Iowa men’s basketball’s win over No. 9 Nebraska proves Hawkeyes can compete, and win, against top teams

IOWA CITY — Students were creeping closer and closer to the court in the final minutes of Iowa men’s basketball’s Tuesday night affair against No. 9 Nebraska. The Cornhuskers were still within reach of the lead, but the time was closing in.

With 1.9 seconds to go, Nebraska’s Jamarques Lawrence scored a layup. Iowa guard Cooper Koch, who scored the Hawkeyes’ first basket of the game, caught the inbound pass and held the ball.

Buzzer. Cue the chaos.

Thousands of students rushed the court. Some had been sitting in the Hawks Nest behind the south basket, others sprinting down the concrete stairs.

“I knew we had them!” yelled a fan walking toward the tunnel as the crowd began to disperse.

The Hawkeyes had finally picked up their signature win.

“Every single time we have something positive like this happen, we always make sure that everybody knows this is what it can be,” head coach Ben McCollum said postgame. “It can be this every night, and it can be fun like this.”

After the sellout loss to now-No. 7 Purdue Saturday afternoon, over 11,000 fans still made their way to Carver-Hawkeye Arena to watch Iowa play Nebraska. That stood out to McCollum and the players.

“To see it from that lens, it was loud, they were chanting,” McCollum said. “That’s what basketball is. It’s the game, and to get the crowd, everybody’s connected and comes together. It makes it enjoyable.”

Even with the excitement of a top 10 upset, Iowa didn’t play its best basketball to secure the win. The Hawkeyes shot 33 percent from the field, compared to Nebraska’s 41 percent. Iowa’s offense made just seven field goals in the second half.

It was the rebounding that jumped off the stat sheet. Iowa held a plus-13 rebounding margin, grabbing 12 offensive boards. Nebraska was held 21 points under its season-average points per game, and Lawrence and Pryce Sandfort were the only two Cornhuskers in double figures.

McCollum made sure that guard Tavion Banks got his flowers for rebounding, after the senior collected 10 boards.

“He was probably the unsung hero of that game,” McCollum said. “He put every ounce that he had into that game. Every defensive rebound, he gets credit. He’s just such a warrior, and he changes the game for us.”

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It also tied McCollum for second for the program’s best first-year season by a head coach with Bucky O’Connor (1951-52).

But as much as the individual efforts stand out for Banks, as well as Koch’s 10 points and guard Bennett Stirtz’s 25 points, it was the statement made to Iowa fans — and all college basketball fans — that cements Tuesday’s win.

The Hawkeyes had been so close to their signature ranked win throughout this season. McCollum knew this team could beat top teams, it was just a matter of when and not growing complacent in the process.

“You have to win these games,” McCollum said. “And there’s little things, winning plays, down the stretch that allow you to win it. Some defensive rebounds, some offensive rebounds, 50-50, balls. I thought we'd really tuned in. It's just an awesome defensive effort, and then some of the toughness was really good too.”

And Iowa did it in front of the fan base the team’s slowly been connecting with all year. Just like every other home game, the Hawkeyes walked back toward the locker room and high-fived fans along the way — thanking them, again.

“We got our butts kicked first by Purdue, and they came out again,” McCollum said. “It's not because we're winning games, it's because they can connect with our guys and they play the right way, and that's what we want it to be about.”

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