2024 Wisconsin small forward Teagan Mallegni explains why she picked Iowa
Culture and style of play both key factors
By Pat Harty
IOWA CITY, Iowa – Teagan Mallegni wasn’t necessarily looking for a school close to her home in Wisconsin when deciding where to play college basketball.
She was more concerned about finding the right fit, the right style of play, and the right culture.
And she found all those things at the University of Iowa.
“I think if I fit somewhere it didn’t matter,” Mallegni said Sunday in a telephone interview. “It’s a bonus that it’s close to home and my parents, and my friends and my family can drive and get to games.
“But it didn’t matter. If I fit the program, I fit the place.”
Mallegni, a 6-foot-1 small forward from McFarland High School in Wisconsin, announced her commitment to Iowa’s 2024 recruiting class via Twitter on Saturday.
She averaged 24.5 points, 11.9 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 3.9 steals this past season, and she also led her high school team to the state tournament for the first time since 1999.
Mallegni had a bunch of scholarship offers from schools that included Oregon, Ohio State, Kansas, Minnesota and Wisconsin, but none of the other schools could match what Iowa had to offer on and off the court.
“I think the first thing is the coaches were so amazing and so welcoming, so that was really reassuring to me,” Mallegni said. “And then also looking at the style of play and the girls that are coming in my class and just being super comfortable on the campus and around the people, those are the biggest factors going into my decision and Iowa really fit all of them really well.
“So, it was the best option for me.”
Mallegni is ranked by ESPN as the 59th best recruit in the 2024 class, and she is the fourth player to commit to Iowa’s 2024 recruiting class.
She joins fellow Wisconsin native Taylor Stremlow, who plays point guard, 6-5 center Ava Heiden, who is from Sherwood, Oregon, and point guard Callie Leven, who is from Solon.
Iowa just finished its greatest season in program history, advancing to the national championship game for the first time ever and finishing 31-7 overall.
And though Iowa lost to LSU, 102-85, in the national title game, the team still captured the hearts of fans from all over, and much of the credit goes to All-America junior point guard Caitlin Clark, who was voted the consensus National Player of the Year.
Iowa set a record for home attendance this season, and the national championship game had a record 9.9 million viewers.
“She’s so awesome from every aspect of it,” Mallegni said of Clark. “She was super impressive and so fun to watch, just being able to do everything else like getting her teammates involved and rebounding and just being a real good leader. Those are things I really appreciate. Her being able to do everything is so fun to watch. She’s so amazing.”
Iowa’s fast-pace style of play on offense under veteran head coach Lisa Blduer was a big factor in Clark picking the Hawkeyes three years ago, and it also played a key role in Mallegni’s decision.
“I love transition,” Mallegni said.
Bluder has had long-standing success recruiting in the state of Wisconsin and Mallegni looks forward to joining a list that includes former All-America center Megan Gustafson, who was the 2019 National Player of the Year, All-America point guard Sam Logic, who started in each of her four seasons in the program, and departing senior McKenna Warnock, who started the last three seasons at small forward.
“That’s super cool and just being able to go in and continue that legacy of great players, I’m hoping to do that,” Mallegni said.
Mallegni is coached by her mother, Sara Mallegni, in high school.
“It’s super cool,” Teagan Mallegni said. “I love it. I think it’s a real good opportunity for our relationship. We just have grown a whole lot together. I think it’s really awesome.”
Teagan Mallegni said she noticed the family atmosphere right away at Iowa during the recruiting process. She likes that the players and coaches are so close, on and off the court.
“I want to go somewhere and have my teammates be my closest friends and be able to go and talk to my coaches,” she said. “It was really cool to see that at Iowa.”