The final hours of 2004 were ticking down. Saint Louis head coach Brad Soderberg was searching his soul for a way to alleviate the pain of the team's first 11 games of the season.

After a humiliating 16-point home loss to Southeast Missouri State, the 2-9 Billikens, bereft of even a trace of confidence, brought a wounded side into Iowa (ranked No.16 at the time) on Dec. 31.

SLU had to cope without leading scorer Reggie Bryant(out with an inflamed left eye) and starting center Tom Frericks (out with a concussion).

SLU had averaged 52.3 ppg in its previous eleven games, including a dismal 41-point effort at Southern Illinois ten days earlier.

Yet, on that New Year's Eve, SLU led, 29-27, at halftime and trailed by one with less than six minutes remaining before fading. The 67-58 loss gave the Billikens a 2-10 record heading into conference play, but Soderberg thinks he found a temporary remedy in the process.

"I've tried to focus my attention on my team," Soderberg said. "In light of how young we are, we have to establish our identity as a team."

Instead of worrying about his opponents' strengths and weaknesses, Soderberg has tried to fix the problems under his own roof.

"We've gotten back to the basics," he said. "I wanted us to defend better and be solid with the ball."

The Billiken players responded by winning three of their next five games.

Forward Izik Ohanon has led the resurgence with strong outings in wins against Tulane (16 points, 9 rebounds) and Southern Miss (18 points, 7 rebounds).

"Izik has been a steady force for us," Soderberg said. "He's been our most consistent player and best interior defender." Freshman point guard Dwayne Polk has also played well as of late. He committed no turnovers in 30 minutesof SLU's 56-48 win over Texas Christian on Jan. 22.

"I've been very happy with (Polk's) progress," Soderberg said. "He's very poised, and he's an excellent on the ball defender."

The introspective strategy that has worked for Soderberg may work for Marquette head coach Tom Crean, whose Golden Eagles face the prospect of a fourth consecutive loss this Saturday in St. Louis.

"Right now we're having to emphasize a lot more than just getting ready for games," Crean said. "We have to get back to some of the basics."

Crean said that the team must improve its strength with the ball, meet passes and execute under pressure.

"If our game preparation suffers a little bit, you know what, over the long haul, that's the way it is," Crean said. "The mental errors right now are what

we have to get corrected."

In addition to correcting the mental mistakes Marquette must worry about the pace of the game. SLU would rather play with deliberate patience and keep the score under 60. The Billikens have surrendered more than 70 points in a game just once this year — a 75-45 drubbing at Gonzaga.

This article appeared in The Marquette Tribune on Jan. 27 2005.