Following ninth-seeded Iowa‘s (24-12, 10-10 Big Ten) gritty 77-71 win in the Sweet 16 over fourth-seeded Nebraska (28-7, 15-5 Big Ten) at Houston’s Toyota Center, Hawkeyes senior guard Bennett Stirtz cherished the spectacular moment as the victory added another milestone to his impressive collegiate resume.
Stirtz, who was on Northwest Missouri State’s roster in Division II alongside head coach Ben McCollum just two years ago, said that he never could have imagined going from that moment to now having a chance to help propel Iowa to its first Final Four since 1980.
“Not at all. Honestly, after my college career, I’ll look back on it, but right now, I know it sounds cliché, but just focus on the moment right now, and not looking past, not looking ahead, just taking one foot in front of the other right now and, honestly, done celebrating already and on to the next,” Stirtz said.
While it’s been a shocking NCAA Tournament run to many, Stirtz isn’t interested in the Cinderella moniker.
“You can’t control what other people are going to say about us. We’re just focused on what we can do, and I think it’s a testament of how we play and how hard we play and how hard our coaches coach us. I think the recruits we’re recruiting should look at that and it’s super fun to play here and why not.
“Why wouldn’t we want to win a bunch of games and go on long runs in the tournament? This is just a start and he’s going to keep it rolling and we’re going to keep it rolling this year,” Stirtz said.
Iowa is the lowest-seeded Big Ten team to ever reach the Elite Eight since seeding began in 1979. The Hawkeyes will look to keep the magic rolling when it meets No. 3 seed Illinois (27-8, 15-5 Big Ten) in its Elite Eight matchup at 5:09 p.m. CT on TBS and truTV Saturday evening.
Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Iowa news, notes, and opinions. Follow Scout on X: @SpringgateNews
This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire: Bennett Stirtz living in the moment of magical Iowa basketball run
About the Author
