After going 0-6 versus the Mid-American Conference East Division, then losing it's first game back in West play, Ball State now steps away from conference play and hosts Southern Illinois for BracketBuster weekend.
The BracketBuster game allows the Cardinals to regroup before they finish out the regular season.
Coach Billy Taylor said Friday that the grind of the conference can wear a team down, and that this weekend is much needed for his team.
"For our guys to see a different opponent, someone who is not as familiar with our sets, and same for us, we're not as familiar with them," Taylor said. "It's a refreshing change for our guys to get us back in a good frame of mind before we have a final run of MAC games."
The Cardinals have lost seven games in a row. The streak is the longest losing streak for Ball State (12-12, 4-8 MAC) since Taylor's first season as head coach in 2007-08. The Cardinals finished 6-24.
The Salukis enter today's game having lost three straight and five out of their last six contests.
In last year's BracketBuster game, Ball State lost 66-61 to Wofford.
BracketBuster weekend is a time that Taylor said his team looks forward to every season. The announcement of who they play creates somewhat of a mystique for Ball State.
"You don't know who you're going to play or if you're traveling or having someone come to you," Taylor said. "So that makes it exciting. That unknown factor to it."
The recent struggles have obviously created frustration within the locker room. However, Taylor said his senior captains, Jarrod Jones and Randy Davis, have taken an active role in getting Ball State back to where it was at the beginning of the season.
"They've come with good attitudes every day and have been willing to try to get things turned around," he said. "They've been keeping guys in the right frame of mind."
Taylor said he's been reminding his captains, as well as the rest of the team that it's a long season. He said they're in a process of working their way out of a rut.
A bright spot in Ball State's 63-55 loss to Toledo last Wednesday was the play of Tyler Koch. Koch missed three games due to personal reasons. In his first game back he scored 13 points on 3-for-6 from 3-point range.
Taylor said having Koch's shooting back in their lineup helps the team tremendously.
"It's huge having Tyler [Koch] back," Taylor said. "We didn't know how much he'd be able to play his first game back. He shot the ball well, made good passes and made effort plays for us. We'll need his continued effort as we move forward."
Ball State will be without forward Matt Kamieniecki for the fourth straight game. Kamieniecki has been plagued with a back injury throughout the season. Taylor said he hopes to have him back within a week.
Southern Illinois is led by Mamadou Seck who averages 12.4 points per game and 7.6 rebounds. Taylor said the key will be to focus on him and Dantiel Daniels, who averages almost nine per game.
"Their front court has been extremely strong for them this year," Taylor said. "Seck on the interior has scored and rebounded very well. Dantiel Daniels as a freshman, we'll start with those two guys then try to play through the interior."
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