Here's everything you need to know about the matchup, including start time, TV, announcers, and HawkeyeRoundtable's official prediction.
The wait for Iowa basketball fans is almost over.
Hawkeye fans will get to see their team play in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2023 against Clemson on Friday evening.
Here's everything you need to know about the matchup, including game time, TV, announcers, and HawkeyeRoundtable's official prediction:
Matchup: No. 8 Clemson (24-10) vs. No. 9 Iowa (21-12)
Scheduled game time: March 20 at 5:50 CDT
Location: Benchmark International Arena in Tampa, Florida
TV: TNT
Announcers: Tom McCarthy (play-by-play), Candace Parker (analyst), Dan Bonner (analyst), AJ Ross (sideline)
Radio: Hawkeye Radio Network
Betting information: LINE: Iowa - 2.5 | O/U: 128.5
Game Notes
• Head coach Ben McCollum is one of two Iowa head coaches (Dr. Tom Davis) to lead the program to the NCAA Tournament in year one. McCollum has guided his first two teams to the NCAA Tournament at the Division I level (Drake, 2025).
• Senior Bennett Stirtz earned first-team All-Big Ten honors by the media and second team by the coaches. He is the first Hawkeye to garner first-team honors since 2023. Stirtz has averaged 21 points and six assists in two career NCAA Tournament games at the Division I level.
• The Hawkeyes’ 21 wins this season are the most for the program since 2021-22.
- McCollum has led his team to 15th straight 20-win seasons and he is one of two Hawkeye head coaches (Dr. Tom Davis) to win at least 20 games in his first season.
- Stirtz has scored 30+ points three times and 20+ points in 11 times in the last 16 games (18 times this season; third-most in Big Ten). His 36 points against Northwestern are the most by a Hawkeye since Luka Garza in 2021 and are tied for the fourth-most in a game in Carver-Hawkeye Arena history
- Stirtz finished third in the Big Ten in scoring in league-only games, averaging 22.2 points to go along with 3.8 assists, 2.3 rebounds and 1.4 steals with a .500/.373/.839 shooting clip. He had three 30-point and 13 20-point contests in league play.
- Iowa ranks 21st nationally in field goal percentage, shooting 49.1 percent. The team also is 20th in effective field goal percentage (.519).
• The Hawkeyes are allowing 66 points per game -- the fewest in the Big Ten and 17th-fewest nationally. Iowa has held eight opponents at 60 points or less this season -- the most since 2014-15.
• Iowa has held all but three opponents below its team season scoring average on the year.
Will Iowa advance?
There's a lot of good first round matchups in this tournament, but you won't find a better coaching battle than this one. Ben McCollum and Brad Brownell are two of the best basketball minds in the country, and this should be well-played game.
However, Brownell doesn't have Bennett Stirtz on his team - McCollum does. Stirtz will be the difference in this one. He may struggle to score due to heavy Clemson pressure, but his ability to make plays in other ways will still be a factor for Iowa.
The Hawkeyes secure their first NCAA tournament victory since 2021.
Prediction: Iowa 63, Clemson 56
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