From Division II to Iowa's Elite Eight run, bond drives Stirtz

HOUSTON (AP) — Two years ago, Iowa coach Ben McCollum was at Division II Northwest Missouri State and right there with him was current Hawkeyes star Bennett Stirtz. It's been a whirlwind journey for the pair since then. And on Saturday night, they'll have a chance to carry Iowa to its first Final Four since 1980 when the Hawkeyes meet No. 3 seed Illinois in the South Region final. "I don't think either of us would be here without the other," McCollum said Friday. "So now we're in the Elite Eight and he's gone further than he ever has, even at Division II, and hopefully he can keep going further." McCollum, who is in his first season at Iowa after one year at Drake, won four Division II national titles at Northwest Missouri State. Those came before Stirtz joined the team. Stirtz recalled meeting McCollum for the first time when the coach came to one of his practices when he was a junior in high school. "He won three straight (national titles) before I got to meet him, so it was obviously pretty cool and I had no other offers," he said. "So definitely in shock when I first saw him and, yeah, it's been a crazy journey so far and hopefully keep it rolling." McCollum remembered Stirtz being homesick early in his career at Northwest Missouri State even though it was only a little over an hour from his hometown of Liberty, Missouri. So, when he started getting interest from other schools, McCollum wanted Stirtz to follow him but was worried he'd say no because he wouldn't want to stray far from home. "What happens if I go somewhere? What would you want to do? And he is like, 'I'll go.'" McCollum said. "And I'm like, OK ... what if it's Florida or somewhere random? Because he's kind of a homebody naturally. He said, 'I'll go.'" Though he was confident about any move when he spoke with his coach, Stirtz told his dad that he was a bit nervous about where McCollum would end up. Despite that trepidation, he followed the coach to Drake before packing up again just one year later to accompany him to Iowa. "I knew that it was going to be a challenge to go with him, but I thought I would regret it if I didn't go," Stirtz said. After McCollum was hired at Iowa this offseason, Stirtz, who had no Division I offers out of high school, had all sorts of teams angling for him. "The way this portal works and the way all this NIL stuff works, some people were illegally recruiting him, offering him a lot more money, and he still chose to come to the University of Iowa," McCollum said. "I think that's probably as special as it gets, that he believes in you, and you believe in him." Stirtz leads the Hawkeyes by averaging 19.7 points a game. He had 20 points in Iowa's 77-71 win over Nebraska Thursday night. He credits his growth and a player — and a person — to his longtime coach and the guidance he's provided. "He just pushes you past your limit," Stirtz said. "He shoots you straight and never lies to you. Sometimes it sucks because the discipline and everything sucks in the moment, but it makes you stronger mentally, physically, emotionally. It just makes you a stronger person and it makes you think that you can just accomplish anything." ___ AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness