Iowa head coach Jan Jensen endured plenty of ups and downs during her first year as a head coach in 2024-24 after serving as an assistant coach for over 30 years. But after enduring those downs in the middle of the season, Jensen helped Iowa rebound and become one of the hottest teams in the country in February and early March, a turnaround that attracted national attention. On Wednesday, Jensen was named the Maggie Dixon Division I Rookie Coach of the Year by the Women's Basketball Coaches Association.
The award was created to honor a WBCA member and NCAA Division I head coach who has led their team to a successful season during their first year on the sideline. It was named in honor of the late Maggie Dixon, who led Army to the 2006 Patriot League title and a first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance in her first year as head coach of the Black Knights. Dixon, 29, died of an undiagnosed heart condition a few weeks after that NCAA Tournament appearance on April 6, 2006.
Jensen replaced program legend Lisa Bluder as Iowa's head basketball coach last summer and inherited a program that had just graduated program women's basketball icon Caitlin Clark. In her first year as head coach of the Hawkeyes, Jensen guided the team to a 23-11 overall record, including a 10-8 mark in Big Ten action.
After winning her first eight games as head coach and getting the Hawkeyes off to a 13-2 start, Jensen encountered her first adversity in early January, as Iowa lost five games in a row and fell to 2-6 in Big Ten play. Iowa broke that slump in emphatic fashion, though, and ran off six wins in a row, including a 76-69 home upset of then-#4 USC in early February. Iowa ended the regular season on an 8-2 run, with the only losses coming in overtime to then-#8 Ohio State and to then-#3 UCLA on a late bucket.
Iowa rode that hot streak to a pair of wins in the Big Ten Tournament, before dropping another close game to Ohio State in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals. The Hawkeyes then earned a 6-seed in the NCAA Tournament and blew out Murray State in the first round before being on the wrong end of a blowout against Oklahoma in the second round.
“Success in your first year as an NCAA Division I head coach is generally a difficult feat. When a new Division I head coach demonstrates a mastery of managing all aspects of a program, as well as producing success in competition, our coaching family pays respectful attention. The WBCA is proud to announce Jan Jensen as the winner of the 2025 Spalding® Maggie Dixon NCAA Division I Rookie Coach of the Year award,” said WBCA Executive Director Danielle Donehew.
“Jan led Iowa to a remarkable season. We celebrate her effort and effectiveness on the basketball court as a teacher and equally applaud the extensive role she plays in impacting the lives of her student-athletes.”
Jensen's win continues a small trend of success for Iowa basketball head coaches and coach of the year awards. Earlier this week, new Hawkeye men's basketball head coach Ben McCollum was also honored as the best first-year head coach in Division I hoops (for his work at Drake in 2024-25). The future looks bright for basketball in Iowa City.
