Iowa men’s basketball’s NCAA Tournament run ends in Elite Eight with 71-59 loss to No. 4 Illinois

The Hawkeyes battled but fell victim to Illinois’ size, which created many problems for them and ultimately resulted in a season-ending loss.

Chris Meglio, Sports Reporter

March 28, 2026

Samantha DeFily

Iowa forward Cam Manyawu attempts to block a shot from Illinois forward Zvonimir Ivisic during a basketball game between the No. 9 seed Iowa Hawkeyes and the No. 3 seed Illinois Fighting Illini at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas on Saturday, March 28, 2026. The Hawkeyes fell to the Fighting Illini, 71-59. (Samantha DeFily/The Daily Iowan)

HOUSTON – Iowa men’s basketball’s special NCAA Tournament run has come to an end. The No. 9 seeded Hawkeyes fell to No. 4 Illinois, 71-59, in the Elite Eight, ending their season one win shy of the Final Four.

The mark ends a magical first season for head coach Ben McCollum. After missing the NCAA Tournament two-straight years, he led a squad full of mid-major experience back to the postseason and took them to a place they hadn’t been to in nearly 40 years. But in the end, Iowa fell victim to a sound Illinois squad with Final Four talent.

Bennett Stirtz led the Hawkeyes with 24 points on 8-of-17 shooting. Tate Sage was the only other Hawkeye to score in double digits with 10 points. Illinois star guard Keaton Wagler led all players with 25 points.

Iowa held a lead for the entire first half, but things quickly changed in the second half. Thirteen lead changes took place in the first 12:46, with the Illini going on a 11-1 run to take an eight-point lead by the four-minute mark, its largest lead of the night.

For every Iowa bucket down the stretch, Illinois responded with one of its own. The lead held up and Illinois advanced.

What should’ve been a short timeout at the 7:43 mark in the first half turned into a 10-minute delay when the stadium horn got stuck mid-buzz. As a result, the whole electronic system had to be reset and caused the jumbotron to be blacked out for the rest of the game.

At the point of the pause, Iowa held a 22-20 lead in an efficient start for both teams. The Hawkeye defense went on to hold its opponent to 2-of-12 shooting after the delay, including eight-straight misses and two turnovers. It’s 32-28 halftime lead was mainly due to holding the Fighting Illini to 1-of-8 from three. And still, by the end of the game, they shot 3-of-17 from deep.

Outside of rebounding, the Hawkeyes held its own in every other facet of the game. The 37-20 Illinois first half rebound differential was aided by 16 offensive rebounds leading to 13 second-chance points. Its one assist on 10 made shots in the first half indicated a ton of isolation scoring and limited catch-and-shoot opportunities. The Illini bumped it up to eight assists on 25 made shots by the end of the game.

Iowa was forced to be a perimeter-oriented team, shooting 7-of-17 inside and 11-of-30 from outside – another factor of Illinois’ length and size in the paint.