As the temperature in Iowa City drops, expectations rise on the hardwood. Iowa men’s and women’s basketball seasons tip off on Nov. 3 and 4, respectively, and while neither square off against a formidable opponent, each contest will showcase an offseason of change. 

For the men’s squad, the alterations were seismic in the form of a change in head coach. Fran McCaffery roamed the sidelines for 15 years in Iowa City before Iowa fired him following a dismal final two seasons. The Hawkeyes haven’t qualified for the NCAA Tournament since the 2022-23 season and never advanced to the Sweet 16 during McCaffery’s tenure.

Such stagnancy induced apathy from the fan base, and ticket sales declined. Tasked with reigniting hype and returning the team to the promised land is new head coach Ben McCollum, hired 10 days after McCaffery’s dismissal. Signed to a six-year contract, McCollum returns to his birthplace of Iowa City. He grew up rooting for the Hawkeyes and now looks to instruct a group made almost entirely of transfers, a majority from Drake, where he used to coach. 

Forward Cooper Koch is one of Iowa’s few holdovers from last season and a reminder that, in the days of immediate transfer eligibility, a coaching change triggers immense roster turnover. While fans will learn plenty of new names for the men’s team, the women’s roster remained relatively stable, but will lean on the younger side, with nine of its 14 players as first or second-years. 

Head coach Jan Jensen returns for her second season after taking over for Lisa Bluder and aims to continue the success of her predecessor. Iowa qualified for the NCAA Tournament as a six seed last year and took down Murray State in the first round before falling, 96-62, to Oklahoma. The loss on the Sooners’ home floor was the Hawkeyes’ worst margin of defeat that season, but a demoralizing end won’t diminish the optimism on the horizon. 

November is only the first leg of a marathon season for both squads, but a spring of postseason ball would be a gratifying finish line. 

Men’s Preview 

McCollum has been adamant about getting fans back into Carver-Hawkeye Arena to support the Hawkeyes. He knows the fanbase has been deprived of success.

“I think the biggest thing that I want to do is, one, make the state of Iowa and the University of Iowa proud of the kids that we coach and proud of the toughness that they show, and the communication and the connectivity that they show,” McCollum said. “Then two, bring everybody with us in regards to that.”

What he immediately brings to Iowa City is the excitement of a new era of men’s basketball and a whole new roster. Defense fueled McCollum’s lone season at Drake, and the coach will rely on his six former Bulldogs who followed him to help establish the culture early on. 

Arguably the most important of these transfers is Bennett Stirtz. The 6-foot-4 point guard was a bonafide NBA Draft prospect and one of the best guards in the country last year, with averages of 19.2 points, 5.7 assists, and 4.3 rebounds on 49.8 percent shooting on the way to earning the Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year award. 

He’ll be expected to lead this new Iowa squad this year, his last of eligibility. Kael Combs, Cam Manyawu, Isaia Howard, Tavion Banks, and Joey Matteoni made the move with Stirtz. 

While not from Drake, third-year Alvaro Folgueiras figures to provide instant impact from Robert Morris. The 6-10 forward 2024-25 Horizon Player of the Year after averaging 14.1 points, 9.1 rebounds, and 3.2 assists on 54.8 percent shooting. 

“We demand a lot of effort. We demand a lot of different things. He can give that,” McCollum said of Folgueiras. “Before we start to put a great deal of emphasis on just the teaching of the X’s and O’s, which we still do, we need to make sure that guys are meeting the standard, which he is.”

McCollum said he will be cautious with the younger guys out of the gate, naming guard Tate Sage, forward Trey Thompson, and center Trevin Jirak specifically. He wants to let them learn how to play through mistakes and will be patient with the process. 

Each player in this trio is at least 6-foot-7. Given the lack of size throughout the roster, there will be some push to get the group mentally prepared for Big Ten play. 

“So once they get to a point where we feel like, ‘OK, these guys are ready.’ And if they make one mistake, we’re not going to yank them, then that’s probably the time that they’ll stay in the game consistently,” McCollum said.

It’s important to note there will be growing pains with this team. Almost every player on the roster will be foreign to Power Four play, including McCollum, too, in terms of coaching. 

Patience is warranted, but McCollum insists his squad will have an identity forged from an overlooked past. The new head coach demands his team not be satisfied when there’s always room to grow. 

“Understanding that I’ve always worked better with a chip on my shoulder, either doubted or whatever. And same with those guys,” McCollum said. “Making sure that we continue to have that edge and don’t have a sense of arrival, more so than anybody in the league, that’s what we’re going to need to have to be successful in the Big Ten.”

Women’s Preview 

Jensen began her press conference at the team’s media day on Oct. 14 by reminding reporters that Iowa sports its youngest roster since 2012. Her mentioning the fact was less so about tempering expectations than preaching patience. 

“On paper, it all looks really exciting and it looks, ‘Wow, this is really a deep team and we’ve got all this versatility,’” Jensen said. “But I think anybody who coaches or teaches knows there is a learning curve, and you cannot skip the steps.” 

With a difficult nonconference schedule, featuring the likes of Baylor and defending-champion UConn, the Hawkeyes must prioritize progress as they factor in a new point guard and other talented first- year players. 

Lucy Olsen led Iowa in points and assists per game last season, her first and only with the Hawkeyes after arriving from Villanova. Now in the WNBA, Olsen’s replacement, at least as a distributor, arrives from down south. Second-year guard Chazadi “Chit-Chat” Wright transferred to Iowa from Georgia Tech, where she finished second on the team in assists. 

Jensen praised the 5-foot-4 Wright for her unselfish play style but wants her to shoot the ball more. Maintaining such an equilibrium is difficult, and Jensen knows learning a new offensive system is challenging. For the coach, finding the balance between encouragement and criticism is key for development. 

“When you’re playing tighter you really can’t keep growing as much,” Jensen said. “So with Chit-Chat, I’m keeping her a little loose and telling her it’s OK to make mistakes.” 

The same could be said for other new Hawkeyes like first-year Addie Deal, a five-star recruit from Irvine, California, or fellow freshman Layla Hays, a prized prospect from Alaska and Iowa’s tallest player at 6-5.
  Alongside 6-2 senior Hannah Stuelke and 6-4 sophomore Ava Heiden, Hays can help reshape Iowa’s frontcourt and pave a somewhat new identity on the floor. 

“We haven’t really had that luxury, right?” Jensen said. “We’ve kind of been true to who we are because we haven’t had the size.” 

Jensen said she hopes the Hawkeyes can feature a small, big, and hybrid lineup sometime this season, forcing the opponent to adjust rather than vice versa. Regardless of lineup, the head coach aims to play fast, and post players running the floor in transition will be key. 

Guard Sydney Affolter perhaps most embodied such versatility last year. In her final season with the Hawkeyes, Affolter averaged 8.5 points and team-high 7.8 rebounds and 1.3 steals. Teammate Kylie Feuerbach tied with Affolter in the steals category, and after electing to return for a fifth year of eligibility, aims to expand her repertoire. 

“Just doing whatever I need to defensively, just upping that even more than I could have last year,” Feuerbach said. “Then offensively, stepping into more of a scoring-threat mentality.” 

Feuerbach and Stuelke are two of Iowa’s most experienced players, holding a combined 124 starts. The pair each played a role in Iowa’s Final Four run in 2024 and know the path to the mountaintop. The trail isn’t immediately clear for the Hawkeyes and, considering Jensen’s words, shouldn’t be mapped out yet. 

It would be ironic to say that hope springs eternal as the weather turns bitter cold, but in Iowa, positive reinforcement strengthens a young spirit amid the hype that’s stuck since the Caitlin Clark era. 

“I’m encouraging [my teammates] in everything,” Stuelke said. “It’s really hard to come in, learn a new system, and play without any encouragement.”