**IOWA CITY, Iowa--** Bennett Stirtz is off to quite the start to his 2026 NBA Combine. The outgoing senior was one of the most consistent point guards in college basketball and will have a great shot at translating into a productive NBA player due to his success in the pick & roll, basketball IQ and shooting ability.
Earlier this week, NBA prospects did some of their initial testing in front of all 30 teams. Stirtz put on quite the shooting clinic and really helped himself with his performance. Here were his numbers:
Spot-up shooting: 20/25 (1st/26)
Shooting off the dribble: 23/30 (T-3rd/26)
3-point star drill: 16/25 (T-6th/25)
Free throws: 9/10 (T-5th/26)
Side-mid-side: 21/27 (2nd/26)
Stirtz tore the Big Ten up by averaging 19.8 points, 4.4 assists, 2.6 rebounds and 1.4 steals as a senior. He was the only player in the nation to have 730+ points, 160+ assists, 95+ rebounds, 90+ 3-pointers and 50+ steals during the 2025-26 season.
Stirtz finished third in Iowa's single-season record books in field goal attempts (526) and 3-point attempts (257), fifth in 3-pointers (92) and field goals (251), 13th in assists (163), 19th in free throws (140) and 21st in steals (51). His 1,396 minutes during the season were a program record as he played 40+ minutes 17 times.
Ben McCollum and Stirtz will always be tied to the hip because it's a story that may never replicate itself. A player that was hardly a DII prospect recruited by the national champions and that same player following the coach to three schools in three years.
"We'll probably never realize it till five, six years down the road. Like this is a pretty epic deal," McCollum said. "Like who does that? Who does what he did? Like, I go from D2 to mid-major to the Big Ten over a span of like it's a span of a two-year deal. He was just in Maryville two years ago. This is ridiculous what he's done. And so we'll probably look at it, look back at it, in four or five years and be like, 'Man, this is pretty cool. And then to handle it the way he's done it and take it in stride and handle it with the humility that he does and still be a good person is pretty impressive."
"It was just four years of work _and_ being coached by me. Earning his way to the NBA -- I mean, he'll play in the NBA. How ridiculous is that story? He was at Liberty High School, and no one wanted him. All of the sudden he's going to work his way into the NBA. It's been fun."
Stirtz has helped set the cultural foundation for Iowa under McCollum's watch. He is likely going to be the first 1st round pick in the McCollum era. It's been a strong start for Stirtz and it'll be fun to watch him compete against some of the best.
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