Grand Valley State, now 20-0, and 22-0 Minnesota State are the last remaining undefeated teams in DII women’s basketball. While these two have been consistent forces since opening tip, the rest of the Power 10 saw some inconsistencies these past two weeks. No. 5 Nova Southeastern dropped not one, but two games. No. 3 West Texas A&M lost this past weekend in a top-10 matchup and No. 7 Fort Hays State got stomped by Central Missouri on Saturday.
All that is to say, outside of Nos. 1 and 2, the Power 10 has been quite the ride thus far in 2026. Remember, these rankings are mine and mine alone; I don’t call upon a voting body or ask the NCAA selection committee for input. Instead, I combine selection metrics with what I am watching on the court with my own eyes in an attempt at a power ranking that falls between the national polls and regional rankings. I no longer rely on KPI as a deciding factor (for one of several reasons), and I will be using RPI more strongly moving forward.
The DII women’s basketball Power 10 (through Feb. 1)
No. 1 Grand Valley State | Previous: 1. The Lakers extended their winning streak to 33 games and look geared up to defend their national championship. As if they needed to they made a statement this past week by taking down nationally ranked Northern Michigan by 13 and a Michigan Tech team currently with good enough metrics to make the tournament by 14. The Lakers have done it against the 24th toughest schedule in DII and own a top-5 scoring defense allowing 52.8 points per game. This is simply utter dominance.
No. 2 Minnesota State | Previous: 2. The Mavericks are more of a 1B to the Lakers' 1A. They have won 22 straight against a top 50 strength of schedule (SoS) and have one only team with a winning record in its next four games. They own the top scoring offense in DII with 95.8 points per game and have the defense to match, blowing teams out by a DII-best 29.8 points per game. Natalie Bremer continues to dazzle, now averaging 21.5 points per game on 50.4 percent shooting.
No. 3 Texas Woman’s | Previous: 8. The Pioneers get a huge boost after their thrilling overtime win over former No. 3 West Texas A&M. That makes them the No. 1 team in the South Central region, a region that has three top-10 teams and four in the national top 25. They are sparked by the LSC’s No. 2 scoring defense, allowing just 57.3 points per game, and are driven by two legit scorers in Averee Kleinhans (18.3 points, 6.2 rebounds per game) and Gabby Elliott (16.4, 10.8). The Pioneers have a tough road back to the South Central championship, but right now, they are cooking.
No. 4 Colorado Mesa | Previous: 6. The Mavericks have now won 19 in a row. Minus Adams State, which they beat by 40 points on Jan. 10, there isn’t a team really even close to the Mavericks in the RMAC. They lead the conference in scoring (74.2 points per game) and their 51.8 points allowed per game is not only the top scoring defense in the RMAC, but No. 3 in all DII. They are led by Olivia Reed Thyne, who is now the RMAC’s all-time scoring leader, and leads the RMAC in scoring (19.7 points per game), rebounding (10.3 per game) and double doubles with 10. The Mavs check off plenty of boxes.
No. 5 West Texas A&M | Previous: 3. So… do you see how tough the South Central is? This is the third team in a row from the region. Yes, the Buffs picked up a loss, but even after that tough overtime four-point bump in the road, they still have a higher RPI than Texas Women’s against the 65th toughest SoS in DII. That is why this team falls only a couple of spots. They have depth and balance, scoring 77.8 points per game while only allowing 59.9. They also have signature in-region wins over Colorado Mesa, Adams State, Lubbock Christian and St. Mary’s (TX) with a big nationally ranked win over Ferris State. One could argue that despite the loss, the Buffs could be a spot higher.
No. 6 Indiana (PA) | Previous: 4. Last week, the national poll had Gannon listed above its PSAC rival and it made me scratch my head. IUP has played a tougher SoS, has a higher RPI, and oh yeah, took down Gannon two weeks ago. Did they lose a stunner to Clarion? Sure, but it was the Crimson Hawks' first, and only, loss of the season by a mere point. They have both the No. 2 scoring offense (80.6 points per game) and No. 2 scoring defense (55.5 points allowed per game) in the PSAC as one of the more balanced teams in all DII. They get dinged a couple spots for that loss but stay in the top five by bouncing back with two wins, one of which came against a likely tournament-bound Seton Hill.
No. 7 Gannon | Previous: 9. The Golden Knights have two losses. One was by a mere basket to nationally ranked Northern Michigan and the other was by five points to IUP. They are seven points away from being undefeated and played very tough teams very well. The Knights also have DII’s second lowest-scoring defense, allowing just 51.3 points per game. It feels like we are headed to an Atlantic Region championship rematch between IUP and Gannon, but first, we’ll get a major regular-season rematch on Feb. 28.
No. 8 Cal Poly Pomona | Previous: Also considered. The Broncos don’t just step into the Power 10, they leapt, rising all the way to No. 8. Now, on paper, they have the second-best RPI in the West, but they also have a big December win over No. 1 Central Washington, which makes the Broncos the team to beat out West. They allow just 53.8 points per game, have a scoring threat in Sydney Nelson (18.9 points per game) and are one point away from an 18-game winning streak. The only ding is that their SoS is a bit weaker than several of the top 25, but this is a team surging in the right direction.
No. 9. Fort Hays State | Previous: 7. It gets dicey down here at Nos. 9 and 10 as there were five teams that could have made these two spots. The Tigers lost to a very good Central Missouri team, but again, losses to other teams keep them in the mix for now. FHSU is still the No. 2 team in RPI in the Central Region — and if you still choose to believe in KPI, sit in the top 15. Talexa Weeter is a machine and since Jan. 1 has scored 30 or more points four times, while scoring fewer than 23 points just once in 10 January games.
No. 10 Central Washington | Previous: 10. The Wildcats picked up their second loss of the season to a 12-8 Alaska Anchorage team, but so many other teams lost that they remain in the Power 10. Now, while RPI is hard to judge across regions, they do have one of the best in all DII while playing the 35th toughest SoS. They also have Asher Cal, who is among DII’s scoring leaders with 23.0 points per game and Fiona Snashall, who is among DII’s rebounding leaders with 10.1 per game. The Wildcats allow just 54.9 points per game and bounced back with a 52-point win on Saturday.
Also considered (in alphabetical order): Bentley, Coker, Daemen, Fayetteville State, Harding, Lubbock Christian, Nova Southeastern, Pittsburg State, Winston-Salem State
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