PALM DESERT, Calif. — There came a point in the second half where the high-level shot-making was no longer surprising. It was expected.
Iowa basketball star Bennett Stirtz was shooting it, so the ball was supposed to go in.
Stirtz is human. He misses shots. But Stirtz was in such a rhythm that it was more surprising to see the ball not go through the net than when it did.
Stirtz finished with 29 points in the Acrisure Classic game, 18 of which came in the second half. He was an incredibly efficient 6-of-8 from deep and never checked out of the Nov. 25 game as the Hawkeyes defeated Ole Miss 74-69 to remain unbeaten at 6-0.
“Obviously, it feels good,” Stirtz said of the rhythm he was in offensively. “I was picking and choosing the spots. Missed some shots but just having a short memory and keep attacking. At the end of the day, just trying to win the game.”
The unique part about head coach Ben McCollum’s transition to the program is that it’s almost entirely new to the fan base. Only two players remain from the previous regime. The support staff is almost entirely different.
That means there’s a process for the Hawkeye faithful to get to know new names and faces and stories.
If you follow Iowa basketball even casually, you already knew who Bennett Stirtz is. But his performance against Ole Miss was his most convincing statement yet in an Iowa uniform.
It was like: This is how good Stirtz can be, and this is the magic he can work on the court.
“This is what he does,” McCollum said. “It’s what our point guards do. It’s what they do and it’s what he does. He’s a winner. He showed it tonight.”
There is a reason that Stirtz arrived at Iowa surrounded by so much hype.
He is the only player on the Hawkeyes’ roster to have played for McCollum at Northwest Missouri State, Drake and Iowa. That has clearly paid dividends. Stirtz was last season’s Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year. He has generated significant NBA Draft buzz.
But there was still a level of unknown. Part of that is just the fact that Stirtz hadn’t accomplished anything in the Iowa program before. You wanted to see him do it in an Iowa jersey before fully buying into what he has to offer.
Stirtz has not disappointed early on. He scored at least 15 points in four of his first five games as a Hawkeye. Even in the one he didn’t, Stirtz still showed he can impact the game on a lower-volume shooting night, dishing out six assists and grabbing five rebounds against Chicago State.
But Ole Miss was another level.
The Rebels are the best team the Hawkeyes have played to date this season and presented the type of challenge that Iowa will be facing with more regularity in Big Ten play. On top of that, their defense is legit. Behind head coach Chris Beard, the Rebels had played stifling defense entering the matchup with Iowa, holding opponents to just 39% from the field and 30% from 3-point range.
And yet, Ole Miss had few answers for Stirtz.
“We knew they were switching (on defense) coming in,” Stirtz said. “Me and (McCollum) watched film before the game, and we knew that the reads were going to be there. Luckily, I was hitting them tonight.”
This was not a masterpiece of a performance by Iowa.
Iowa dealt with frontcourt foul trouble in the first half. The Hawkeyes finished the game shooting just 43% from the field. Outside of Stirtz, the Hawkeyes were just 2-of-14 from deep. But Stirtz was good enough to carry his team through a choppy offensive performance.
“He was ready to go,” McCollum said of his senior star. “He’s always ready to go. Part of it, too, is kind of what the defense gives you. They were switching, and so, naturally, you punish mismatches. And that’s kind of what we did, was just punish the matchup. Then a couple times he just went at whatever matchup he felt like going at, and he was fantastic.”
There are more mountains to climb when it comes to Stirtz’s time at Iowa. He has shown what he can do against lesser opponents. He has shown what he can do against a more formidable opponent like Ole Miss. The next box to check will be doing it consistently against power-conference opponents.
There will be opportunities to prove that in the near future. After Iowa plays Grand Canyon on Nov. 26, the Hawkeyes get three power-conference opponents in a row, starting with Michigan State on the road.
“I feel good,” Stirtz said after playing 40 minutes vs. Ole Miss. “Ready for another game tomorrow. Get some rest tonight. Short memory.”
Follow Tyler Tachman on X @Tyler_T15, contact via email at ttachman@gannett.com
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Bennett Stirtz makes convincing statement in Iowa basketball’s victory
Reporting by Tyler Tachman, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
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