‘Bringing back the D2 days’: Ben McCollum details how his own adjustment helped beat USC

IOWA CITY — Iowa men’s basketball head coach Ben McCollum has never been afraid to show his emotions on the court. He’s gets on his Hawkeyes throughout games, even admitting they shouldn’t be playing in the Big Ten if they can’t handle McCollum’s intensity.

“If he's got confidence issues he shouldn't be playing in the Big Ten,” McCollum said postgame in Iowa’s loss to Illinois on Jan. 11, referring to how

Following an eight-day break, Iowa had one of its worst starts against USC Wednesday night. The Hawkeyes didn’t score their first point until just over six minutes into the game, and the first field goal was closer to eight-minute mark.

It was frustrating to watch, especially with McCollum mentioning how important it is for the Hawkeyes to have a faster offensive start. Instead, it was lackluster.

McCollum knew he needed to create some sort of spark. So he tapped into his days of coaching Northwest Missouri State.

“I think I had to just go back to my (Division II) days and just go crazy for a while,” McCollum said after the 73-72 win over the Trojans. “And that seemed to work. So maybe I just did a coach like that from now on.”

McCollum expanded on his Division II sentiment, explaining how with smaller crowds at that level, there’s more emphasis on creating the team’s own energy.

Sometimes that means riling up the Hawkeyes at halftime, reminding each player to continue their improving defensive efforts. Other times it could be McCollum simply trying to generate something.

“You'd supply your own energy,” McCollum said. “If you want your guys to fight, you’ve got to fight. It wasn't directed at officials or anything like that, sometimes I gotta hype my guys up, and sometimes I gotta take the kid gloves off and get after them.”

The decision worked, helping Iowa regroup and generate a 17-point lead in the second half against the Trojans. Although USC’s Kam Woods’ 33 points nearly spoiled those efforts, the effort by the guard helped the Hawkeyes realize another learned lesson.

Developing a “killer instinct” to finish a game, particularly when holding a double-digit lead.

“Our offense got stalled. It got really stuck,” McCollum said. “We were getting to the last 10 minutes, and it got stalled. We just gonna ice the game out. You’ve got to keep building on that. And that's something we have to learn over time and continue to learn and grow with us.”

Iowa has the ability to test out that lesson in a two-game West Coast road trip, beginning with a visit to Eugene on Sunday to visit Oregon before traveling to Washington for a late-night Central tipoff against the Huskies on Wednesday night.

The Hawkeyes will have to create their own energy there, anyways.

“You’re kind of fighting everybody in the gym, and so you take your guys with you,” McCollum said. “Be the change you want to see in others.”

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