When Alvaro Folgueiras got thrown to the ground in a first-half tussle with Florida’s Alex Condon, he fought back.
When Florida coach Todd Golden chirped at Iowa’s bench, Ben McCollum chirped back.
When Tavion Banks was interviewed at halftime, he simply told CBS, “It’s the tougher team that’s going to win.”
Toughness and fight have been at the core of McCollum’s message since he first got the job at Iowa, just under 12 months ago.
And win or lose against more talented teams, that’s been the way Iowa has played in 30-plus games. Win or lose, these Hawkeyes fight for 40 minutes. Until the clock strikes :00.
Ninth-seeded Iowa needed every second of those 40 minutes to pull off a program stunner for the ages, a 73-72 triumph over top-seeded Florida on March 22 in a virtual road game in Tampa to reach the South Regional semifinals.
We can finally retire the sentence, “Iowa hasn’t been to a Sweet 16 since 1999.”
For Iowa, the Sweet 16 begins Thursday, March 26, against rival Nebraska, of all teams, at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas.
Saddle up, Hawkeyes and Huskers.
Folgueiras’ 3-pointer from the right corner with 4.5 seconds to go will go down in the history books alongside the 3 from the top of the key swished by Kevin Gamble in the final seconds against Oklahoma in 1987.
Folgueiras’ shot was “One Shining Moment” for a first-year Hawkeye coach in McCollum to reach the Sweet 16. Gamble’s shot, with 2 seconds left and Iowa trailing by one, sent a first-year Hawkeye coach in Tom Davis to the Elite Eight.
But that play everyone will remember was the punctuation of a chaotic final 70 seconds in which Iowa fought and clawed for every advantage to finish one point to the good.
1:10 to go: A saved timeout and a coach’s challenge
Those 70 seconds started with a coach’s challenge. With Florida leading, 71-68, and Boogie Fland driving to the hoop. A heady defensive play by freshman Cooper Koch — who rained in four second-half 3-pointers, by the way — knocked the ball loose. After officials gave the ball to Florida, McCollum challenged the call with his last remaining timeout and won it.
That was a huge swing.
:57.4 to go: Bennett Stirtz finally converts
This was not a great shooting night for Stirtz, Iowa’s do-it-all point guard. He went 0-for-9 from 3-point range. (Yes, 0-for-9 and Iowa still won.) But the calm senior dribbled into some space near mid-court, then hard to his left into the lane against Fland and pulled up for a tough mid-range shot in the lane. Swish.
:32.0 to go: A huge defensive stop
Thomas Haugh had to take back-to-back tough shots from 3 as the shot clock wound down, and both missed. Those would mark Florida’s final two attempts of the night, as Koch pulled down the defensive rebound.
On the other end, Stirtz forced a shot along the right baseline — hoping to draw a foul — and Florida rebounded with 8.9 seconds to go and got fouled. But the quick shot would prove to be beneficial for Iowa, giving the Hawkeyes time to get one final possession.
:08.9 left: A key missed free throw
Isaiah Brown missed the first of two free throws before making the second, pushing the Gators’ lead to a precarious 72-70.
Florida then spent its last timeout, freeing up McCollum to draw up the final play.
:04.5 left: The selfless execution
“Somebody besides Bennett Stirtz has to beat you,” TV analyst Dan Bonner said.
Still, McCollum designed the play for Stirtz to drive to the hoop or get fouled.
The start of the play was brilliant. Stirtz started at midcourt near the scorers’ table. He used his sneaky speed to race around a screen from Tate Sage to receive a perfectly thrown inbounds pass on the run — like a quarterback hitting his receiver in stride — from Koch.
That gave Stirtz a clean stretch of court ahead, which was exactly what a playmaker needs. Stirtz dribbled once and drew Haugh, who was guarding Folgueiras, into the play — leaving the Spaniard all alone in the corner, and then dribbled one more time while looking to his left. Stirtz coolly spun a bounce pass into the corner to Folgueiras, then started jumping nervously (or confidently?) at the 3-point line. The play had been executed perfectly.
“He had a head of steam,” McCollum said of Stirtz. “It was the right read.”
All that was left was the shot.
“I knew he was going to hit that shot for us,” Stirtz said.
The 6-foot-10 Folguerias, as you know, did. He fearlessly delivered with 3.9 on the clock for a 73-72 lead.
“I make it or miss it,” Folgueiras said. “With that mentality, I don’t let mistakes affect me.”
Added McCollum: “Bennett was supposed to shoot it. He passed it to Al. Al shot it like he should make it. And that’s it. That’s good coaching, right?”
:00 left: The final stop
McCollum got a look at Florida’s formation as it wanted to head upcourt. He thought by what he saw that the Gators would try to get the ball to Haugh near the rim.
That’s exactly what unfolded. Florida got the ball downcourt quickly and had the ball near the 3-point line with 2.5 seconds left. Xaivian Lee was guarded tightly by Kael Combs. Iowa’s Tavion Banks collapsed into the lane on Haugh, who never got the pass cleanly. And the buzzer sounded.
Iowa was headed to the Sweet 16.
“We deserved this moment,” Stirtz said. “Especially (McCollum), he deserved this moment.”
Hawkeye fans did, too. The drought is over.
Those four losses in five games coming into the NCAA Tournament — three by three points, another in overtime. Those are washed away, too.
“It was really nice to be able to win one of these games,” McCollum said. “Especially when it counted.”
Hawkeyes columnist Chad Leistikow has served for 31 years with The Des Moines Register and USA TODAY Sports Network. Chad is the 2023 INA Iowa Sports Columnist of the Year and NSMA Co-Sportswriter of the Year in Iowa. Join Chad’s text-message group at HawkCentral.com/HawkeyesTexts. Follow @ChadLeistikow on X.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: 70 seconds that brought Iowa men to Sweet 16 promised land | Leistikow
Reporting by Chad Leistikow, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
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