clicking and arguably getting stronger each week.
No. 7 Ferris State | Previous: 3
Yes, the Bulldogs lost a stinker to Saginaw Valley State 47-44, but it’s the wins this team has (victorious over the top two teams in DII women’s basketball) that has them atop the Midwest Region in RPI. That’s quite impressive. This team wins games by an average of 16.0 points per game, so it is equally stout on defense as it is on offense.
No. 8 Gannon | Previous: 4
The one-point loss to Indiana (PA) last week seems to have irked the Golden Knights as they responded with two wins by a combined 74 points. This team is the clear No. 1 in the Atlantic Region powered behind a top-5 scoring defense in DII. Even in that loss to IUP — just their second of the season — they only allowed 53 points.
No. 9 Texas Woman’s | Previous: 10
The Pioneers haven’t lost this calendar year, with the last loss coming way back on Dec. 30. That puts their winning streak at 14. Among those 14 wins are a season sweep of nationally ranked Texas A&M-International and then-top-20 Lubbock Christian. Going back to opening weekend, where the Pioneers won back-to-back games against nationally ranked Montana State Billings and Minnesota State, this team has shown it can hang with anyone.
No. 10 (tie) Jefferson, Western Washington | Previous: First five out (both)
I have admittedly been the low person on Jefferson all year compared to the national rankings. Why? Of the 64 teams I project to be filling the bracket at this point, Jefferson has the lowest SOS by a significant margin. That said, with all the inconsistency we’re seeing of late, a 23-1 team that has won 14 in a row is certainly a Power 10 team.
I may be a bit higher than the Vikings, especially since their RPI trails MSU Billings in the West Region. But let’s not forget — WWU has one win against the Yellowjackets, with a rematch set this week, and an early season victory over Azusa Pacific putting the Vikings in the hunt for the No. 1 seed.
First five out (in alphabetical order):
- Assumption: The Greyhounds are rolling and a 19-point victory over then-Power 10 Bentley boosts them into the conversation.
- Colorado Mesa: Despite a loss to a sneaky good UCCS team, the Mavericks have won seven of their last eight and absolutely dominated Colorado School of Mines to a 74-47 victory.
- Missouri Western: The revolving door of which MIAA team lands in the rankings spins to the Griffons this week. They have won 11 in a row, with three victories over nationally ranked teams in that span.
- Nova Southeastern: The Sharks started the season 0-2 and have gone 20-1 ever since, including a win over Tampa. This team is on fire.
- Union (TN): If you take away Valdosta State, Union is 22-0 this season. Still, this offense is tops in DII by a wide margin and should make a run in the GSC tournament.
Just missed: Catawba, MSU Billings
