As the Ball State University men's basketball team heads into the third contest of the season and the second round of the Las Vegas, the Cardinals are in need of players who will step up.
The Cardinals (2-0) are likely to be without senior Skip Mills and will continue to be without the services of senior Chris Ames, Coach Ronny Thompson said following Sunday's victory.
Their absence was the reason Prairie View A&M was able to keep it close, he said.
"We need Skip," he said. "We need to get him healthy."
Should Skip not dress, it would be the second time he has sat out in his career.
Thompson did not seem optimistic when asked about Skip's status following the Prairie View A&M game.
"Tentitive. Touch and go. Not good," he said. "Pick another adjective."
The Cards will be facing University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (1-2), which is coming off a 93-44 loss to No. 1 Florida over the weekend.
One thing the Cardinals will probably not have to worry about against the Mocs will be the presence of a big man.
Chattanooga has one player listed as a center, freshman Jeremy Saffore, who has seen action in one game so far.
However, Thompson says they will be the toughest team Ball State has played this season.
"The games are steadily moving up," he said. "Their team is well coached and well versed in what they do and we'll have to be prepared."
The Cardinals may be able to pull an advantage from Micah Rollin, who has been able to make an impact this season despite being limited in minutes due to foul trouble.
"I don't think Micah is doing poor, I think Micah is doing fine, when he's on the floor," Thompson said. "He has got to learn to make the small adjustments. If you all find out [a solution] let me know - I just got to find some kind of way to get him to stop fouling. And I just don't know how to do it."
Senior D'Andre Payton says that Rollin's foul trouble isn't all his fault.
"He's so big that really what he does is not really a foul," he said. "But if I'm guarding him it'll look like a foul. If you all would see the Micah we see in practice you would be surprised."
Thompson, who called Rollin a 'walking foul,' said that he would like the junior transfer to be able to stay on the floor and not be in foul trouble, saying that would be a "good game for him".
He also praised Micah's floor moves.
The game against Chattanooga will be the last home game for the Cardinals for the next two weeks as they prepare for a trip to Las Vegas after Thanksgiving and a game in Washington, D.C., on Monday.
That comes to four games in eight days.
"I think the guys will like it," Thompson said. "They like that we won't have to practice, we can just get to the game."
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