(Iowa City, IA) — Multiple reports indicate that Iowa men’s basketball coach Ben McCollum is nearing a new six-year contract extension with the Hawkeyes. ESPN was first to report the news.
In his first season leading Iowa, McCollum guided the Hawkeyes to a 24-13 record and an impressive NCAA Tournament run that ended in the Elite Eight — the program’s deepest postseason advance since 1987.
Reports also stated that University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill showed interest in McCollum during its recent coaching search, but he elected to remain at Iowa. North Carolina ultimately hired former Denver Nuggets head coach Michael Malone.
McCollum built a dominant résumé at Northwest Missouri State University, leading the program to four NCAA Division II national championships in 2017, 2019, 2021 and 2022. Since moving to the Division I level, he has guided teams to NCAA Tournament appearances in each of his first two seasons and has recorded four tournament wins as the lower-seeded team.
Over 17 seasons as a collegiate head coach, McCollum owns a 449-108 career record, good for an 80.6 winning percentage that ranks fifth-best all-time among men’s college basketball coaches. At the Division I level, he has posted a 55-17 mark in two seasons.
