Iowa women’s basketball 2021 recruiting class cracks top 25
A.J. Ediger, Addison O’Grady, and Sydney Affolter make up the No. 20 ranked class in the nation, according to ESPN.
Iowa Associate Head Coach Jan Jensen chats with Iowa Special Assistant to the Head Coach Jenni Fitzgerald during a women’s basketball between Iowa and Wisconsin at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Sunday, Feb. 16, 2020. The Hawkeyes defeated the Badgers 97-71.
October 11, 2020
The Iowa women’s basketball 2021 recruiting class is ranked 20th in the nation, according to ESPN.
The Hawkeyes have verbally committed two players in the ESPN HoopGurlz top 100, A.J. Ediger and Addison O’Grady, along with four-star recruit Sydney Affolter.
“What I really enjoy about the top rankings is that it gets a lot of buzz,” associate head coach Jan Jensen said. “Now they have seen Iowa in the top 20 back-to-back years, and that is when you start to really see that we are attracting great young women back to back, and you can prevent drop-off years.”
The 2020 Iowa women’s basketball recruiting class was ranked 17th in the nation by ESPN, making this the second year in a row that Iowa has cracked the top 25. That class was led by the five-star recruit and McDonald’s All-American point guard from West Des Moines Caitlyn Clark.
This year’s highest ranked recruit for the Hawkeyes is Ediger, a 6-foot-2-inch small forward from Hudsonville, Michigan.
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Ediger is ranked No. 39 in the nation for the 2021 class and is third in the nation at her position, according to ESPN.
The Hawkeyes have shifted to a four-out one-in, read and react type of offense that really utilizes the guards and wings as opposed to using two true post players. The Iowa coaching staff believes Ediger’s versatility will work well in this fast-paced offense as she continues to improve.
O’Grady is a physical 6-foot-4-inch post player ranked No. 92 in the nation from Centennial, Colorado. O’Grady is a phenomenal passer that runs the floor well and has good hands.
Affolter, a 5-foot-11-inch wing and Chicago native, has not cracked the top 100 rankings.
Affolter’s consistency and love for the game is what makes her an exciting prospect for the Hawkeyes.
Editor’s note: a previous version of this article included quotes from an off-the-record interview. It has been updated with portions of the interview that were on-the-record.
