Iowa Women's Basketball Class of 2024 Review
With the recent addition of four-star Aaliyah Guyton, the Iowa Women’s Basketball team looks like they have finished off their recruiting class for 2024. The five player class includes four players ranked in the ESPN Top 100 rankings. The Hawkeyes are currently the only team in the country to have more than two top 100 commits. Let’s take a look at each of the commits.
6’5 C Ava Heiden – Sherwood, Oregon
Ranking: Four-Star, #36 player in the country and #5 C in the country by ESPN
Chose Iowa over: Utah, Oregon State and Washington
The Hawkeyes have had some really good center play over the last decade with Bethany Doolittle, Megan Gustafson and Monika Czinano. Addison O’Grady is set to take over the position for the next couple of years, while her presumed predecessor Ava Heiden is a highly-touted prospect out of Oregon.
As a sophomore in 2021, Ava averaged 10.0 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 1.5 blocks per game for a Sherwood Lady Bowmen team that went 15-10 and won the Pacific Conference. She was named Pacific Conference Player of the Year.
Last season as a junior in 2022, her year was cut short due to an ankle injury that ended her season after just seven games. In those seven games, Ava was averaging 12 points, 11 rebounds, three assists and two blocks per game.
When you watch highlights of Heiden, the thing that really stands out is her ability to run the floor offensively to get baskets in transition, as well as her ability to get back in transition and block shots on the defensive end. You don’t always see that type of athleticism from someone who is 6’5. She is also willing to get down on the block, get physical and make a sound move to the basket with minimal dribbling, which is a Coach Jan Jensen staple.
“Ava moves extremely well off the ball for her size and makes great decisions,” said Northwest Select Player Development Coach James Purchin in a previous article with HawkeyeReport. “When she catches in the post, she understands her reads and is incredibly patient. She also have the desire to defend, compete and rebound.”
5’8 G Aaliyah Guyton – Peoria, IL
Ranking: Four-Star, #57 player in the country by ESPN, #1 in IL by Prep Girls Hoops
Chose Iowa over: Illinois, Nebraska, Michigan State and Pittsburgh
Other notable offers: Ohio State, Wisconsin, Mississippi State, Missouri, Vanderbilt and DePaul
The latest commit for the Hawkeyes, Aaliyah Guyton took official visits to each school in her top five, but opted to commit to Iowa. She is the daugther of former NBA player and Indiana standout AJ Guyton, while her mom Adrianna Moises Pinto-Mafra played in the Olympics five times for the Brazilian National Team.
As a sophomore at Peoria in 2021, Guyton averaged 20.2 points, 3.4 assists, 2.7 rebounds and 2.0 steals per game for a Lions team that went 25-4. She was named Big 12 Conference Player of the Year and was an IBCA First Team All-State selection.
The latest commit for the Hawkeyes, Aaliyah Guyton took official visits to each school in her top five, but opted to commit to Iowa. She is the daugther of former NBA player and Indiana standout AJ Guyton, while her mom Adrianna Moises Pinto-Mafra played in the Olympics five times for the Brazilian National Team.
Looking through her highlights, she is a three-level scorer. She shoots it well from three-point range and can even knock it down from a few steps further. On top of that, Guyton can turn around and get to the hoop, while possessing the ability to pull up short for a runner/jumper, get to the rim or kick it to the perimeter.
6’1 G/F Teagan Mallegni – McFarland, WI
Ranking: Four-Star, #64 player in the country by ESPN, #2 in WI by Prep Girls Hoops
Chose Iowa over: Ohio State, Oregon, Duke, North Carolina, Kansas and Wisconsin
The first of two players from Wisconsin in the 2024 class, Mallegni chose the Hawkeyes over several other very good programs. Lisa Bluder and Co. will be looking to continue their success with players from the Badger State, as former Hawkeyes Sam Logic, Megan Gustafson and McKenna Warnock all came from Wisconsin.
During her sophomore season in 2022, she was second in the state of Wisconsin, averaging 29.0 points per game, while also pulling down 8.9 boards per game. Her season highlight was a 62-point performance against East Troy. She was named Rock Valley Conference Player of the Year.
Last season, as a junior for McFarland High School, Mallegni averaged 24.5 points, 11.9 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 4.1 steals and 1.7 blocks per game for a Spartans team that won the Rock Valley Conference Championship. She helped lead her team to the WIAA Division 2 State Semifinal, where she finished with a game-high 23 points, nine rebounds, ten assists and three blocks in a six-point loss to Green Bay Notre Dame. She was named Rock Valley Conference Player of the Year for the second straight season and was a First Team AP All-State selection.
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“I think that I would be a 2 or 3 guard in college and I think my shooting is a really big part of my game. My shooting and my ability to score is one of my strengths,” said Mallegni in an article with HawkeyeReport when she committed to Iowa. “I think the biggest thing that I improved on was my passing. Last year, I was mostly a scoring threat, but this year I really tried to expand my game past scoring and round out my abilities, including rebounding and defense.”
5’8 G Taylor Stremlow – Verona, WI
Ranking: Four-Star, #88 player in the country by ESPN, #4 player in WI by Prep Girls Hoops
Chose Iowa over: Illinois, Penn State and Wisconsin
Other notable offers: Iowa State, Kansas State, Marquette, Minnesota, DePaul and Toledo
The second commit from the state of Wisconsin, Taylor Stremlow has had an interesting high school career and made a huge jump statistically last season. As a freshman at Verona in 2020, Taylor averaged 11.6 points, 6.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game for a Wildcats team that made it to the WIAA DI State Tournament. She went for 18 points, eight rebounds and four assists in state semifinal game.
She missed her entire sophomore year in 2021 due to fractured bone in her foot. Stremlow got back on the court with her Wisconsin Flight Elite AAU team in the summer of 2022 and was impressive in her games back from injury. Last winter, as a junior for Verona, Taylor average an unbelievable averaged 16.9 points, 10 rebounds, 9.0 assists, and 7.0 steals per game for a Wildcats team that won the Big Eight Championship and reached the sectional semifinals. She was on of 11 girls to be named First Team WBCA All-State.
On tape, Stremlow displays impressive ball handling skills, as well as the ability to attack the basket off the dribble and dish to her teammates for basket. She can also shoot it from outside.
5’9 PG Callie Levin – Solon, IA
Ranking: #2 in Iowa by Prep Girls Hoops
Chose Iowa over: Iowa State, Utah, Drake, Purdue, Oklahoma State, Arkansas and Marquette
The hometown commit, Callie Levin has been committed to Iowa since August of 2021. Levin received offers from a few big names schools like Iowa State and Utah, as well as Drake and Purdue, but it was all Iowa from the start.
As a sophomore in 2021 for Solon, Levin averaged averaged 21.0 points, 3.7 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 4.3 steals per game for a Spartans team that went 15-8. She led all freshman in the state in scoring (436 pts) during the 2020-21 season and then was second in the state among all sophomores with 483 points for the 2021-22 season.
As a junior for the Spartans last season, Callie averaged 18.2 points, 5.7 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 3.7 steals per game for a Solon team that advanced all the way to the 3A State semifinals.
Jeremy Brooks of Prep Girls Hoops had this to say about Levin’s game last winter.
“I had the chance to watch Callie at the EYBL nationals this past summer while competing with the 17u All Iowa Attack EYBL team and it is an understatement to say that she is a game changer in all facets of the game. Someone who can really impact the game on all levels, even when she is having a rough shooting day.”
