By Pat Harty

IOWA CITY, Iowa – Even Brauns is coming home to live out a dream in front of family and friends.

The former Iowa City West standout will transfer to Iowa after having played his first three seasons of college basketball for Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee.

Iowa announced on Monday that Brauns, a 6-foot-9, 240-pound power forward, had signed with the Hawkeyes.

He has two seasons of eligibility.

Brauns started 30 of 31 games for Belmont this past season and averaged 7.0 points and 5.3 rebounds per game.

He also played in 31 games as a sophomore, and in 30 games as a freshman for Belmont.

“I am beyond excited,” Brauns said.

Brauns should help to fill the frontline void left by former Iowa forward Filip Rebraca, who used up his eligibility this past season.

Rebraca also came to Iowa via the transfer portal after having played his first three seasons at North Dakota. Rebraca was a two-year starter for the Hawkeyes and he made third-team All-Big Ten this past season.

“We are excited to have Even back home,” Iowa head coach Fran McCaffery said in a release. “He was a terrific player at West High School and had an excellent career at Belmont. Even will be a great fit for our program.”

Iowa also has added 6-9 forward Ben Krikke from the transfer portal. Krikke played four seasons for Valparaiso and he led the Missouri Valley Conference in scoring this past season.

Brauns led Iowa City West to 22-3 record as a senior, averaging 15.6 points and 7.3 rebounds per game. He also averaged 11.0 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.4 blocked shots per game on 68 percent field goal percentage shooting as a junior at West.

Brauns attended Iowa City Regina before transferring to West High as a sophomore.

He played for two seasons at West High with currrent Iowa forward Patrick McCaffery, who is Fran McCaffery’s son.

“Getting the opportunity from coach McCaffery is one of the greatest achievements of my career,” Brauns said. “I’ve grown up a Hawkeye fan and I understand what makes the city and university so special. Me and my family are ready to be committed to continuing the excellence that coach has established here at Iowa.”