After Iowa's dominating 90-62 victory over UMass Lowell, the men's basketball squad wrapped up its final game of 2025 and the non-conference slate.
The Hawkeyes took care of business against the River Hawks, and that was the common theme against non-conference opponents.
Iowa went 11-1 against non-conference teams this season, with its only loss coming in the Cy-Hawk rivalry matchup against Iowa State.
In Ben McCollum's first season at the helm, the Hawkeyes did what they were supposed to do in non-conference play, and the Hawkeye head man wants to increase the difficulty next season.
Ben McCollum on non-conference scheduling philosophy: "You probably want to play enough of the buy games to build your confidence and to get more bodies in. So, you don't want to eliminate those because you can play your depth. But we want to play more power conference teams next…
— Tyler Tachman (@Tyler_T15) December 27, 2025
McCollum recently discussed his philosophy regarding the non-conference schedule, and he gave a straightforward answer.
McCollum wants to keep some of the "buy games" because they give the program a chance to evaluate the players on the roster while boosting the team's confidence.
Even though McCollum knows that games against much weaker opponents are necessary and that he doesn't want to eliminate them, he acknowledged that he wants to increase the difficulty level of the non-conference schedule.
He wants to play more "power conference" teams next season, and while that does not always happen, it is his goal.
McCollum has his squad off to a fast start this season, notching 11 wins in the team's first 13 games, and even though they are currently No. 11 in the NET rankings, he wants to up the competition.
It is unknown if McCollum's wish will be granted, but if the Hawkeyes increase the non-conference competition, that gives the program a better chance to make the NCAA Tournament if they stumble during the Big Ten Conference schedule.
Before the season began, McCollum was adamant that he wanted to make the state of Iowa proud, and the squad has done that and more through the early stages of the season.