(Houston, TX) — For the first time in 39 years, Iowa Hawkeye fans will experience a game in the Elite Eight in the NCAA Tournament — the 9th seeded Hawkeyes face Big Ten rival #3 seed Illinois in the South Regional Finals tonight.
Iowa lost to the Illini 75-69 back on January 11 — Bennett Stirtz was just 5 of 17 shooting in the game and had 12 points. He says that Illinois’ biggest strength is their rebounding and that means everyone on the floor for the Hawks will have to crash the glass
The Big Ten has had an impressive tournament with six in the Sweet 16 and Stirtz is not surprised at all
Illinois has rolled through the tournament with blowout wins over Penn, VCU and pulled away from Houston in the 2nd half. Iowa Head Coach Ben McCollum says they have a lot of size
Illinois has five players who average in double figures led by 6’6″ Freshman Keaton Wagler at 17.7 ppg. There are 6 players who average 4 rebounds or more. McCollum says Illinois is a complete team
Iowa (24-12) battles Illinois (27-8) with a berth in the Final Four on the line, tip off is at 5:09 pm, coverage on TBS.
