IOWA CITY — Iowa basketball was picked ninth in the Big Ten, and star Bennett Stirtz was named first-team all-conference in the USA TODAY Network preseason media poll.

The Hawkeyes are entering their first season under the direction of head coach Ben McCollum. The Iowa native helped guide Drake to Missouri Valley Conference regular-season and tournament titles last season, his lone campaign as the Bulldogs' head coach.

McCollum now takes a major step up to the Big Ten level.

Purdue is the preseason Big Ten favorite, followed by Michigan, Illinois, UCLA, Michigan State and Wisconsin to round out the top six, according to the USA TODAY Network poll. The Boilermakers landed two players on the preseason All-Big first team in returners Braden Smith and Trey Kaufman-Renn. Smith was named pres

See Full Page