The Iowa Hawkeyes pulled off a 73-72 upset win over the Florida Gators to advance past the second round in the 2026 NCAA Division 1 Men's Basketball Tournament. This has been one of the biggest upsets of this year's March Madness as defending champions Florida crashed out before the regional semifinals.
Hawkeyes' senior Bennett Stirtz had a rough night with 13 points (5-16 FG, 0-9 3P), five rebounds, and five assists. Despite his struggles, the Hawkeyes were vaulted to the win by Tavion Banks' 20 points (7-10 FG) and six rebounds, while Alvaro Folgueiras hit the game-winning shot en route to 14 points (3-5 FG, 6-6 FT).
Stirtz spoke to Jeff Goodman after the win and was alongside Folgueiras as he revealed that the 20-year-old Spaniard told him to make sure he finds him because he'd be open to drain the game-winning shot.
"We were in the timeout, drawing up the play. It was for me to try to get downhill. This dude comes up to me after the timeout. We were just getting out of it. He's like, 'Find me, I'll be ready to hit a shot.' That was in the back of my mind. I knew they were gonna collapse because they had been doing that all game on me. Wide-open three, that's an easy read for me."
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The Gators' season ends disappointingly, as the reigning national champions couldn't keep up with the Hawkeyes. Iowa was slightly more efficient with the ball, and that was enough to make a huge difference in tonight's win.
The Hawkeyes came into this game with a close 67-61 win over Clemson, while the Gators got here after defeating the No. 16 seed Prairie View A&M University in a one-sided 114-55 affair, which likely meant the team was in worse competitive shape than the Hawkeyes.
Alex Condon had 21 points (8-13 FG) with five rebounds and seven assists, while freshman Thomas Haugh had 19 points (3-11 FG, 11-12 FT) and six rebounds. They just didn't have enough production across their roster as this team with multiple NBA Draft hopefuls heads into an early offseason.
This was a huge shot for the Hawkeyes, who advance to the 'Sweet Sixteen' to face the No. 4-seeded Nebraska Cornhuskers.
