Hoosiers need a win against Michigan

The Hoosiers are reeling, and so are their chances of making any post-season tournament. Tonight, they get a chance to get back on the winning track and stop their four-game losing streak when they take on Michigan at 6 p.m. in Assembly Hall.\nIU (12-13, 6-8 Big Ten) has lost four-straight home games by a combined nine points. The home losing streak is something IU hasn't had since the 1984-85 season. Michigan (16-9, 7-7) has won three of its last four games but has only one road victory in the Big Ten this season. \nIU coach Mike Davis said the goal is to get better the next couple of games.\n"Take it one game at a time, and try to get better. We need to get a win," Davis said. "That's the most important thing -- to get a win -- and hopefully, we can get a win and improve game by game and get some confidence going."\nBack on Jan. 27, IU was sitting atop the Big Ten conference with a 5-1 record. Since then, the Hoosiers have gone 1-7 and dropped to eighth place. While some of the fans' support has diminished in the past few weeks, freshman forward Pat Ewing Jr. said the team just has to play its game.\n"It's not about the fans. It's not about the cameras. It's not about anybody but the five people in white uniforms on this court, and coach and the people on our bench supporting us," Ewing Jr. said. "We know what we need to do, and we just have to execute out there and do what we do best. We have to go back like when we had our five-game win streak. We were first in the Big Ten. People forget about that. Everybody forgot that we had that five-game win streak cause we had these last few losses. \n"We can still do it, though. We all know it. We just have to prove it."\nJunior guard Donald Perry said while the team has played hard in the last two games, they need to learn how to finish games, something they should already know how to do. And though the negativity has affected some players, Perry said the team has to show them they are wrong.\n"We have to give them what they want to see," Perry said. "They want to see us come out here and make shots, make defensive stops, get rebounds, dive on the floor. The fans want to see that. We just got to do it."\nDavis said he is concentrating on getting the team back to .500 and moving into the Big Ten tournament ready to play for the championship.\nEwing Jr. didn't travel to Penn State, which brought IU's last win. He hasn't played in a win since the Jan. 27 Purdue game and personally has lost seven in a row. He said the Michigan game is crucial. \n"I'm really trying to get me a win, for myself and for the team, 'cause once we get rolling again, no team can beat us," Ewing Jr. said. "Every team is getting beat this year except for St. Joseph's and Stanford, but they're beatable. Once we get everything gelled together again, we're not going to break apart. I'll make sure of it myself."\n-- Contact staff writer Tyler V. Hoeppner at thoeppne@indiana.edu.