Top Wisconsin High School Girls Basketball Games of the Opening Week

The Wisconsin high school girls basketball season is about to get underway as the first games of 2025-26 will tip on Tuesday, November 18. With plenty of storylines to follow from the first week, to the holiday break, and all the way through March, the girls hoops season is guaranteed to be another of top notch games, individual performances, and milestones set.

Below is a list of some of the top games of the opening week of the 2025-26 season. If you’re looking for some girls hoops content to get you by to Tuesday night, click the links below for preseason division top 10s.

Division 1 Preseason Rankings
Division 2 Preseason Rankings
Division 3 Preseason Rankings
Division 4 Preseason Rankings
Division 5 Preseason Rankings

A ranked matchup on the opening night of the season between two of the better small school teams in the state?! That’s what we’re getting in a Cloverbelt Crossover match on Tuesday night. Both programs were regional champions a season ago and come into this season with high expectations yet again. To put the cherry on top, long-time Neillsville coach John Gaier is one win shy of 500 in his career, something he could do in the first game of season 24.

Muskego is coming off a silver ball in Division 1 a season ago, as Erik Loose has done a great with the Warriors program. It’s a new season in Muskego however and Loose has a lot of graduating production to replace. Whitefish Bay on the other hand fell in a sectional semifinal but return the top five scorers from last season. The Blue Dukes will be looking to knock of Hartford in the North Shore and this is a great opening test.

Oostburg is the defending Division 3 state champion and the preseason top-ranked team coming into 2025-26. Appleton East made a “cinderella” run to the Resch Center last season eventually falling to FVA foe Kimberly in the state semifinals. East has a bit of a regrouping to do, while Oostburg is one of the most talented teams in the state regardless of division.

These two teams went a combined 48-6 last season. Edgerton is a preseason top contender in Division 3 as head coach Chris Jenny returns nearly his entire squad that came one game shy of the state tournament. Poynette will have a different look with four of its top six scorers gone to graduation, though junior Avalyn Albrecht is back to lead the Pumas.

The Angels are stacked coming into the 2025-26 season. Can coach Jerome King’s team take the next step? A good first test with MAS could set the tone St. Cats season, or be a big early season win for the Novas.

Franklin welcomes in Racine Park alum Gabrielle Hood in her first game as the girls varsity head coach. The Sabers will be tasked with a tough first game in Brookfield East, our tenth-ranked team in the preseason Division 1 rankings that feature a pair of Division 1 recruits.

A preseason top ten matchup in Division 5 on the opening Thursday! These two teams combined to go 43-8 last season with young teams that will have one more year of experience under their belt. As far as top games in the northern part of the state, this would be the marquee matchup for small school contests.

Two very good schools in the southeast part of the state will do battle on Thursday night. Both are amongst the top teams in all of Division 2 and play in two of the tougher conferences in the state. By scheduling these non-conference games in November, each team is preparing for later in March.

West De Pere moves to the FRCC this season and begins the year with a FVA opponent in Hortonville, which finished second a season in the standings last year. Both of these squads will look differently from the 2024-25 campaign however and this game will be our first look into those squads.

This is undoubtedly the game of the night as two state tournament hopeful teams will square off. Tosa East ended Wisco’s season last year in the regional final, and both squads return plenty of firepower into this year. Head coach Mary Merg and the Trojans took home the Division 2 state title a season ago but will be in Division 1 this season. A lot of talent both on the court and behind the clipboard makes this a must see, early season tilt.

Both of these teams advanced to the state tournament in division 3 last year and both fell to eventual champion Oostburg. Xavier moves up a division but returns nearly the entire roster and is a favorite in Division 2. Laconia graduated an extremely talented 2025 class but head coach Chris Morgan is one of the best in the state we'll see how the Spartans have reloaded.

Two teams that combined for 43 wins a season ago and have playoff aspirations will meet in Durand on Thursday night. The Panthers are replacing all five starters, all of which averaged over eight points a game a season ago. The Crickets play in a tough Cloverbelt-West conference and are poised to contend for that title once again.

If Tosa East v Wisco is the game of the night, this is the co-main event. Two top ten teams in Division 1 with some top tier talent will make this game also a must watch. Memorial came just shy of the state tournament a season ago, three points to be exact, while SPASH was two games away. Both are loaded coming into 2025-26 and both figure to be a candidate for a deep playoff run.

Sheboygan Falls won the Eastern Wisconsin Conference last season in dominating fashion, and the Falcons are ready to get started on another outstanding campaign, opening against a larger Grafton squad looking to get back into the top half of the North Shore Conference after finishing 10-15 overall in 2024-25.

Lake Country Lutheran v The Prairie School

The Prairie School was a state tournament team last season, but the Prairie Hawks graduate All-State performer Jasonya Barnes as well as second-leading scorer Meg Decker from that group. The defending champions of the Metro Classic will meet up with Midwest Classic co-champ Lake Country Lutheran in an excellent early season game. The Lightning figure to be among the top teams in Division 3 behind a roster that will rely heavily on players that got plenty of experience last season but are still young overall.

Menomonie v Regis (D4 #1)

Regis is number one in the Bound Wisconsin Preseason Division 4 Rankings, and the Ramblers jump right into things with a tough test against Division 2 Menomonie, who tied for fourth in the Big Rivers Conference a year ago and returns leading scorer Jordan Ohman.

Cuba City v Fox Valley Lutheran, Beaver Dam Classic

Cuba City won the Division 4 state title in March, but the Cubans have loads of graduation losses to fill heading into the new year. Among last year’s top players, Ashley Rowe (10.8 ppg) and Aly Ingersol (5.4 ppg) are the leading returning scorers. Fox Valley Lutheran will be a good opening litmus test for the Cubans.

Kettle Moraine Lutheran won an outright East Central Conference title last year, finishing 25-2 after a tough sectional loss to Oostburg. Multi-year standouts Makenzie Luehring and Madeline Leffel graduate, though the Chargers should remain a strong contender in the league under head coach Jason Walz. With six state tournament appearances under head coach Dave Donarski since 2017, Aquinas continues to challenge itself in the non-conference slate. The Blugolds return Samantha Davis, a Bradley recruit who has more than 1500 points in her career.

Host Beaver Dam takes on Westosha Central at the popular Beaver Dam Classic on Friday. Westosha was second in the Southern Lakes last year, bringing back sophomore sensation Lana Mannetter among others, as she averaged 17 points per game as a freshman. Beaver Dam returns all but one player and 99% of the production from a year ago, including D1 prospect Nataya Donaldson.

These teams have quite the recent history, meeting in three consecutive Division 2 state championship games from 2022 to 2024. Notre Dame won the first two before Pewaukee claimed the 2024 championship. Both are now elevated to Division 1 by the WIAA’s Tournament Performance Factor. Pewaukee downed Notre Dame 73-54 in the opening game of the 2024-25 season.

Arrowhead opens the season number one in the Bound Wisconsin Division 1 Girls Basketball Rankings, headlined by Minnesota commit Natalie Kussow. The Warhawks take on Manitowoc Lincoln to begin the year, as the Ships are coming off a 14-11 campaign in 2024-25.

Kimberly opens its Division 1 state title defense with a challenging one right out of the gates. Brookfield East won 23 games a year ago and features talented college prospects Maya Kovecic and Josie Piurkowski. Kimberly has another strong group under head coach Dave Lepisto. Juniors Ava Van Vonderen and Haylie Dulas are among the top players in the state.

Wauwatosa East won the Division 2 state title last year, but is bumped up to Division 1 by the WIAA’s Tournament Performance Factor. Head coach Mary Merg became a mother of twins in the off-season, and will also be blessed with the return of several talented performers from last season’s group, including Mikaia Litza, Emma Close, and Ellie Deprey. Neenah has a solid group as well, as head coach Andy Braunel’s squad won 19 games a year ago.

Aquinas is expected to challenge in Division 3 after moving up from D4, and the Blugolds have a tough early schedule to get ready. They face off with Kettle Moraine Lutheran at the Beaver Dam Classic on Friday, then face Division 5 preseason number one Pacelli on Saturday. The Cardinals have four double-digit scorers back, led by WBCA All-State selection Jaedyn Zdroik.