CBB Rank 2025: No. 30, Iowa Basketball

The best duo in college basketball, Bennett Stritz and Ben McCollum, look to continue their winning ways with Iowa basketball.

The tradition continues! It’s another year of our countdown of the top 100 preseason teams in college basketball until the start of the season. Each day, we will reveal the next team until we reach the team slotted at number one. Up next: Iowa basketball.

After 15 seasons with Iowa, Fran McCaffery finally says goodbye, taking the Penn job. How do they take to replace him? Ben McCollum, who was born and raised in Iowa. If you Google the word “winner”, Ben McCollum’s face may show up. In his last eight coaching seasons, he won 4 national titles at the D2 level, then led Drake to a 31-4 record. Now, he goes to the Big Ten looking for his toughest test yet.

He brings with him his right-hand guy, Bennett Stritz. Stirtz was unbelievable last year. You can write 2000 words on how awesome he was and the impact he had on his team. He is, without a doubt, a top 5 player in the Big Ten, and maybe even in the country. If Iowa is good this year, it will be primarily because of his performance.

McCollum brings with him several other Drake players as well. Iowa basketball brings in five total transfers from Drake, and hey, when you win 31 games with a team, why not? They also add some non-Drake transfers in Brendan Hausen and Alvaro Folgueiras. Folgueiras was the Horizon player of the year last year, and Hausen is a sharpshooter who can definitely cause a deadly shooting duo with him and Stirtz.

It’ll be an interesting transition for Iowa fans, but McCollum wins, and that’s all that matters at the end of the day.

Head coach: Ben McCollum (1st season at Iowa, 2nd season overall)

2024-25 record:  17-16 (7-13)

2025 postseason finish: No postseason

Notable departures: 

• Owen Freeman (16.7 PPG, 6.7 RPG, 1.3 APG)
• Payton Sandfort (16.7 PPG, 6.0 RPG, 2.9 APG)
• Josh Dix (14.4 PPG, 3.2 RPG, 2.8 APG)
• Drew Thelwell (9.5 PPG, 3.0 APG, 2.2 RPG)
• Pryce Sandfort (8.8 PPG, 2.9 RPG, 1.3 APG)
• Brock Harding (8.8 PPG, 5.3 APG, 2.3 RPG)

Notable non-conference games: 

• vs. Xavier (Nov. 14)
• vs. Ole Miss (Nov. 25) – Acrisure Classic
• vs. Grand Canyon OR Utah (Nov. 26) – Acrisure Classic
• at Iowa State (Dec. 11)

Projected Rotation

PG: Bennett Stirtz (6-4, 190, Sr.)

2024-25 stats: 19.2 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 5.7 APG, 2.1 SPG, 49.8 FG%, 39.5 3P%, 79.4 FT% (Drake)

SG: Brendan Hausen (6-4, 220, Sr.)

2024-25 stats: 10.9 PPG, 2.5 RPG, 0.8 APG, 0.6 SPG, 39.0 FG%, 38.8 3P%, 81.8 FT% (Kansas State)

SF: Tavion Banks (6-7, 215, Sr.)

2024-25 stats: 10.1 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 1.0 APG, 0.7 SPG, 0.4 BPG, 52.0 FG%, 70.5 FT% (Drake)

PF: Alvaro Folgueiras (6-10, 230, Jr.)

2024-25 stats: 14.1 PPG, 9.1 RPG, 3.2 APG, 1.4 SPG, 1.2 BPG, 54.8 FG%, 41.3 3P%, 78.4 FT% (Robert Morris)

C: Cam Manyawu (6-9, 250, Jr.)

2024-25 stats: 7.1 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 0.9 APG, 1.3 SPG, 0.7 BPG, 57.8 FG% (Drake)

6: Cooper Koch (6-8, 220, Rs.-Fr.)

2024-25 stats: 4.6 PPG, 2.1 RPG, 0.8 APG, 10 GP

7: Isaia Howard (6-5, 215, So.)

2024-25 stats: 4.5 PPG, 2.5 RPG, 0.8 APG, 1.1 SPG, 43.5 FG% (Drake)

8: Trey Thompson (6-8, 220, Fr.)

2025 247Sports Composite #98-ranked recruit

9: Kael Combs (6-4, 205, Jr.)

2024-25 stats: 3.8 PPG, 2.0 RPG, 0.9 APG, 0.4 SPG, 51.1 FG%, 80.0 FT% (Drake)

10: Trevin Jirak (6-11, 250, Fr.)

2025 247Sports Composite #132-ranked recruit

Iowa Basketball team MVP: Bennett Stirtz

Maybe the most obvious pick for team MVP in the entire country. Stirtz was nothing short of incredible last year. He averaged nearly 20 PPG, and did it on nearly 50% shooting from the field and 40% shooting from deep. He’s also a playmaker, averaging nearly 6 assists a game, and oh, he also averaged over 2 steals a game.

In the tournament, he averaged 21 a game in the two games they played, to go with 8 assists and 55% shooting from three. He lives for the big moments and shines anytime his name is called. There’s always a bit of concern that his game will translate to playing up a conference, but there’s no fear with him. As long as he’s on the court, Iowa is going to be in a position to succeed.

Iowa Basketball make-or-break player: Alvaro Folgueiras

Folgueiras was great at Robert Morris, taking a big leap from year one to year two. He averaged a near double-double and led his team to its first tournament appearance in a decade. He’s a decent passer for his size as well, averaging 3.2 APG, and had 7 assists in the conference tournament championship game.

So, two questions. First, can he level up again? If he can level up his game once again, then he and Stritz can become a dominant guard-forward duo. He’s got the intangibles, but he has to show so on the court. Second, will the step up be too much?

Alavaro played two games against Power 5 teams last year. In the first game, he played West Virginia in the first game of the season, where he grabbed 10 rebounds but failed to score. The second game was the NCAA Tournament first round, where he scored 15 points and grabbed 10 rebounds. Hopefully, we see more of the latter, because if so, that is a huge addition for this team.

Key analytic: Tempo

Iowa fans are used to high-scoring shootouts under Fran McCaffery. They’ll get the opposite with McCollum. In his first season in college basketball, McCollum’s Drake team finished dead last in tempo. Don’t expect anything different this year. This team will play in the half-court and expect more games to finish in the 60s than in the 80s.

That’s why you have Stirtz, though, who can create late in the shot clock and score if needed. If the players can buy into that style of play, which, as we mentioned, they have several Drake transfers, then this is something that can succeed at this level. Just don’t be surprised when you turn on an Iowa basketball game and see a lower score after those years of high-scoring battles.

Iowa Basketball 2025-26 projections

Projected conference finish: 9th in the Big Ten

Projected postseason ceiling: NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 exit