By Pat Harty

IOWA CITY, Iowa – Payton Sandfort is a shining example of what can happen when a college basketball player makes the most of a tough situation.

Iowa’s 6-foot-7 junior forward didn’t want to play in the National Invitation Tournament, but he wanted to keep playing the game that he loves, and the NIT was his only option since Iowa fell short of making the NCAA Tournament for a fifth straight season.

Sandfort was determined to make the most of this opportunity and he certainly did that on Tuesday, scoring a career-high 30 points and grabbing 12 rebounds in Iowa’s 91-82 victory over Kansas State in the first round of the NIT at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

“I think it’s another chance to play basketball, and honestly, that was some of the most fun I’ve ever had,” Payton Sandfort said. “It was like I was messing around, but I was still locked into the game plan and just getting to my spots and shooting it confidently and doing what I could and having fun with the guys.

“I had a blast and I think it looked like it, too.”

Payton Sandfort helped to set the tone early by scoring 22 points in the first half. He also made a critical 3-point basket, one of seven threes that he made in the game, to give Iowa a 79-70 lead with slightly more than six minutes to play.

And now Iowa lives to play at least one more game in the postseason.

The NIT certainly doesn’t compare to playing in the Big Dance, but as Payton Sandfort said after Iowa’s 90-78 loss to Ohio State in the Big Ten Tournament last Thursday, life doesn’t always work out how you would hope.

But instead of sulking or quitting on the season, Sandfort vowed to keep fighting and he showed a lot of fight in Tuesday’s game.

“When you come out and just try to have fun, that’s kind of what can happen,” Payton Sandfort said. “Maybe there were times I wish I would have taken that mindset during the season. But I can’t fault it too much. I had a pretty good year.

“I was really excited for this opportunity. It sucks not getting to play in the big tournament. But we still get a chance to play and I love this team so much. I just had a great time out there fighting with the guys. And when you’re having fun like that, I think it’s easy to get cooking.”

Payton Sandfort also had plenty of help from his teammates, and particularly from graduate forward Ben Krikke, who finished with 24 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and three steals.

Iowa improved to 19-14 on the season and will face Utah in the second round on either Saturday or Sunday in Salt Lake City. Utah defeated Cal-Irvine 84-75 in the first round on Tuesday.

Kansas State, which advanced to the Elite Eight last season, finished 19-15 .

At least 17 teams declined a a spot in this year’s NIT, including Indiana, which said it wanted to focus on roster building.

“You saw a bunch of teams turn down this opportunity, and a bunch of other stuff,” Payton Sandfort said. “You spend the whole offseason talking and I don’t know why teams would want to end that early. Because we got to go out and I got to play with my brothers again and play in front of what was an amazing crowd.

“It wasn’t big, but everybody there seemed to be having fun. They were loud and I had a blast playing basketball. You never know what life is going to bring, so, getting that opportunity to play again, I’m so thankful for it.”