Iowa's Bennett Stirtz Must Outplay Ohio State's Bruce Thornton

Iowa Hawkeyes senior guard Bennett Stirtz has played all 40 minutes in seven of the team's nine last games.

He's played the entire game in their last two, and five of their last six. Stirtz is a one-man wrecking crew and can help bring the Hawkeyes back into any game at any given moment.

With Iowa set to face Ohio State, a team that mirrors their 9-7 conference record, they can't look past senior guard Bruce Thornton. Stirtz has a two inch height advantage, and it's not like they'll be matchup up against one another, but these are the two players that will decide the game.

🔙 on home court tonight. pic.twitter.com/JSfCEGGejZ
— Iowa Men’s Basketball (@IowaHoops) February 25, 2026

Thornton is coming off a 32-point performance against No. 15 Michigan State, but not even that was enough for the Buckeyes to defeat the Spartans. Keep in mind, OSU scored just 60 points so Thornton had over half of the team's points himself.

These Two Point Guards Will Decide the Game

Not often does Iowa find themselves in a shootout, but they just gave up 84 points to Wisconsin which was a huge step in the wrong direction. The game prior, they had allowed just 52 to a Top 10 Nebraska team.

If Iowa lets Thornton get rolling they'll be in big trouble. The Georgia native has scored 20+ in each of his last four. While that sounds impressive, Stirtz has him beat. The Drake transfer may have only scored 19 against No. 13 Purdue, but he's scored at least 19 points in his last 11 games.

Thornton's 32-point game against MSU was only his third 30+ point game of the season. Keep in mind, Stirtz had scored 30+ in three of four games from February 1 to February 11. Sure, Thornton may only be 0.2 points per game behind Stirtz, but Iowa's guard seems to be far more consistent and is peaking at the right time.

Iowa Looks to Ride Bennett Stirtz Hot Streak

Iowa G Bennett Stirt — Iowa guard Bennett Stirtz (14) passes the basketball during a Big Ten game against 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

Looking at their season numbers, Stirtz has attempted 16 more shots on the year. He's attempted 43 more three-pointers which goes a long way as 67 of Stirtz' 190 made field goals have come from three point range.

This is without a doubt one of Iowa's biggest "must-win" games of the season. As a bubble team, they simply can't afford to lose to a team like the Buckeyes. Iowa tends to take care of business against teams that are at or below their level, and usually it's due to a monstrous performance from Stirtz. Iowa needs that in their second to last home game otherwise they'll be in big trouble.

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