Iowa's Ben McCollum Not Worrying About March Madness Predictions

The Iowa Hawkeyes need to string together a few wins to make the NCAA Tournament.

Jan 14, 2026; West Lafayette, Indiana, USA; Iowa Hawkeyes head coach Ben McCollum reacts to a call during the first half against the Purdue Boilermakers at Mackey Arena. Mandatory Credit: Marc Lebryk-Imagn Images | Marc Lebryk-Imagn Images

March Madness is the main thing on everyone's mind, but the Iowa Hawkeyes aren't there yet.

Instead of being a "lock" into the tournament, Iowa dropped a game to Wisconsin that may have changed everything. Now, they must focus on Ohio State, a team that just beat the same Badgers team Iowa lost to.

There are a ton of things still up in the air with four games remaining, but one of which is obvious: Iowa can earn their way into the tournament by winning a good majority of their games.

Ben McCollum Doesn't Look at Bracket Projections

Ben McCollum says he doesn't look at bracket projections: “I will tell you this, I’m no Joe Lunardi. But if we win the next game and then the next game and the next game and the next game, it’s going to give us a better chance to make the NCAA Tournament. I do know that.”

— Tyler Tachman (@Tyler_T15) February 24, 2026

Ahead of the team's penultimate home game against OSU, McCollum sat down with the media as he addressed Iowa's state of being a bubble team.

"I will tell you this, I'm no Joe Lunardi. But if we win the next game and then the next game and the next game and the next game, it’s going to give us a better chance to make the NCAA Tournament. I do know that," he said.

Currently, ESPN has six B1G teams "locked" into the tournament. Those include: No. 3 Michigan, No. 8 Purdue, No. 10 Illinois, No. 12 Nebraska, No. 13 Michigan State, and Wisconsin. Even though the Badgers are no longer ranked, their the lone team to hand Michigan a loss this year which goes a long way.

Iowa and UCLA are in the "should be in" category which puts this game into a whole new perspective. Knowing the Buckeyes are nowhere to be found, a loss to OSU would be detrimental to the Hawkeyes season. As simple as McCollum's quote was, he knows winning is by far the easiest way to increase their chances of ending a two-year tournament drought.

McCollum is Building Something Special

Iowa guard Isaia Howard (23) reacts after Iowa guard Bennett Stirtz (14) took a foul from the Nebraska Cornhuskers Feb. 17, 2026 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Iowa. | Julia Hansen/Iowa City Press-Citizen / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

To join the Hawkeyes and make the tournament in your very first year is a massive accomplishment. Back on February 4, Iowa matched their win total from last season which is extremely impressive. Currently sitting at 19-8 overall they're tied with their win total from both 2022-23 and 2023-24.

Iowa hasn't had a 20 win season wince 2021-22 when they went 26-10. It'll be nearly impossible for them to reach 26 wins this season, though winning out and then stacking a few wins together in the B1G tournament would do the trick.

Either way, Iowa is easily able to measure their success compared to past years. Making the tournament is the ultimate goal, as it should be, and anything else at this stage would be a massive disappointing knowing how much they've improved from the team that stepped onto the court a year ago.

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