The ISU men’s basketball team had a Wednesday filled with meetings and practice.

Nothing new, right? Wrong.

Team meeting – no coaches allowed.

“We really ripped on each other,” ISU junior guard Will Blalock said. “Now everybody’s been playing with a chip on their shoulder, which we needed to anyway because we’re down.”

The players-only meeting was hinted at by Rahshon Clark after the Cyclones last game, a 95-85 home loss to Kansas. With a matchup with Colorado looming on Sunday, ISU players said they know they have to step up their game.

“We talked about what we needed to do and how we needed to start playing,” freshman center Shawn Taggart said. “Straight from the heart talking.”

Taggart said it was the upperclassmen who did most of the talking, led by junior Curtis Stinson.

“He knew we were freshmen, but we need to step up,” Taggart said of Stinson’s message. “There are no more freshmen now. We need to step up.”

The loss to Kansas has the Cyclones at 3-4 in the Big 12 and 13-7 overall, good for a tie for sixth in the conference standings.

Although they have struggled early in conference play, Iowa State is only three games from the top spot in the Big 12. On the flip side of the coin, they are also just two games out of last place.

“Every game is a must win,” Taggart said. “Every game.”

With nine games remaining in the regular season, Iowa State’s mission is clear, according to Taggart.

“We’re not looking to lose no more games,” Taggart said. “We have to win every game.”

Iowa State is also looking to stake claim once again to their home court advantage. The Cyclones have lost five games in Hilton Coliseum this season, including the last three games played at home.

Iowa State had won 12 consecutive games against Colorado in Ames, until an overtime Buffalo victory at Hilton last season.

Although Cyclone fans are clamoring for a win, ISU players want a victory for themselves.

“We need to do it for us,” Blalock said. “The fans are great, but we need to do it for us before we do it for anyone else.”

Colorado owns a 5-2 mark in conference play, good for a tie for second with Oklahoma, and is one game behind Big 12 leader Texas. The Buffaloes are riding a five-game winning streak and have won 14 of their last 16 games. The only losses during that run came at the hands of Texas and Kansas.

Colorado is led by sharp-shooting sophomore guard Richard Roby, who leads the team in scoring at 18.5 points per game.

“He’s a really great scorer,” Blalock said. “He’s going to be the main focus and we have to be ready for him.”

Tip-off is set for 1 p.m. Sunday at Hilton Coliseum.