Iowa’s Magical March Rolls On: Hawkeyes Reach First Elite Eight Since 1987, Set for Saturday Showdown with Illinois

For Iowa fans, this is the kind of March memory that lasts forever.

On Thursday night in Houston, the Hawkeyes earned their first Elite Eight appearance since 1987 by rallying past Nebraska, 77-71, continuing one of the most uplifting stories in college basketball this season. Ninth-seeded Iowa, now 24-12, will meet third-seeded Illinois on Saturday with a trip to the Final Four on the line. It is the program’s deepest NCAA Tournament run in nearly four decades, and for a fan base that has waited a long time for a moment like this, it feels like something far bigger than just one win.

What makes this run even more remarkable is that it is happening in Ben McCollum’s first season in Iowa City. McCollum arrived with a massive résumé, including four Division II national championships at Northwest Missouri State, and after one highly successful Division I season at Drake, he took over a proud Iowa program and immediately gave it new life. In year one, he has now guided the Hawkeyes to their first Elite Eight since the days of Tom Davis and the late-1980s Hawkeye glory years.

That is why this season has meant so much to Iowa fans. This was not supposed to be easy. New coach, new system, new voices, new expectations. Instead of a transition year, Iowa has gotten a breakthrough year. The Hawkeyes have already beaten defending national champion Florida to reach the Sweet 16, and now they have followed that up by surviving a physical, emotional Big Ten battle with Nebraska to move within one win of the Final Four. For a fan base that has craved a defining March run, this team has delivered hope, pride, and a belief that Iowa basketball belongs on this stage.

Iowa vs. Nebraska 🍿 Final 2 Minutes | March Madness 2026

The Nebraska game was a perfect example of what has made this Iowa team so easy to embrace. The Hawkeyes were punched early and could have folded. Nebraska raced out to a double-digit first-half lead behind hot shooting and early confidence, but Iowa never panicked. Instead, the Hawkeyes kept answering, kept executing, and kept believing. Bennett Stirtz led the way with 20 points, Tate Sage added 19, Alvaro Folgueiras scored 16, and Cooper Koch chipped in 11 as Iowa slowly turned the game back in its favor.

That comeback said everything about the personality of this team. Stirtz hit the late three that gave Iowa its first lead. Sage gave the Hawkeyes needed shot-making and poise. Folgueiras delivered one of the biggest sequences of the night with a late three-point play. Iowa finished with four players in double figures and showed the kind of balance that makes March teams dangerous. They did not just survive Nebraska’s early punch; they responded with maturity and confidence that reflected McCollum’s fingerprints all over the program.

Now comes Illinois, and the Hawkeyes know exactly how tough this challenge will be.

The two teams met once during the regular season, on Jan. 11 in Iowa City, and Illinois left Carver-Hawkeye Arena with a 75-69 win. That game told an important story. Illinois controlled much of the afternoon and built an 18-point lead, but Iowa fought back and cut the deficit to four late before running out of time. Tavion Banks led Iowa with 16 points in that game, while Tate Sage scored 13, Bennett Stirtz had 12, and Cooper Koch added 10. Illinois got the road win behind a strong closing stretch, with Keaton Wagler and Kylan Boswell combining for the Illini’s final 20 points.

That regular-season meeting should give Iowa confidence heading into Saturday. Yes, Illinois won. Yes, Brad Underwood’s team is talented, deep, and battle-tested. But Iowa also showed in that first matchup that it could recover from adversity and make the Illini uncomfortable when the Hawkeyes settled in. The version of Iowa that takes the floor this Saturday is also more battle-hardened than the one Illinois saw in January. Since then, this group has lived through the pressure of March, knocked off a No. 1 seed, and come from behind in a Sweet 16 rivalry game.

And really, that is the heart of this whole story: Ben McCollum has not just won games in Iowa City. He has changed the feeling around the program. He has made the Hawkeyes resilient. He has made them disciplined. He has made them believe. From Stirtz’s steady leadership to Folgueiras’ clutch play to Sage and Koch giving Iowa vital scoring punch, this roster has embraced the biggest moments of the season.

For Iowa fans, Saturday is about more than just a game against Illinois. It is about reward. It is about seeing a team that refused to quit against Nebraska, a first-year coach who has already become beloved in Iowa City, and a program that has finally given its people another March to remember. The Hawkeyes are one win from the Final Four, and whether this run ends Saturday or keeps going, McCollum’s first season has already become one of the most meaningful Iowa basketball seasons in a generation.