STARKVILLE - Phil Turner is feeling a good vibe this week.

Where that vibe originated is unclear, since Turner's MSU team has lost three straight and five of its last six heading into tonight's 7 p.m. showdown with Florida.

After Saturday's 76-58 home loss to Auburn, Turner thought long and hard over the weekend about the game and the state of the team. State coach Rick Stansbury said his team lacked effort, and the shooting stats are indicative of a young squad wearing down near the end of a grinding SEC season.

Turner, a sophomore guard, is not discouraged.

"I just feel like something special is going to happen at the end of the season for us," he said Monday. "Because every team every year has a rut they go in, and then they come back out. Unfortunately for us, it happened toward the latter part of our year.

"I feel like we're going to come out of it."

Turner admitted to feeling a bit worn down, and that some of his teammates are, too. Stansbury refuses to cite it as an excuse, asserting that mental toughness should be the remedy to what physically ails the Bulldogs (17-12, 7-7 SEC).

"We've just got to have that mental, gritty edge," Stansbury said. "We can't lose both edges. We can't not shoot it well and not play with some grit."

MSU isn't alone in its struggles. Florida (21-8, 8-6) is another young team trying to regain its edge. The Gators have lost two straight and four of their last six.

They start three sophomores, and the first three players off the bench are freshmen.

"I think there's no question that for any coach and team, anything you're working on is trying to get guys physically and mentally tougher," 13th-year Florida coach Billy Donovan said. "I also think your experiences you go through either make you tougher or make you weaker."

Bost not at his best

One Bulldog looking to grow from his experiences is MSU freshman point guard Dee Bost. He has faced some tough opponents - Arkansas' Courtney Fortson, LSU's Bo Spencer, South Carolina's Devan Downey - and tonight he draws Florida sophomore Nick Calathes, the SEC co-Freshman of the Year last season.

The 6-foot-6 Calathes leads the league in assists (6.4 per game) and is sixth in scoring (18.4 ppg).

MSU's struggles are reflected in Bost's recent play. Over the last five games, he's had 22 assists and committed 28 turnovers.

Bost said the mood in the locker room has been "down" and "quiet." When told of Turner's optimism, he said, "If we can get these two wins going into the SEC Tournament, it may be something special will happen."

Turner plans on backing up his words. He said he'll talk to his teammates about eating right and getting enough sleep in hopes of counteracting the effects of a long season.

"Nothing's broken, we just need a little more energy," he said. "I'm just going to have to do a better job of just preparing the guys as far as the energy level goes and trying to explain to the young players how we need to take care of our bodies."