For Michael Lewis, it's a matter of when, not if, Ball State will return to the NCAA Tournament

MUNCIE, Ind. — For Michael Lewis, it's not a matter of if Ball State's men's basketball will reach the NCAA Tournament. It's a matter of when.

The last time Ball State played in college basketball's premier postseason tournament, many players on the current roster weren't born. Lewis was a senior playing at Indiana. But Lewis, now the Cardinals' head coach, is confident they will soon reach the NCAA Tournament, something they haven't done since 2000.

When Lewis got the position in March, his expectations were clear. "I'm here to win championships," he said then. He's reached the Final Four as an assistant at UCLA and the NCAA Tournament three times at Butler. As he prepares to embark on his first season as a head coach after 18 seasons as an assistant, his goals haven't changed.

"If you play college basketball, that's where you want to be," Lewis said, talking about the NCAA Tournament. "If these guys are scared of that, then this is not the program for them. Now, when we get there, there's a lot of things that factor into it."

BSU sports:Observations from men's basketball's open practice

Among the players, whether they're new, have been with the program or are returning, the goals are the same. After years of mediocrity within the Mid-American Conference, Ball State's men's basketball team has a renewed energy entering this season. There's confidence among the group they'll be the ones to turn years of mediocre results around.

"We're going to take it day-by-day, but our expectation is to win a MAC Tournament, MAC regular season title and get back to the NCAA Tournament," junior guard Luke Bumbalough said. "I feel like we have the players to do it this year and the coaching staff."

While the coaching staff includes several new faces, many of the projected starters should be familiar to fans. If the open practice was any indication, the starting lineup could include some combination of Bumbalough, senior Demarius Jacobs, redshirt junior Jarron Coleman and junior Jalen Windham in the backcourt and sophomores Payton Sparks and Basheer Jihad in the frontcourt. Sophomore guard Jaylin Sellers will be out for a while as he tries to recover from a broken wrist.

The Cardinals' roster includes two former MAC Freshmen of the Year winners in Coleman (2020) and Sparks (2022). Sparks led Ball State with 13.5 points and 8.5 rebounds while Coleman averaged 13.8 points and 5.2 rebounds in his last season at Ball State. Bumbalough, Jacobs and Windham have all shown their abilities to put up double-digit scoring numbers.

Offense hasn't been of too much of an issue for Ball State, and Lewis significantly raised the offensive efficiency numbers at his previous stops at UCLA, Nebraska and Butler.

There has been other issues the Cardinals have had. Extensive lapses in games, which would allow opponents to go on long runs, poor defense and inconsistency were among the biggest problem areas in the past.

"Last year, we were very inconsistent but this year we're working on just being more consistent and more competitive in the MAC," Sparks said.

Bumbalough and Sparks both said Ball State will be known as a team which "plays hard." Bumbalough said the Cardinals will be known for the aggressive, but controlled offense and great defense. Last season, Ball State's defensive efficiency was tied for 300th in the country.

Ball State, once again, welcomed in a handful of new players this offseason in graduate Darian Owens-White, junior Kaiyem Cleary along with freshmen Quincy Adams, Micah Bell and Jack Futa. Even Coleman, who spent last season at Missouri, had to get accustomed to almost an entire new roster.

By the end of the summer, Ball State's players felt comfortable with one other. They would often play without coaches in attendance just to get a feel for each other's game. The biggest difference, in Coleman's eyes, has been the overall effort.

"From when I was here last time, I would say that the team, as a whole, works a lot harder," Coleman said. "A lot of people are going to the gym more often and I feel like these players, they want to win more."

Buy in. That's what Lewis is looking for, players controlling what they can control and putting themselves in the best position to compete in the MAC Tournament in March.

Will this be the season Ball State pulls it all together, lifts the trophy on the tournament's final day and breaks years of frustrating finishes for the fans by returning to the NCAA Tournament? If not this season, Lewis believes that day will be coming soon.

"These guys, they've come in and said, 'this is what we want to become,'" Lewis said. "Hasn't been easy, every day hasn't been easy. ... They want to accomplish some big things and they're still trying to figure it out. That's going to be a thing throughout the whole season is figuring out the things it takes to accomplish what they want to accomplish."

Robby General covers Ball State and East Central Indiana high school sports for The Star Press. Contact him via email at rgeneral@gannett.com or on Twitter @rgeneraljr.

This article originally appeared on Muncie Star Press: Ball State basketball confident in eventual return to NCAA Tournament