Iowa Faces One Major Challenge Against Ole Miss

The Iowa Hawkeyes, at 5-0, have dealt with their non-conference competition up to this point with relative ease — then again, they were expected to.

The team’s schedule has seen little to arguably no competitive uptick, save perhaps for the Big East Conference representative Xavier Musketeers, who, by way of their own first-year head coach rebuild, put up little fight at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Though next on the schedule, Iowa is set to endure its first true test under Ben McCollum.

Down to the Wire

On a neutral floor out west in California, the Hawkeyes will take on Chris Beard’s Ole Miss Rebels of the Southeastern Conference. Also, 5-0, the Rebels have taken a similarly strong hold on their schedule early in the 2025-26 season, outlining their meeting with the black and gold as a sort of “first loss necessity” either way. Something has to give, and according to the numbers, it could really go either way.

More than anything, Beard and Ole Miss' brand of basketball is one that has defined the SEC in recent years and, further, what won the conference a championship through the Florida Gators last season. It's a hard-nosed, diving for balls, defensively efficient scheme that most often outlasts opponents rather than running away from them. If Iowa wants to hang around, it'll have to make the Rebels play their own game.

Gratitude 🥹 pic.twitter.com/IhBqbRsBkV
— Iowa Men’s Basketball (@IowaHoops) November 21, 2025

Playing Ben McCollum Basketball

Where Ole Miss has scored between 80-89 points in all but one of their contests throughout this season so far, Iowa has fallen on each side of that thin spectrum in, equally, four of its own five matchups — only scoring less than 80 one time. The clear key for a potential Hawkeyes win lies in their ability to break that barrier and outrun a Rebels team that would much rather stick to their own script.

Playing away from home for the first time this season may present a slightly layered challenge for Iowa — entering an unusual, if not hostile, environment — but led by guard and primary scorer Bennett Stirtz, the pace of the battle will likely determine which side is favored by the time the second half is over.

And even if Stirtz can't get going, the Hawkeyes have found proven backup reliability in the likes of forward Alvaro Folgueiras and guard Tavion Banks. Iowa has the weapons and the game plan, whether or not they best the Rebels appears to be a matter of execution alone.

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