The Hawkeyes continue to soar in the rankings in year one under Ben McCollum

Iowa Men's Basketball was expected to be in full-rebuild mode after a complete overhaul following the 2024-2025 season.

After longtime head coach Fran McCaffery was fired, Ben McCollum was chosen to rebuild the program from the ground up.

While expectations were high that McCollum could turn the program around, as he did at Northwest Missouri State and Drake.

Expectations inside the program are extremely high, but no one expected the team to be as good as they have been to start the season.

Iowa has started the season with a 12-2 (2-1 Big Ten) record, with signature wins over Ole Miss and UCLA, but it is the squad's style of play that has everybody talking.

Under McCaffery, the Hawkeyes were solely focused on offense and could light up the scoreboard, but this Iowa team hangs its hat on defense.

The Iowa defense ranks No. 1 in the Big Ten Conference in steals (8.4) and opponents' points per game (69.0), a far cry from where the program ranked last season.

After holding off UCLA last weekend, the Hawkeyes jumped into the top 20 for the first time under the new regime.

The Hawkeyes were the biggest risers, jumping six spots in the most recent AP Top 25 rankings, from No. 25 to No. 19.

The Hawkeyes are one of six Big Ten teams in the AP Top 25 rankings, including Michigan (No. 2), Purdue (No. 5), Nebraska (No. 10), Michigan State (No. 12), and Illinois (No. 15).

The Hawkeyes will put their first top 20 ranking on the line against Minnesota on the road before heading back to Iowa City to take on No. 15 Illinois at home.