By Hawk Fanatic

IOWA CITY, Iowa – Ben McCollum’s roster building is now underway.

Iowa freshman forward Cooper Koch announced Sunday on social media that he will return to Iowa City for his second season to play for McCollum.

The 6-foot-8 Koch, who is the son of former Iowa forward J.R. Koch, only appeared in 10 games this past season due to an undisclosed medical issue. He averaged 4.6 rebounds and 2.1 rebounds in those 10 games.

“After speaking with coach McCollum, I believe his vision for the men’s basketball team is one that aligns with mine,” said Koch in a social media post. “With that being said, I have decided to withdraw my name from the transfer portal and stay home.”

McCollum released a statement in which he addressed Koch’s decision to return. McCollum also made a sales pitch to Iowa players Josh Dix and Pryce Sandfort, both of whom are currently in the transfer portal.

“We are excited to have Cooper return to our program next season,” said McCollum. “I have enjoyed getting to know Cooper over the past week and I feel like he’s going to be a key piece for our team moving forward with his ability to shoot the basketball.

“I also want to thank our fans for assisting us in getting Cooper to return. We need to continue to push the envelope with Josh (Dix) and Pryce (Sandfort) to let them each know how important they are to Hawkeye Nation.”

McCollum was introduced as the new Iowa head coach last Wednesday after having led Drake to a 31-4 record in his only season with the Bulldogs this past season.

He specifically mentioned Koch, Dix and Pryce Sandfort in his press conference as the Iowa players he would like to have return to Iowa.

Dix already has visited Illinois and he is now reportedly visiting Creighton on Monday and will visit Indiana later this week, while Pryce Sandfort recently visited Nebraska.

Creighton’s campus is in Omaha and not far from Dix’s hometown of Council Bluffs.

Koch’s best game came during a Dec. 30 contest against New Hampshire when the Peoria, Illinois native scored a career-high 14 points on 4-of-7 shooting with three 3-pointers.

Koch, like most of the current Iowa players, entered the transfer portal shortly after Fran McCaffery was fired as the Iowa head after 15 seasons.

Drake point guard Bennett Stirtz also plans to enter the transfer portal and follow McCollum to Iowa, unless he decides to pursue an NBA career instead.

Stirtz was named the Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year this season.

Cooper Koch is expected to seek a medical redshirt that would give him another year of eligibility.