Iowa women’s basketball first-year head coach Jan Jensen is the Spalding Maggie Dixon NCAA Division I Rookie Coach of the Year, the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association announced Wednesday. 

The honor comes after she led the Hawkeyes to an eighth-place finish in the Big Ten with a 23-11 record and a sixth seed in the NCAA tournament. There, Iowa finished in the quarterfinals and Round of 32, respectively — an impressive continuation of recent success despite turnover seeing the departure of Caitlin Clark after last year.

Jensen was named head coach on May 13, 2024, just 20 minutes after Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame candidate Lisa Bluder announced her retirement after 24 years with the program. Jensen bypassed several head coaching opportunities to remain with Bluder through all 24 years and was instantly promoted as a result. 

Iowa wasn’t voted onto the AP preseason poll this year, missing the list for the first time in over two years. After the team’s 8-0 start to the season, though, the Hawkeyes returned to the poll for a month-and-a-half, reaching as high as No. 17 in mid-December. 

But reality eventually struck as the Hawkeyes dropped five-straight games, all being decided by single digits. Just when they were on the brink of missing the NCAA tournament, Jensen and Co. rallied to an 8-2 finish, including a 76-69 upset win over then-No. 4 USC, to guarantee themselves a postseason spot.

Iowa made it to the quarterfinals of the Big Ten tournament before a 61-60 loss to Ohio State, followed by a second-round NCAA tournament appearance before a 96-62 loss to Oklahoma.