It’s no surprise to anyone following the Iowa Hawkeyes or any of their opponents as to what they want to do on the offensive end of the court. Ben McCollum’s slow-paced, efficiency-driven offense relies on smart, talented guard play.
Plugging into that point guard spot is Bennett Stirtz, who has been tied to McCollum at both of his previous stops in the collegiate ranks, Northwest Missouri State, and Drake, where he was the MVC player of the year in 2025. His ability to compete in the Big Ten hasn’t missed a step.
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Stirtz has hit the ground running at the high-major level of college basketball and, due to that, finds himself well within ESPN’s top 50 players of the college basketball season up to this point.
23. Bennett Stirtz
Iowa Hawkeyes | G | Sr.
Many asked in the preseason: Could Stirtz and Ben McCollum translate their success from the mid-majors to the Big Ten? Early returns are positive. Stirtz’s numbers — 18.3 points, 5.0 assists — aren’t far from what he put up last season, and he has bounced back from some subpar performances with 20-plus points in each of the past two games. Going for 27 points on 8-for-10 shooting against Donovan Dent and UCLA is arguably his standout thus far. — Borzello
Bennett Stirtz has been fantastic as Iowa’s leading scorer. What also stands out is that while he averages better than five assists per game, he has only two turnovers per game.
He isn’t just a one-trick pony, either. Stirtz is hitting 47.5% of his shots from the field overall, while shooting nearly 37% from three-point range and 82.6% from the charity stripe when he gets to the free throw line.
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This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire: Iowa basketball PG Bennett Stirtz well within ESPN’s top 50 players
