The Evansville Aces are 9-8 this season, including 3-4 in MVC play, but they are starting to show some toughness.

"We've played a little better the last three games and hopefully we're getting more confident," said coach Marty Simmons. "But it all comes down to having to do it each time out."

The Aces were treated to a double feature of "True Grit" and "The Fighter" on the bus ride home from a conference road game over the weekend.

"True grit, that's what we need," said senior center Pieter van Tongeren.

Still, Evansville is a work in progress.

"We're figuring some things out," said sophomore guard Colt Ryan. "Down the stretch, we're making more plays. We've just got to make sure on the defensive end that we're still clamping down, especially near the end of the game. That's big for us."

The Aces are struggling in conference play this season, coming off a loss to Creighton on Sunday.

"We've got to get better real quick," coach Marty Simmons said prior to the game.

Evansville is now 1-4 in MVC play and 7-8 overall this season.

Colt Ryan still leads UE in scoring with a 16.2 average, but it dips to 13.8 in MVC action. After knocking in more than half of his 3-point attempts (27 of 52) in nonconference games, the sophomore guard has made just eight of 21 (38 percent) in MVC contests.