Iowa
Big 12 basketball power rankings: Streaking Iowa State, Houston, Arizona lead the way
Three Big 12 Conference basketball teams have each won its first three games in the league thus far.
Not coincidentally, all three are riding lengthy winning streaks, with one of those squads drastically turning its season around after a shaky start.
Here, now, are the updated Big 12 basketball power rankings, with games through Jan. 8:
Cyclones are definitely rolling, having won 10 straight ballgames. That was punctuated by back-to-back blowout wins at Hilton Coliseum against Baylor and Utah, the latter on Tuesday.
Next Up: At Texas Tech, Saturday; Vs. Kansas, Wednesday.
The Cougars are also coming off decisive back-to-back wins at the Fertitta Center, having now won seven straight. While they left no doubt last Saturday in a 31-point win against BYU, the Cougars had to shake off a pesky TCU squad in the second half to eventually prevail by 19.
Next Up: At Kansas State, Saturday; Vs. West Virginia, Wednesday.
What a difference conference play has made for the Wildcats, whose postseason outlook appears much brighter. Especially after going on the road and disposing of two solid squads in Cincinnati and West Virginia, as Arizona currently rides a five-game win streak.
Next Up: Vs. UCF, Saturday; Vs. Baylor, Tuesday.
The Jayhawks avoided what would have been an unfathomable 0-2 start in conference play at Allen Fieldhouse, pulling away in the second half Wednesday to defeat Arizona State. Kansas trailed by six at the break before holding the Sun Devils to just 13 second-half points.
Next Up: At Cincinnati, Saturday; At Iowa State, Wednesday.
Definitely a huge win by the Red Raiders on Tuesday, following up a rout at Utah with a hard-fought 72-67 win at BYU. Elijah Hawkins, Darrion Williams and Chance McMillian combined to go 19-of-32 from the field and 10-of-19 from 3-point range.
Next Up: Vs. Iowa State, Saturday; At Kansas State, Tuesday.
A tenacious win for the Knights on Wednesday, rallying from a 74-71 deficit in the final three minutes against Colorado. UCF held the Buffaloes scoreless in that span while ending the game with a 4-0 run, all on free throws – the latter from Deebo Coleman with 35 seconds left for a 75-74 victory.
Next Up: At Arizona, Saturday; At Arizona State, Tuesday.
A nice bounce-back win by the Bears on Tuesday after being blown out over the weekend at Iowa State. Baylor manhandled Cincinnati, 68-48, holding the Bearcats to nearly identical shooting percentages from field goal (34.7 percent) and 3-point range (34.8).
Next Up: At Arizona State, Saturday; At Arizona, Tuesday.
The Mountaineers couldn’t sustain the momentum of an early fast start in the conference, falling at home on Tuesday to Arizona. They’ll try to bounce back with a weekend visit to the Rockies.
Next Up: At Colorado, Sunday; At Houston, Wednesday.
Lingering memories of a blowout loss at Houston last weekend carried over into a home game Tuesday, as the Cougars fell short to Texas Tech. It may still be too early for a must-win, but a road win this weekend at TCU can definitely help get BYU back on track.
Next Up: At TCU, Saturday; Vs. Oklahoma State, Tuesday.
A tale of two halves for the Sun Devils Wednesday night in Kansas. In the first half, Arizona State more than held its own. But after halftime, the Sun Devils made only five field goals, and were 1-of-11 from beyond the arc.
Next Up: Vs. Baylor, Saturday; Vs. UCF, Tuesday.
Horned Frogs overcame a slow start and hung tough with Houston early in the second half. But the Cougars’ powerful defense and their ability to make key shots proved to be too much. TCU returns home this weekend for an interesting test against BYU.
Next Up: Vs. BYU, Saturday; Vs. Utah, Wednesday.
Bearcats going through a tough stretch. The good news is they’re back at home this weekend. The bad news is they’re facing Kansas. Can Cincy rise to the occasion?
Next Up: Vs. Kansas, Saturday; At Colorado, Wednesday.
A solid win for the Cowboys on Tuesday as they rolled past Kansas State, building a 19-point lead at the break. Also a big night for Abou Ousmane, who led the way with 27 points on 11-of-15 shooting from the field. He also went a perfect 4-of-4 from the line.
Next Up: At Utah, Saturday; At BYU, Tuesday.
The Wildcats actually shot 51 percent from the field and 75 percent from the line in Tuesday’s loss at Oklahoma State. But they turned the ball over 19 times, and the Cowboys scored 31 points off those turnovers. OSU also had 31 points from players off the bench compared to just 14 for the Wildcats.
Next Up: Vs. Houston, Saturday; Vs. Texas Tech, Tuesday.
The Buffaloes let one slip away on Wednesday, dropping a narrow one-point game on the road at UCF. They’ll be thinking about that for three straight days before finally getting a chance to get it out of their system.
Next Up: Vs. West Virginia, Sunday; Vs. Cincinnati, Wednesday.
A bright spot for the Utes in their loss to Iowa State on Tuesday was Gabe Madsen scoring 20 points. He also made four 3-pointers while recording four assists and two steals.
Next Up: Vs. Oklahoma State, Saturday; At TCU, Wednesday.
Iowa
Bennett Stirtz named University of Iowa Men’s Athlete of the Year
After a spectacular senior year with Iowa basketball, point guard Bennett Stirtz won Iowa Athletics’ men’s Athlete of the Year and men’s Hawkeye of the Year awards at the athletic department’s 10th annual Golden Herky awards ceremony.
Stirtz, who made stops at Northwest Missouri State and Drake before his lone season at Iowa, finished with a career Division I average of 19.5 points, 5.0 assists, 3.4 rebounds, and 1.7 steals per game on 48.7% field goal shooting, 37.2% 3-point shooting, and 82% from the free-throw line.
This past season, the 6-foot-4, 190-pounder from Liberty, Missouri, averaged 19.8 points and 4.4 assists per game on 47.7% field goal shooting and 35.8% 3-point shooting, to accompany 4.4 assists, 2.6 rebounds, and 1.4 steals through approximately 37:44 of action in his 37 games played.
At the end of the season, Stirtz’s play earned him AP and USBWA honorable-mention All-America honors, first-team All-Big Ten recognition, and the winner of the prestigious Chris Street Award.
In addition to Stirtz’s men’s Athlete of the Year award, Iowa’s men’s basketball team took home four additional Golden Herkys.
Redshirt freshman Cooper Koch was named men’s Breakthrough Athlete, freshman Tate Sage was named men’s Freshman of the Year, and the team earned the awards for men’s Outstanding Team and Best Moment for defeating No. 1 seed Florida to advance to the Sweet 16 in the 2026 NCAA Tournament.
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Iowa
‘GoFundMe’ shares update on Univ. of Iowa student shot at Ped Mall
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KCRG) – A University of Iowa student critically injured in an April 19 shooting at the Pedestrian Mall is off a ventilator after multiple surgeries.
Miranda, who suffered the most serious injuries in the shooting, was taken off a ventilator and breathing through her tracheostomy with oxygen support as needed, according to a May 2 update on a GoFundMe page organized by her sister, Janjay Peters. The fundraiser has raised more than $195,000.
Doctors said if Miranda continues to do well with her breathing, she may be moved out of the ICU soon. The family expressed appreciation for the support they have been receiving.
The shooting happened at the Pedestrian Mall in Iowa City, around 1:45 a.m. on April 19. Five people were hurt, one critically.
Iowa City Police said 17-year-old Damarian Jones of Cedar Rapids was involved in a fight before he retrieved a gun from another person and fired six shots into the crowd, hitting five people.
Authorities said there is no evidence Jones targeted any of the victims, and none were involved in the initial fight.
Iowa City Police are still searching for Jones. He is facing five counts of attempted murder among several other charges.
The Iowa City Police Department said it expects to arrest more people in addition to the charges for Jones.
Copyright 2026 KCRG. All rights reserved.
Iowa
Iowa Democrats challenge Vance and Nunn over Burlington CNH plant closures
IOWA (KWQC) – Iowa Democrats responded to Vice President JD Vance’s visit and endorsement of Rep. Zach Nunn in a press release.
The statement addressed Vance’s comments on tax cuts for American manufacturers. Democrats said corporate greed and policies pushed by Republicans including Vance and Nunn have led to the ongoing closure of Burlington’s CNH plant.
The release stated that from 2015 to 2024, CNH made $11.6 billion in profit and the CEO made $113 million during that time period. The statement said the money could have provided as much as $5 per hour per employee and could have been used to keep plants open in the U.S. and Iowa.
Vance discussed opening regulation for E15 fuel so Iowa farmers can have another revenue source, along with recent progress made for the Farm Bill.
A farmer from central Iowa remarked on the recent Farm Bill, saying a new Farm Bill has just passed the House, but it is not future-looking and continues to support big operations. The farmer said the bill gives money for precision agriculture development and purchases for farmers.
The statement referenced the president’s February executive order to purchase metric tons of beef from Argentina instead of supporting Iowa’s beef production.
Copyright 2026 KWQC. All rights reserved.
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