Opting out of NIT opportunity was never a consideration for Kansas State's basketball team
Kansas State basketball coach Jerome Tang doesn't blame any team disappointed by an NCAA Tournament snub for opting out of the next-best thing.
But for his Wildcats, who a week ago still felt the Big Dance was within reach, turning down the National Invitation Tournament was never an option.
"Man, it's a blessing to have the opportunity to play in the postseason," said Tang, whose Wildcats are on the road in Iowa City to face host Iowa at 8 p.m. Tuesday in the first round of the NIT. "When I was at Baylor, we got to play in it three times. Two times we went to the championship game and one time we won it.
"Our thing is just being able to spend another day together as a team. We love each other, love being around each other. We have a great time, and it's just exciting for us that we get to continue our season."
The Wildcats (19-14) received an at large bid to the NIT after Cincinnati and Central Florida claimed the Big 12's two automatic berths by virtue of better NET rankings. They face an 18-14 Iowa team that went 10-10 in the Big Ten but has lost two straight coming in.
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Iowa is the No. 3 seed in the eight-team region, which also includes Villanova (18-15) as the No. 1 seed, Utah (19-14) at No. 2 and Central Florida (17-15) at No. 4. The winner between K-State and Iowa will face either Utah or Cal-Irvine in the second round Saturday or Sunday.
Starting the tournament — not to mention traveling — just two days after the bracket reveal makes life especially hectic for the road teams. On top of that, the NCAA transfer portal just opened, so coaches are simultaneously preparing their current teams with an eye on the future.
"I can only imagine this is very similar to what football coaches experience in December when there was high school signing (day), planning for a bowl game, trying to keep your guys and the portal," Tang said. "It's just a lot going on right now.
"I even told the staff this morning as we were preparing a practice plan and the finishing touches on the scout. This is why people opt out, right? Because coaches don't get contract extensions for NIT invitations, and so that's the nature of it."
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That said, Tang still preferred the idea of playing another day to the alternative.
"I don't begrudge anybody for opting out. I hope nobody begrudges us for staying in," he said. "It's just where you're at with your program at that point in time and what you feel is the most important."
With little time to scout opponents, Tang said games most likely will come down to a few key factors.
"It's which team does the best job in transition and limiting second-chance points," he said. "And who really wants to play. Who really wants to be there and play this game that's going to play the biggest factors."
So, what was Tang's message to his team after they failed to get the NCAA bid?
"One of the pillars of our program is that tough people do the next right thing," Tang said. "If we say that we are tough people, then we'll do the next right thing and take advantage of this opportunity that we have and understand that it's a blessing because there's only 100 teams that are still playing.
"For 260-whatever teams, their seasons are done. So, it's a blessing to be where we're at, and we want to embrace this blessing and make the most of it."Arne Green is based in Salina and covers Kansas State University sports for the Gannett network. He can be reached at agreen@gannett.com or on Twitter at @arnegreen.
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This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Kansas State's basketball team never considered opting out of NIT
