Wikipedia

2025–26 UC Irvine Anteaters women's basketball team

The 2025–26 UC Irvine Anteaters women's basketball team will represent the University of California, Irvine in the 2025–26 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. They will play their home games at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, California as a member of the Big West Conference. The Anteaters will be led by 10th-year head coach Tamara Inoue. On the final game of the regular season versus UC Davis, UC Irvine recorded their 26th win, a new program record.[1] After losing to Hawai'i in the semifinals of the Big West tournament, the Anteaters were not selected to play in the NCAA tournament.[2] They received an automatic bid to the Women's Basketball Invitation Tournament, as they won the Big West regular season.[3] It is their first such appearance, as the tournament was created in 2024. They lost to San Diego State in the first round.[4]

2025–26 UC Irvine Anteaters women's basketball
Big West regular season co-champions
Great Alaska Shootout Champions
WBIT First Round, 55–61
ConferenceBig West Conference
Record26–7 (17–3 Big West)
Head coach
  • Tamara Inoue (10th season)
Associate head coachCecilia Russell-Nava (10th season)
Assistant coaches
  • Tyler Ellis (7th season)
  • Derek Wynn (4th season)
  • Lauren Saiki (1st season)
MVPHunter Hernandez
Home arenaBren Events Center
(Capacity: 5,000)
Seasons
← 2024–25
2026–27 →
2025–26 Big West women's basketball standings
Conf.Overall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
UC Irvine17–3 .85026–7  .788
UC San Diego †17–3 .85024–9  .727
UC Davis15–5 .75023–11  .676
Hawai'i14–6 .70022–11  .667
Cal State Fullerton13–7 .65018–14  .563
UC Santa Barbara12–8 .60020–10  .667
UC Riverside8–12 .40011–21  .344
Cal State Northridge6–14 .30010–20  .333
Long Beach State4–16 .2005–25  .167
Cal State Bakersfield2–18 .1007–23  .233
Cal Poly2–18 .1004–26  .133
† 2026 Big West tournament winner

Previous season

edit

The 2024–25 Anteaters team finished 21–10, including a 15–5 conference record. They were ousted in the Big West tournament final by UC Davis, losing 56–63. They did not receive a bid to the WBIT, as conference regular season champion Hawai'i did.

Offseason

edit

Preseason Polls

edit

The Big West Media Poll was released on October 13, 2025. This is the inaugural media poll for the Big West Conference, conducted by the UCSD Guardian. It was sent out to student journalists and radio broadcasters from other member schools across the conference.[5] The Big West Coaches' Poll was released on October 16, 2025. This is the third consecutive year UC Irvine is predicted to finish second in the Big West Conference.[6]

Media Poll
Pos. Team Points
1Hawai'i83 (5)
2UC Irvine80 (3)
3UC Davis68 (1)
4UC San Diego62
5UC Santa Barbara54
6Long Beach State44
7UC Riverside42
8Cal Poly34
9Cal State Fullerton16
10Cal State Bakersfield8
11Cal State Northridge4
Coaches' Poll
Pos. Team Points
1Hawai'i91 (4)
2UC Irvine90 (4)
3UC Davis83 (1)
4UC San Diego77 (2)
5UC Santa Barbara61
6Long Beach State57
7UC Riverside51
8Cal Poly34
9Cal State Northridge27
10Cal State Fullerton20
11Cal State Bakersfield14

Roster

edit
2025–26 UC Irvine Anteaters women's basketball team
PlayersCoaches
Pos.#NameHeightYearPrevious schoolHometown
PG 1 Ameerah Grant 5 ft 4 in (1.63 m) FrBrown Deer High School Brown Deer, WI
G 2 Haley Hernandez 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) JrArchbishop Mitty High School San Jose, CA
G 8 Kianna Wormly 5 ft 7 in (1.7 m) FrVista Ridge High School Cedar Park, TX
F 9 Daniela Falcón Hernández 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) SoUtah Las Palmas, Spain
G 10 Lauryn Madsen 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) SoWarden High School Warden, WA
PG 12 Shirel Nahum 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) JrWingate Academy Ra'anana, Israel
F 13 Nohe'alani Stores 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) FrMater Dei High School East Palo Alto, CA
F 14 Summah Hanson 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) JrSacramento State Brisbane, Australia
G 20 Hunter Hernandez 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) SrArchbishop Mitty High School San Jose, CA
PG 21 Despoina Baltzi 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) FrFryganiotis Schools Rhodes, Greece
G 22 Reese Noa 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) SoNorth Torrance High School Harbor City, CA
G 23 Jada Wynn 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) SrTexas Tech Yorba Linda, CA
G 24 Naomy Zonzon-Huyghe 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) SoArizona Western College La Roche-sur-Yon, France
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: October 16, 2025

Schedule and results

edit
Date
time, TV		 Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Regular season
November 5, 2025*
11:00 am, ESPN+		 San Diego W 72–54  1–0
  17 – Wynn  8 – Madsen  7 – Wynn  Bren Events Center (1,204)
Irvine, CA
November 9, 2025*
1:00 pm, ESPN+		 at Arizona L 61–75  1–1
  23 – Hu. Hernandez  9 – Wynn  3 – Madsen  McKale Center (5,268)
Tucson, AZ
November 12, 2025*
7:00 pm, ESPN+		 at Idaho State L 49–61  1–2
  12 – Madsen  9 – Stores  4 – Grant  Reed Gym (807)
Pocatello, ID
November 15, 2025*
4:00 pm, ESPN+		 Northern Arizona W 90–75  2–2
  23 – Nahum  11 – Tied  6 – Wynn  Bren Events Center (560)
Irvine, CA
November 21, 2025*
6:15 pm, GNAC Network		 vs. Bowling Green
ASRC/ConocoPhillips Great Alaska Shootout Semifinals		 W 75–50  3–2
  15 – Madsen  12 – Wynn  6 – Wynn  Alaska Airlines Center (2,001)
Anchorage, AK
November 22, 2025*
8:30 pm, GNAC Network		 vs. St. Thomas
ASRC/ConocoPhillips Great Alaska Shootout Championship Game		 W 63–55  4–2
  20 – Wynn  9 – Wynn  4 – Nahum  Alaska Airlines Center (2,101)
Anchorage, AK
November 28, 2025*
2:00 pm, ESPN+		 Wichita State
Zotgiving Classic		 W 58–52  5–2
  20 – Hu. Hernandez  8 – Wynn  3 – Tied  Bren Events Center (340)
Irvine, CA
November 29, 2025*
4:30 pm, ESPN+		 Colgate
Zotgiving Classic		 W 82–48  6–2
  18 – Wynn  6 – Wynn  7 – Nahum  Bren Events Center (541)
Irvine, CA
December 4, 2025
6:00 pm		 at UC Riverside
Big West Bold Week		 W 77–40  7–2
(1–0)		  16 – Hu. Hernandez  13 – Wynn  4 – Wynn  SRC Arena (115)
Riverside, CA
December 6, 2025
2:00 pm		 at Cal State Northridge
Big West Bold Week		 W 72–46  8–2
(2–0)		  31 – Hu. Hernandez  12 – Wynn  2 – Wynn  Premier America Credit Union Arena (359)
Northridge, CA
December 13, 2025*
2:00 pm, ESPN+		 California Baptist W 77–57  9–2
  27 – Hu. Hernandez  11 – Wynn  4 – Tied  Bren Events Center (441)
Irvine, CA
December 16, 2025*
6:00 pm, ESPN+		 at New Mexico State W 83–66  10–2
  19 – Grant  8 – Hanson  5 – Hu. Hernandez  Pan American Center (344)
Las Cruces, NM
December 18, 2025*
6:00 pm, ESPN+		 at UTEP W 93–72  11–2
  36 – Hu. Hernandez  7 – Wynn  7 – Wynn  Don Haskins Center (905)
El Paso, TX
January 1, 2026
2:00 pm, ESPN+		 Cal State Bakersfield W 82–63  12–2
(3–0)		  27 – Hu. Hernandez  11 – Hu. Hernandez  4 – Hu. Hernandez  Bren Events Center (717)
Irvine, CA
January 3, 2026
4:00 pm, ESPN+		 Cal State Fullerton W 64–51  13–2
(4–0)		  26 – Hu. Hernandez  9 – Hanson  4 – Wynn  Bren Events Center (659)
Irvine, CA
January 8, 2026
6:00 pm, ESPN+		 at Long Beach State
Black and Blue Rivalry		 W 78–59  14–2
(5–0)		  21 – Hu. Hernandez  8 – Hanson  5 – Wynn  LBS Financial Credit Union Pyramid (639)
Long Beach, CA
January 10, 2026
2:00 pm, ESPN+/SSN		 Hawai'i W 50–47  15–2
(6–0)		  20 – Hu. Hernandez  8 – Tied  5 – Tied  Bren Events Center (713)
Irvine, CA
January 17, 2026
2:00 pm, ESPN+		 UC Davis W 73–42  16–2
(7–0)		  24 – Wynn  8 – Wynn  4 – Hu. Hernandez  Bren Events Center (972)
Irvine, CA
January 22, 2026
6:00 pm, ESPN+		 UC Riverside W 74–68  17–2
(8–0)		  20 – Hu. Hernandez  7 – Tied  6 – Wynn  Bren Events Center (467)
Irvine, CA
January 24, 2026
2:00 pm, ESPN+		 UC San Diego L 66–68  17–3
(8–1)		  19 – Hu. Hernandez  10 – Hu. Hernandez  5 – Wynn  Bren Events Center (711)
Irvine, CA
January 29, 2026
9:00 pm, ESPN+		 at Hawai'i L 50–55  17–4
(8–2)		  17 – Wynn  10 – Hu. Hernandez  3 – Wynn  Stan Sheriff Center (1,820)
Honolulu, HI
February 5, 2026
6:30 pm, ESPN+		 at Cal State Bakersfield W 85–53  18–4
(9–2)		  15 – Tied  8 – Wynn  3 – Tied  Icardo Center (112)
Bakersfield, CA
February 7, 2026
2:00 pm, ESPN+		 UC Santa Barbara W 63–41  19–4
(10–2)		  15 – Hu. Hernandez  13 – Hanson  3 – Tied  Bren Events Center (722)
Irvine, CA
February 12, 2026
6:00 pm, ESPN+		 Cal Poly W 84–39  20–4
(11–2)		  21 – Wynn  12 – Zonzon-Huyghe  6 – Hu. Hernandez  Bren Events Center (580)
Irvine, CA
February 14, 2026
2:00 pm, ESPN+		 at Cal State Fullerton W 77–71  21–4
(12–2)		  30 – Hu. Hernandez  6 – Stores  7 – Nahum  Titan Gym (423)
Fullerton, CA
February 19, 2026
6:00 pm, ESPN+		 Long Beach State
Black and Blue Rivalry		 W 77–62  22–4
(13–2)		  19 – Hu. Hernandez  4 – Tied  6 – Wynn  Bren Events Center (741)
Irvine, CA
February 21, 2026
4:00 pm, ESPN+		 at UC San Diego W 70–68  23–4
(14–2)		  20 – Wynn  8 – Wynn  2 – Tied  LionTree Arena (783)
San Diego, CA
February 26, 2026
6:00 pm, ESPN+		 Cal State Northridge W 60–57  24–4
(15–2)		  18 – Hu. Hernandez  12 – Wynn  4 – Tied  Bren Events Center (645)
Irvine, CA
February 28, 2026
2:00 pm, SSN		 at UC Santa Barbara L 62–70  24–5
(15–3)		  26 – Hu. Hernandez  9 – Wynn  4 – Hu. Hernandez  The Thunderdome (1,289)
Santa Barbara, CA
March 5, 2026
6:00 pm, ESPN+		 at Cal Poly W 85–65  25–5
(16–3)		  41 – Hu. Hernandez  6 – Hanson  5 – Zonzon-Huyghe  Mott Athletics Center (409)
San Luis Obispo, CA
March 7, 2026
2:00 pm, ESPN+		 at UC Davis W 70–58  26–5
(17–3)		  24 – Hu. Hernandez  7 – Falcon Hernandez  5 – Wynn  University Credit Union Center (977)
Davis, CA
Big West tournament
March 13, 2026
12:00 pm, ESPN+		 (1) vs. (4) Hawai'i
Semifinals		 L 63–67 OT 26–6
  33 – Hu. Hernandez  8 – Hu. Hernandez  4 – Tied  Lee's Family Forum (1,502)
Henderson, NV
WBIT tournament
March 19, 2026
6:00 pm, ESPN+		 vs. (4) San Diego State
First Round		 L 55–61  26–7
  19 – Hu. Hernandez  9 – Wynn  4 – Hu. Hernandez  Jenny Craig Pavilion (858)
San Diego, CA
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.

Source[7]

Rankings

edit
Ranking movements
Legend: — = Not ranked
Week
PollPre12345678910111213141516171819Final
AP————————————————————
Coaches————————————————————

References

edit
  1. ↑ "UC Irvine women earn share of Big West title, top seed for conference tourney". Orange County Register. March 8, 2026. Retrieved March 9, 2026.
  2. ↑ "UC Irvine women drop Big West tourney semifinal to Hawaii in OT". Orange County Register. March 13, 2026. Retrieved March 16, 2026.
  3. ↑ "WBIT bracket 2026: Full schedule, TV channels, live streams, scores for women's college basketball tournament | Sporting News". www.sportingnews.com. March 16, 2026. Retrieved March 16, 2026.
  4. ↑ "Aztecs edge UC Irvine in 'home' game at USD, advance in WBIT". San Diego Union-Tribune. March 20, 2026. Retrieved March 20, 2026.
  5. ↑ "UC Irvine (men's), Hawai'i (women's) favorites in inaugural Big West Basketball Preseason Media Poll".
  6. ↑ "Hawai'i Selected as Preseason Favorites for 2025-26 Women's Basketball Title". bigwest.org. October 16, 2025. Retrieved October 17, 2025.
  7. ↑ "2025-26 Women's Basketball Schedule". UCI Athletics. Retrieved October 17, 2025.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=2025–26_UC_Irvine_Anteaters_women%27s_basketball_team&oldid=1362999473"