Illinois Ends Iowa's Cinderella Run in Elite Eight

1980 was the last year the Iowa Hawkeyes made it to the Final Four and for the time being it's going to stay that way.

Ben McCollum's squad jumped out to a 12-2 lead against No. 3 Illinois but ultimately the Fighting Illini prevailed, 71-59.

Illinois played from behind the first 20+ minutes but the Hawkeyes simply couldn't keep up in the second half, especially in the final eight minutes.

Despite leading 51-50, Iowa was on the wrong end of an 8-0 run that proved to be the beginning of the end. As a No. 9 seed, the Hawkeyes still made it competitive as the lowest remaining seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Hawkeyes Season Ends Courtesy of Illinois

That's a quick 🔟 for Stirtz 🙌#MarchMadness @IowaHoops pic.twitter.com/L9fDBA9xrQ
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 28, 2026

There was a point in the first half where senior guard Bennett Stirtz had more points than his teammates combined. He finished with 24 points as his career has sadly come to an end. Not enough great things can be said about his rise from the Division II level to the Elite Eight, but this Iowa team simply didn't have enough left to keep their Cinderella run alive.

In a game that featured an 11-minute delay due to the horn in the arena not shutting off, turnovers and rebounds were a huge difference maker. Iowa had a pair of key back to back possessions early where they had unforced errors that led to Fighting Illini buckets on the other end. By the end of the 40 minutes, Illinois won the rebounding battle 38-21.

Hawkeyes fans had much to say about the officials, but at the end of the day there's nothing that can be done in that regard. Whether it was a missed goaltend, not calling three-seconds, or the ticky-tacky calls down the stretch, Iowa must live with this outcome and can't have their season end with excuses.

Iowa Exceeded All Expectations

😤😤😤 @CooperKoch_8 x @MarchMadnessMBB pic.twitter.com/21m4LyfVhY
— Iowa Men’s Basketball (@IowaHoops) March 28, 2026

All year long the lack of a supporting cast for Stirtz was the focus. McCollum saw three players step up in Iowa's first three games. Stirtz didin't necessarily struggle in those, but he certainly wasn't his usual self. Even when he was red-hot in this one, it still wasn't enough.

Iowa has plenty of seniors that will be moving on after this one and most of them followed McCollum from Drake. The Hawkeyes prioritized loyalty over anything else, and it got them to this point which says a lot. It may not have been the outcome Hawkeyes fans wanted, but making it to the Elite Eight in the first place was still a massive accomplishment.

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