Former Drake Men's Basketball star Bennett Stirtz has officially committed to the Iowa Hawkeyes for the 2025-2026 season. Stirtz follows Head Coach Ben McCollum to Iowa City after McCollum replaced former Head Coach Fran McCaffery.
Stirtz originally told the Des Moines Register he planned to gauge the NBA's interest in him and go through the draft process.
On Thursday, it was confirmed that Stirtz was foregoing the NBA draft process to play basketball for the Hawkeyes.
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β Iowa Menβs Basketball (@IowaHoops) April 3, 2025
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The news was originally announced by Eliot Clough after Stirtz confirmed the news to the Des Moines Register. Stirtz told the Register he decided to be fully committed to the Iowa program during the season.
After fully committing to the Iowa Hawkeyes, Stirtz gives McCollum a lethal scorer and a locker-room leader.
During his first and only season with the Drake Bulldogs, Stirtz had his best statistical season. He averaged 19.2 points, 5.7 assists, 4.3 rebounds, and 2.1 steals for the Bulldogs en route to their program-record 31-4 season.
Stirtz was named the 2025 Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) Newcomer and Player of the Year. He was an integral part of the Bulldogs' 2025 season, including an MVC regular and conference tournament title and an NCAA Tournament berth.
He also led the Bulldogs to their first NCAA Tournament win since 1971.
Stirtz scored in double-digits in 33 of 35 appearances for the Bulldogs and scored 25-plus points seven times.
Stirtz was a prominent figure as Drake garnered national attention last season, and he aims to bring his scoring prowess and leadership to a rebuilding Iowa Hawkeyes program.
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