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SALT LAKE CITY — It's no secret Utah wanted to be back in the NCAA Tournament.
It's been the hope of Craig Smith ever since he took over as the head coach to get the program back to the Big Dance — to say nothing of the players, administration and fans desperate to be included in the 68-team tournament. The lower-tiered NIT was a nice reward, but not the hope.
(The same can be said of NIT darling and Utah's future opponent Indiana State, who narrowly missed out on a chance in the Big Dance as one of the "first four" teams out on the bubble.)
The Runnin' Utes, though, have made lemonade out of lemons, and have embraced the challenge of being only one of a handful of Division I teams that will get the chance to keep playing basketball in April.
"It's a long stretch here, and by the end of Sunday, there's going to be eight Division I men's basketball teams playing out of 362, and we're one of those eight," Smith said Wednesday night. "I'm proud of that."
But it's more than just being one of eight teams left standing in April. Smith said he's proud of what his team has done in their "own race."
"It's incredibly important to me, and it's incredibly important to our team," Smith said about being included in the semifinals of the NIT. "Everybody in life — and I don't want to be all like on a soapbox — but we all have our own race. ... And I'm incredibly proud of this team, because it was tough there for a stretch — like at the end of the conference tournament, and we had some really amazing times and some real tough times.
"But sometimes it's not how many punches you can throw, it's how many you can get up from."
Utah has certainly taken their punches this season (and for more than five seasons in its postseason drought) with injuries, a lost scholarship player before the season started, and seeing a 90%+ chance of making the NCAA Tournament midway through Pac-12 play dry up after the losses piled up.
In past seasons, that was enough to end all hopes for the team and destroy team morale.
But Smith said this team has stayed connected and it's meant the difference between ending the season early in March and now having a chance to play for an NIT championship in Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana.
"It's amazing the power of connectivity and love and caring for one another, and I think that's been amazing," Smith said. "This is our final four. This is our tournament that we're in. This is the race that we're running. And so no matter what's in front of you and where you're at, I think it says a lot about your character, and I just think it says a lot about your character to move forward with the hand that you're dealt and where you're at, and take advantage of that moment.
"So to be able to do that for one another, it's just amazing what our guys are doing right now, and it's fun to see," he added. "And so it's never too late, and that's what makes March amazing, right?"
He's not alone in his thinking, either.
The players were disappointed to not be in the NCAA Tournament — none more than fifth-year senior Branden Carlson who will end his collegiate career without an appearance in the Big Dance — but after the initial disappointment and shock wore off, to say nothing of getting that first NIT win, it's all about the prize ahead for the team.
"I've talked about it before," senior Gabe Madsen said. 'It was, obviously, never the goal to make the NIT, but now that you're in it, it's like let's go win this thing. And with four left, it feels ... super feasible."
The team can taste it — a championship opportunity — which is enough to continue the fire burning on a season that now extends to seven months (more if you count the team's summer opportunity in Spain).
Madsen and his teammates believe they're playing their "best basketball right now" and there's no reason to be "expecting a dip or anything."
"It means a lot to just play with this team," Madsen said. "Obviously, I think this team is one of the most connected teams I've been on and everybody just enjoys each other's presence, so to be able to keep playing, it's just great."
"I think we're playing our best basketball as of now," added record-setting guard Deivon Smith. "I feel like we're super connected, so just being on a neutral site, I think we could beat anybody. I think we can win it all, honestly."
The road to a championship will be a tall task, though, against an Indiana State team that enters the semifinals with a lot of momentum, to say nothing of being just 85 miles away from campus at Hinkle Fieldhouse. That historic landmark that seats 9,100 people and was the location of the classic basketball movie "Hoosiers" will feature a pro-Indiana State crowd.
And for a team that felt it was snubbed of an NCAA Tournament berth, Utah is just another obstacle in the way of proving the selection committee wrong.
"They have a chip on their shoulder, and we've got to come out with a lot of motivation to go for that game," Carlson said. "We're excited to play them. I know when you're looking at the bracket, I think Indiana State was one of those teams where you're excited to be able to play along this way. So I think we're just gonna have some great prep leading up to it. I know they have really good players on that team that make a lot of good decisions, so we're gonna have to lock in and really focus for those games, but we're excited to go play them."
"I think we're just taking one game at a time," Deivon Smith added. "I think the momentum we have right now and the connectivity we have in the locker room, on the court, I think we're just taking them one practice, one game at a time — not looking too far ahead. But we're definitely excited for Tuesday's game; we'll handle that first and then go from there."
