Hypothetically, the Penn State men's basketball team can still make the NCAA tournament.

A squad that has lost 13 straight games, hasn't won since Jan. 3 against Northwestern, and is last in the Big Ten, still has hope, head coach Ed DeChellis said, after acknowledging that he has run out of motivational tactics to turn this season around.

The upcoming games are still about building some confidence, getting a bad taste out of the Nittany Lions' mouths and just playing better.

This objective is more grandiose, and, admittedly, far fetched.

"I'll try to relate to our players, you can still achieve our goals," DeChellis said. "We got to play really well, and we have to win four games, but at least you have a chance. At least you have the possibility of doing it."

He isn't lying. Penn State (10-17, 1-13 Big Ten), like any team in a conference with an automatic tournament bid, is a potential "Big Dance" squad. The Ivy League is the only conference that doesn't have its own tournament.

Even with the worst defense and No. 8 ranked offense in the Big Ten, the Lions can meet the expectations that the team had set for itself following a 15-15 record and a NIT berth last season. The Lions would just have to win four straight games starting on March 8 against teams they haven't beaten during the regular season.

"That's what's neat about a conference tournament, at the end of the year you still have something to play for and you can still accomplish your goal," DeChellis said. "I ain't saying it is going to be easy, but you can still accomplish your goal."

Jamelle Cornley, who sat out yesterday's practice and is day-to-day with a hip pointer sustained during the Illinois game, doesn't want to go down in history as a member of the Penn State squad which lost the most games consecutively.

In the 1983-84 season, Bruce Parkhill's first year as head coach, the Lions lost 16 straight games. That can be accomplished if this year's team loses to Iowa tomorrow, Indiana on Saturday, and whomever it faces in the first round of the Big Ten tournament.

"We're thirsty," Cornley said. "We are eager to get some type of win. Again, I can stress it doesn't matter how many points it's by, whether it's a buzzer beater, how large of a margin it is, we need something positive to happen to us as a team. We can't take back [13] losses, but we can play with pride."

Something would have to be broken for Cornley to sit out against the Hawkeyes, he said. Senior point guard Ben Luber's season and collegiate career is probably over because of a left wrist injury.

Injuries, starting with Geary Claxton's broken finger early in the non-conference season, have been a theme. DeChellis said his team is a turned ankle away from a crisis, even if the losing has already become familiar.

Cornley, upon hearing DeChellis emphasized the possibility of a tournament bid during a press conference, was taken aback. But the reply of an eternal optimist would follow.

"It's pretty far out there," Cornley said, "but at the same time, it's believable. It's within reach. Every team in this conference we can play with and beat, every single team ... it just depends on which Penn State team will show up and how much effort we are willing to put in."