By Hawk Fanatic

Ben McCollum wanted the action, and the challenge of facing a Big Ten superpower in his first Big Ten game as the Iowa head coach, and the action came in full force as Michigan State dismantled the Hawkeyes, winning 71-52 on Tuesday at the Breslin Center in East Lansing, Michigan.

Iowa kept the score close for a few minutes in the first half, but the Spartans eventually seized control of the game, building a double-digit lead in the first half that Iowa never was able to overcome.

Both teams entered Tuesday’s game 7-0, but under much different circumstances with Michigan State’s legendary head coach Tom Izzo in his 31st season as head coach, while McCollum was coaching in his first Big Ten game after being hired as the Iowa head coach shortly having led Drake to a 31-4 record last season, and in his only season as head coach.

Iowa won both of its games against Ole Miss and Grand Canyon in the Acrisure Classic last week in Palm Springs, California, building hope and optimism heading into Tuesday’s Big Ten opener.

Iowa slowed the game down on offense to help offset Michigan State’s athleticism, and its desire to play in transition, but the strategy didn’t work as the Spartans made it difficult for Iowa star point guard Bennett Stirtz, who was held to just 14 points. He also missed three of his six free throws and had four turnovers, all of which came in the first half.

“I thought that was one of the better defensive performance that we’ve had,” Izzo said on the Peacock post-game interview. “We put a lot of stock into those ball screens because Stirtz, he’s not good at it, he’s great at it. He really is. He had a bad night. For him to miss three or four free throws is probably illegal.

“So we put a lot into him. I thought the first eight, nine minutes of the game they out toughed us one-hundred percent. And I give my team credit because they got challenged a few times and I just thought we played a lot harder and a lot stronger with the ball. And we got the ball inside and I thought that hurt them a little bit.”

Iowa bolted to a 5-0 start, but was then outscored 35-16 in the remainder of the first half, including 13-0 during one stretch.

Michigan State’s dominance was most apparent on boards where it had a 37-18 rebounding advantage.

Stirtz was the only player for Iowa to score more than seven points in Tuesday’s game, while the Spartans had three players in double figures led by high-flying forward Coen Carr with 15 points.

The Hawkeyes only made 17 of 45 field-goal attempts, including 7 of 23 from 3-point range.

“I don’t think their atmosphere got us,” McCollum said. “I think it’s just we didn’t play very well. Our offense was inept. We didn’t play very well today.

“That happens, and they had a lot to do with that. It’s not like it was just us. They had a lot to do with that. It was one of those game where you just didn’t play very well, and we’ve got to get better.

“I’m certainly thankful that we got exposed because that’s how you get better.”

Iowa now has to regroup and prepare for Saturday’s game against Maryland at Carver-Hawkeye Arena as the thrill of starting 7-0 under a new head coach is over.

McCollum said to the media on a Monday zoom that he welcomed the challenge and wanted the action that came with playing the defending Big Ten regular-season champion on the road in his conference debut.

“If you’re going to start the league off why not go to the champs,” McCollum said. “I don’t see why you wouldn’t want to. I mean just go straight to it. We’re going to go straight to the action. We’re not starting with someone that’s in a different environment. A lot of the environments are big time, but we’re not starting there. We’re starting at the biggest one, outside of them, Purdue, and a few others that really create a home-court advantage. We’re going to the defending champs, and obviously, one of the toughest places to play in America.”

But as it turns out, the challenge was just too much for the Hawkeyes, though McCollum still feels it was beneficial to start Big Ten play in such a tough road environment.

“This was great for us,” McCollum said. “Sometimes, as your building, that’s why it was good that we played them the first game, just understanding the league and understanding how it’s going to be played.  Understanding all those different things. It was just a good environment for us to be in, which was great for us to learn, to grow and get better.

“And we will get shockingly better.”

The first half, other than the first few minutes, was a disaster for Iowa offensively as it made just 7-of-21 field-goal attempts and trailed 35-21 at halftime.

The first half was played at a snail’s base, which you figured would have worked to Iowa’s advantage since the Spartans thrive on scoring in transition.

But that was hardly the case as Stirtz had as many turnovers (four) as he did points in the first half, making just 1-of-5 field-goal attempts.

Michigan State also used its size advantage to dominate the boards in the first half, building a 19-10 advantage on the boards.

The Spartans also made 11 of 12 free throws in the first half, and had a 13-0 scoring run in the first half, and that left Iowa having to play catch-up for the rest of the game.

Senior guard Brendan Hausen provided a much-needed spark for Iowa in the first half by scoring seven points in just seven minutes off bench. But then he didn’t play in the second half.