Three Iowa MBB Players Who Could Leave in Transfer Portal

While the Iowa Hawkeyes advanced to the Elite Eight, there’s always a chance things get a big shake-up in the offseason.

That hasn’t been par for the course during most of Ben McCollum’s coaching career, but now more than ever he has to dial in on the transfer portal.

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Iowa knows it’s losing a trio of seniors, but there are a few other key players it could lose as well.

Losing the likes of Bennett Stirtz and Tavion Banks is bad enough, but there are three players in particular to keep an eye on that could decide their best chances of playing are on another team.

1. Joey Matteoni

Iowa forward Joey Matteoni (44) shoots the basketball against the Maryland Terrapins Dec. 6, 2025 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Iowa. | Julia Hansen/Iowa City Press-Citizen / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

It’s hard to think of an Iowa native like Trevin Jirak wanting to leave, but crazier things have certainly happened. McCollum knows he needs height, but it’s not like losing Matteoni would be ideal either.

The 6-foot-9 freshman is a Kansas native who averaged just 3.7 minutes per game this season. He made 11 appearances during his freshman season and turned that into 1.5 points, 0.6 rebounds, and 0.2 assists per game. Iowa is going to be looking in the portal no matter what, but knowing their desperate need for a big that may not be something Matteoni believes is in his favor.

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2. Tate Sage

Mar 28, 2026; Houston, TX, USA; Iowa Hawkeyes guard Tate Sage (24) controls the ball against the Illinois Fighting Illini in the first half during an Elite Eight game of the South Regional of the men’s 2026 NCAA Tournament at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images | Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

It feels apropos to include a forward, guard, and center in this list. Of the available guards, Sage seems like the most vulnerable to leave. If he stays he could easily become a starter, but there are no guarantees of anything in this era of college basketball.

Sage averaged 16.2…

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Publish date : 2026-03-30 22:00:00

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