Instant Takeaways From Iowa Men's Basketball's Loss To Virginia Tech

Iowa men's basketball's first big game of the 2026-27 season was successful/unsuccessful for Ben McCollum and Co. 

The Hawkeyes played a back-and-forth game with Virginia Tech, ultimately falling short in overtime, 93-88, at the Tyson Events Center in Sioux City, Iowa on Tuesday. Iowa drops to 2-1 on the young season with the defeat. 

Here are some instant takeaways from the loss: 

Iowa's offense went cold from the field in overtime, but the reason why this game was in overtime in the first place was because of poor free throw shooting. Ty'Reek Coleman split a pair of foul shots that would've won the Hawkeyes the game in regulation, but Iowa went 31-for-47 from the charity stripe in this one. That was the difference and it prevented the Hawkeyes from netting a key early victory.  

While Virginia Tech certainly flashed its great guard play, Iowa definitely had the size advantage. The Hawkeye guards just have so much length, and that worked out in Iowa's favor in this one. The Hokies were often switching defensively, which allowed mismatches for third-year forward Cooper Koch. Koch is known for making things happen from beyond the arc, but the size advantage allowed him to due most of his damage at the rim. 

Koch finished with a career-best 25 points, seven rebounds, and two assists. Though the Hawkeyes ultimately lost this one, Koch's all-around success could be a good sign for Iowa moving forward.  

This game was billed as a matchup between a Virginia Tech team that wants to play fast against an Iowa squad that wants to play at a slower tempo, and it certainly looked like such in the first four minutes of this contest. The Hokies tried to use their guards to get downhill to the basket, while Iowa played its classic style of winding the shot clock down to get the best possible shot attempt. 

That battle definitely leaned towards Virginia Tech early on. The Hawkeyes were being very aggressive in trying to snag offensive rebounds after missed free throws, but that didn't work, as the Hokies coasted for easy transition layups on the other end. That wasn't all, though, as Virginia Tech was constantly disrupting Iowa's action with Trevin Jirak facilitating at the top of the key, forcing five early turnovers. 

A similar outcome occurred in the second half, too. The Hawkeyes looked to pull away at certain junctures, but the Hokies just kept battling back by beating Iowa to the rim and knocking down midrange jumpers. They shot 55% from the floor in regulation, and the relentlessness was what pushed this game into the extra frame. 

McCollum's main focus throughout the summer was trying to identify a go-to scorer for his team after it lost Bennett Stirtz, but Ty'Reek Coleman seemed like one of the guys on Tuesday. The second-year transfer from Illinois State consistently torched Virginia Tech at the rim and the Hokies didn't have much of an answer for him. He finished with 20 points on 7-of-10 shooting along with three rebounds. 

The missed free throw at the end of regulation will haunt Coleman for a few days, but this performance was exactly why McCollum brought him to Iowa City. 

Hawkeye fans have been waiting for Drew McKeever's arrival and they got it on Tuesday. The 7-foot-3 transfer center from Saint Mary's missed the first two games of the year because of a back injury. He didn't start this one, but did relieve Jirak around the under-16 media timeout and immediately contributed, netting a tip-in and disrupting the Hokies offense with his size. 

The back must've felt ok by halftime, because McKeever started the second half in place of Jirak, who struggled a bit in the first. The Hawkeyes definitely tried to feed him the ball throughout this game, but the chemistry clearly wasn't quite there yet. Both of Kael Combs' lob passes were well off the mark, but those will probably connect as the season moves on. 

McKeever tallied five points and five rebounds in this one.

The schedule doesn't get any easier for Iowa after this. The Hawkeyes will travel to Des Moines for another non-conference showdown against the Creighton Bluejays. Creighton is 2-0 on the young season and is currently playing at Kansas State. 

Tip off from the Casey's Center is set for 2 p.m. on FS1.