Two Glaring Takeaways From Iowa's B1G Tournament Victory

In no world was the Iowa Hawkeyes 75-64 win over Maryland perfect, but they took care of business and that's all that matters.

Now, Iowa sets their sights on Ohio State, a team they beat in the regular season, 74-57.

That said, this team has some issues to fix heading into that contest. This'll be only the second time this year they've played back to back games. Obviously, if they want to win the entire tournament, it's going to take a lot more than just two wins.

Regardless, Iowa likely solidified their spot in the 68-team NCAA Tournament. A few more wins could help them climb the ladder, but for now they're sitting pretty.

1. Disastrous Start Didn't Overwhelm Them

Ben McCollum on postgame radio: “We were an absolute fiasco to start the game.”

Didn't execute game plan, took bad shots, nerves all added to the early 21-10 deficit.

But Iowa scored 50 second-half points.

“You take away the 45 turnovers to start the game and you’ve got a…
— Chad Leistikow🆑 (@ChadLeistikow) March 11, 2026

"We were an absolute fiasco to start the game," McCollum said on the postgame radio show. "
Didn't execute game plan, took bad shots, nerves all added to the early 21-10 deficit.
You take away the 45 turnovers to start the game and you’ve got a heckuva game. We turned it around. Proud of the effort. Onto the next.”

Iowa scored 50 second half points that more than made up for whatever happened to them in the first 20 minutes. This team showed grit and determination, something that hasn't been seen out of them in quite some time.

There's nothing wrong with losing to either Michigan or Nebraska to end the year. Both were Top 10 teams but the way they came out of the gates here was extremely worrisome. If this happens again against the Buckeyes, they likely won't get so lucky.

2. A Supporting Cast Changes Everything

That March Feeling. pic.twitter.com/9aQXCV1sQY
— Iowa Men’s Basketball (@IowaHoops) March 11, 2026

Everyone who faces Iowa knows their offense runs through Bennett Stirtz. He had a relative off night, though that sounds crazy to say as he finished with 17 points which was second on the team. The Drake transfer was just 2-9 from three, though thankfully Cooper Koch stepped up to the plate.

Koch has been the hot hand and that's something Iowa needs to ride into the third round. There's no telling as to whether or not he'll shoot 5-8 from three-point range against OSU, but that's something they need to take advantage of while they can.

Stirtz and Koch were joined by Tavion Banks and Cam Manyawu who all finished in double-figure. The more the merrier, and that's exactly what Iowa needs as everyone in this conference specifically knows what they're getting when Stirtz is a one-man wrecking crew.

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