By Dustin Dow
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Xavier head coach Thad Matta hopes X will rebound from the Mississippi State loss. (Ernest Coleman photo) | ZOOM |

After a lackluster effort in Saturday's 71-61 loss to 16th-ranked Mississippi State in New York, No. 21 Xavier is back where it plays its best basketball - Cintas Center.

The Musketeers (5-2) host Ball State of the Mid-American Conference at 7:30 p.m. today in the arena where Xavier has won four games this season and 14 straight overall.

"We'd much rather be at home than on the road," said XU coach Thad Matta, "but if you look across college basketball, the majority of teams have a high winning percentage at home."

Yes, but not like the Musketeers, whose 93.8 home winning percentage (30-2) ranks first in Division I.

"It's good because we get to play in front of our fans," said Xavier forward David West about tonight's game.

The Musketeers' latest loss lowered their status from a top-10 contender to a team fighting to stay in the Top 25. That alone could be their motivation tonight.

"We've been playing real lazy," said Xavier freshman point guard Dedrick Finn. "We haven't been playing hard or playing as a team. So if everyone comes out on the same page and we get off to a quick start, then that would be a turnaround for us."

Ball State coach Tim Buckley knows all about the Musketeers.

"Xavier is a good team, regardless of whether they won or lost to Mississippi State," he said. "Everybody likes to bounce back after a loss, but they're going to be good regardless, especially at home in Cintas Center."

The Cardinals (5-3) face their second Atlantic-10 opponent in as many games after losing 80-65 at Dayton on Tuesday. It was BSU's first loss after three straight home wins.

Ball State is still figuring out how to play without star forward Theron Smith, Buckley said.

Smith, a preseason Wooden Award candidate who averaged 19.6 points and 10.9 rebounds last season, played just three games and decided to sit out the remainder of the season because of prolonged tendinitis in his right knee. Smith intends to apply for a medical redshirt after this season and return as a fifth-year senior next year.

But for now, the Cardinals are trying to come up with some offensive firepower without him.

"It's changed us tremendously," Buckley said. "Without him here, everyone has to find new ways to scored and defend to help this team."

Senior Chris Williams has certainly stepped up. The long-range specialist has scored 23, 28 and 23 points, respectively, in BSU's last three games, improving his season average to 23.0.

"He is one of the better scorers in the country," Matta said. "He can just flat out score."

Cameron Echols leads the Cardinals' starters in field-goal shooting at 47 percent with a 13.8 scoring average, and guard Matt McCollum averages 10.9 points per game. After those three, no one else averages more than five points, but five players average two or more points. As a result, Ball State is scoring on average only three points less without Smith, a drop from 70 to 67 points per game.

Echols also averages a double-double with 11.1 rebounds per game. Matta said West, who averages 10.6 boards and had 17 against Mississippi State, probably will match up with Echols, who is 6-feet-8.

E-mail ddow@enquirer.com

Ball State at Xavier

Tipoff: 7:30 p.m. today,

Cintas Center (10,250).

Records: XU (5-2), Ball State (5-3).

Radio: WLW-AM (700).

TV: None.

Series: Xavier leads 4-2.

XAVIER

Player	Yr.	Ht.	PPG
Lionel Chalmers	Sr.	6-0	14.3
Romain Sato	Jr.	6-5	13.3
Dedrick Finn	Fr.	6-1	4.4
David West	Sr.	6-9	18.7
Anthony Myles	Jr.	6-9	7.3

Coach: Thad Matta (31-8, second season; 55-16 overall)

BALL STATE

Player	Yr.	Ht.	PPG
Chris Williams	Sr.	6-3	23.0
Cameron Echols	Jr.	6-8	13.8
Matt McCollum	So.	6-2	10.9
Robert Owens	Jr.	6-7	5.1
Kevin Cates	Fr.	6-9	2.0

Coach: Tim Buckley (46-27, third season; 96-79 overall)