Payton Sandfort devastated by Thursday’s loss to Ohio State and what it means
By Pat Harty
MINNEAPOLIS – Payton Sandfort was seated in front of his locker and answering questions after Thursday’s 90-78 loss to Ohio State in the Big Ten Tournament when he suddenly stopped talking and buried his head.
The pain and devastation from losing, and from knowing that Iowa’s chance of making the NCAA Tournament for a fifth straight season ended with Thursday’s loss was too much for Sandfort to deal with at that moment.
He tried his best to answer questions, but there were times when the words just didn’t come out because he was an emotional wreck.
“It’s been a long year,” Sandfort said before burying his head.
The 6-foot-7 junior forward then paused for a few seconds to gather his emotions.
“I think the hardest part is just knowing that some of these guys won’t be able to live out their dreams and that’s hard for me,” Sandfort said, his voice cracking with emotion. “I love everybody in there and it’s all I’ve wanted the whole year was just for everybody to get what they dreamed of and get what we worked for.
“But that’s not how life works, sometimes. I’m so happy I got to be on this team and I’m so proud of this group. And we’re not done yet. Whatever opportunity we get, we’re going to fight as hard as we can.”
Iowa’s next opportunity will almost certainly come in the National Invitation Tournament, and there is a chance Iowa could host a game on Tuesday.
And while playing in the NIT isn’t what Payton Sandfort had envisioned for this team, it’s better than nothing, and it will be another chance to play the game that he loves with the teammates that he loves.
“Emotionally, it’s hard but life goes on,” Payton Sandfort said. “No matter what happened this season, I have life-long brothers and memories that I’ll always have.
“I’m so grateful for this opportunity.”
Iowa fell to 18-14 overall, while Ohio State improved to 20-12 and will now face No. 2 seed Illinois in the quarterfinals on Friday at the Target Center.
This marks the second straight season that Iowa has made a quick exit from the conference tournament because of a loss to Ohio State in the second round.
Ohio State made 11 shots from 3-point range in Thursday’s game, shot 51.7 from the field overall and never trailed in the game.
The Buckeyes also defeated Iowa in the second round of last season’s conference tournament, but Iowa still would go on to make the NCAA Tournament after having finished 11-9 in the Big Ten.
Iowa finished 10-10 in conference play this season and it was widely believed that it would take at least two wins in the Big Ten Tournament to make the NCAA Tournament.
But it just wasn’t meant to be as the surging Buckeyes have now won five games in a row under interim head coach Jake Diebler.
Ohio State also improved to 5-2 against Iowa in the Big Ten Tournament.
The Buckeyes shot a blistering 60.7 percent from the field in the first half, including 8-for-11 from 3-point range.
Ohio State made its first five shots from 3-point range.
“Everybody was open, honestly,” Iowa senior guard Tony Perkins said. “Whether it was transition or half-court offense from their end, everybody was just open.
“Late recoveries and not going off the scouting report and knowing who’s the shooters and stuff like that.’
Iowa also shot well in the first half, making 14-of-26 field-goal attempts, including 5-for-9 from 3-point range.
Payton Sandfort led Iowa in scoring in the first half with nine points, but he also picked up two fouls and spent eight minutes on the bench.
Iowa was fortunate to only trail by five points heading into the second half, considering how hot Ohio State was from 3-point range.
The Buckeyes would go on to build a 12-point lead in the second half and that was too much for Iowa to overcome.
Payton Sandfort led four Iowa players in double figures with 19 points and he also made half of Iowa’s eight 3-point baskets.
But he also picked up his second foul with 4 minutes, 17 seconds left in the first half and then spent the rest of the half on the bench.
“It hurt him, and it hurt us,” Fran McCaffery said of Payton Sandfort’s second foul. “I think it was really hard for him because he didn’t think he fouled. He was trying very hard to not foul then.
“So, I think it was a combination of frustration and knowing that we needed him. But he just keeps coming. He’s really impressive. I just couldn’t be more proud of him.”
Fran McCaffery was asked after Thursday’s loss if he thinks it will be hard to get his team ready to play again.
“I’m not worried about that,” he said.
The Iowa players have been under pressure to win games throughout this roller coaster season.
Iowa started 0-3 in Big Ten play and was 6-8 in the conference at one point.
“It’s hard winning 18 games with the schedule we had,” Fran McCaffery said. “We had some tough times. We had some tough losses. But we had some great wins. We won some close games. We stayed together. I thought our young guys continued to get better and continued to produce.”