The hype is palpable in Iowa City for the Iowa Hawkeyes men’s basketball team. The buzz around new head coach Ben McCollum has brought a breath of fresh air to a program that had run stale over the past few seasons.
McCollum has brought some top-tier talent with him as well. A known recruiter, McCollum has had talent follow him everywhere he has gone, and arguably, his best talent to date has followed him to Iowa.
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Bennett Stirtz, the Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year, is a sensational point guard for Drake who transferred to Iowa when McCollum was announced as the head coach of the Hawkeyes. With the move and the pieces around him, he is set up for a big year.
CBS is on board with Stirtz taking the next step, as they have ranked him as the No. 2 point guard in the nation, behind only Purdue’s Brayden Smith.
2. Bennett Stirtz, Iowa: One of college basketball’s biggest breakout stars is ready to cement his place as a future first-round pick. The 6-foot-4 lead guard has wisely followed Ben McCollum from Northwest Missouri State to Drake to Iowa City. He’s a maestro in ball screens and shot a sizzling 70% at the rim last season on sky-high volume. Stirtz is a real threat to lead the Big Ten in scoring because he never comes off the floor. How did he start his career at the Division II ranks?!? – Isaac Trotter, CBS Sports
While Stirtz played at Drake last year, he began his career at Northwest Missouri State, where he spent two seasons. In his second season there, he averaged 15.2 points per game while shooting 51% from the field.
Stirtz moved to Drake for the 2024-25 season alongside McCollum and blossomed even further. He put up 19.2 points per game to go with 5.7 assists and 4.3 rebounds each night. He shot 49.8% from the field overall and a strong 39.5% from three-point range.
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Iowa’s success will go through Stirtz this season as he figures to be the straw that stirs the drink in Ben McCollum’s highly efficient offensive scheme.
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This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire: CBS Sports ranks Iowa basketball PG Bennett Stirtz among nation’s best
