It’s time for the third edition of the Big 12 women’s basketball power rankings of the 2025-26 season, just in time for the start of conference action.
We’re down to one more wave of non-conference games starting today, as each of the 16 teams tries to fine-tune their rotations for the league openers this weekend. On Saturday, BYU will be at UCF, and Kansas State will be at TCU. I’m hoping to be in Fort Worth for that one.
On Sunday, we have five games — Kansas at Iowa State, Houston at West Virginia, Oklahoma State at Cincinnati, Texas Tech at Baylor, and Colorado at Arizona State. I’m intrigued enough by the TTU-BU game that I hope to be there in person for that one, too.
On Monday, the first cycle of games ends with Utah heading to Arizona. After that, the league goes dark for the holidays before returning for a full group of games on Dec. 31 and Jan. 1.
Due to the break, our next power rankings will be on Jan. 5, which will be after the third round of league games. From that point forward, we’ll have women’s power rankings on a weekly basis.
Let’s dig in as we prepare for Big 12 action.
Tier 1
1. TCU (11-0) — (Last ranking: 1)
2. Iowa State (12-0) — (Last ranking: 2)
3. Texas Tech (12-0) — (Last ranking: 4)
4. Baylor (10-2) — (Last ranking: 3)
I debated dropping Baylor from the first tier. Yes, Texas blew the Bears out on Sunday. But Baylor has played three ranked high-major teams and has played a couple of quality mid-majors, including challenging itself with a trip to UNLV. They’re playing like a Top 4 team, though the status of guard Taliah Scott is worth monitoring. She suffered a lower leg injury on Sunday.
TCU and Iowa State, to me, have shown themselves to be a clear No. 1 and No. 2 in the league. I would argue ISU has played a tougher schedule. But the Horned Frogs and Cyclones have been dominant. Texas Tech has beaten four high-major teams, and the rise of Jalynn Bristow leads me to believe this might be the team that gets the Lady Raiders back to the NCAA Tournament.
Tier 2
5. Arizona State (12-0) — (Last ranking: 7)
6. Oklahoma State (10-2) — (Last ranking: 5)
7. West Virginia (10-2) — (Last ranking: 6)
8. BYU (11-1) — (Last ranking: 9)
Arizona State finally met the challenging part of its schedule and beat Penn State and Oregon State back-to-back. A win over Gonzaga later this week makes the Sun Devils 13-0 going into Big 12 play. ASU head coach Molly Miller is an early candidate for Big 12 coach of the year if the Sun Devils can keep this up.
BYU joins the second tier as the Cougars have put together a tremendous non-conference performance without Delaney Gibb, who has missed much of the season. But, BYU needs Gibb, who has been out with a lower leg injury, for conference play if it expects to remain competitive. Monitoring her status is worth everyone’s time leading up to the league opener.
Tier 3
9. Kansas (9-2) — (Last ranking: 10)
10. Colorado (8-3) — (Last ranking: 11)
11. Arizona (7-2) — (Last ranking: 8)
12. Utah (8-3) — (Last ranking: 12)
Right now, there is a gap between this tier and the ones above and below. The one most likely to play their way off this tier is Kansas. I like the makeup of the team. The freshmen have come to play, and coach Brandon Schneider is going to have to rely on them in conference action. The Jayhawks are a team that could grow up during the back half of the season and be a real problem.
Arizona dropped two games since our last power rankings, falling to Southern and New Mexico, with both games at home. The Wildcats haven’t played a single high-major, and they could fall hard once league play comes around.
Tier 4
13. Kansas State (7-6) — (Last ranking: 13)
14. UCF (8-3) — (Last ranking: 14)
15. Houston (5-5) — (Last ranking: 15)
16. Cincinnati (5-6) — (Last ranking: 16)
Kansas State is a perplexing team, but being just above .500 is also easy to explain. The Wildcats have played five high-major teams and two other top mid-majors (South Dakota State and San Diego State) and lost to both. That’s what is keeping them here on the last tier, though I think they could still be in the mix for a Top 8 seed in the conference tournament. The talent on this team hasn’t translated to consistent play just yet.
UCF, Houston, and Cincinnati remain on this tier. I think Cincinnati has played a challenging schedule and done so without top freshman Dee Alexander. When, and if, she comes back, I think Cincinnati can get off this tier, too.
