Purdue heads back home to host the first team to ever play in Mackey Arena against Purdue, UCLA, in a must-win game for a Purdue team that's lost its last four games.

UCLA knows a thing or two about four game losing streaks. At the start of the year, the Bruins lost four straight Big Ten games, moving it to 2-4 in conference after an 11-2 start to the season.

UCLA righted that ship by winning seven straight games off the losing streak, but sit tied with Purdue in the Big Ten at 11-6 for fourth place in the Big Ten.

That means that UCLA, Purdue, and the other 11-6 team, Maryland, are vying for the fourth spot in the conference and the coveted double-bye in the Big Ten Tournament.

If Purdue defeats UCLA, the tiebreaker scenarios between the three teams become pretty simple. Purdue will have gone 1-0 against both teams, and have the edge either way. Maryland beat UCLA earlier in the season in their only game of the season. An UCLA win over Purdue would obviously give the tiebreaker to the Bruins.

But for Purdue, this game is a chance for Purdue to right a ship that's sank in its last four games, costing the Boilers a chance at winning its third straight Big Ten Title after losing to the top of the Big Ten in succession with losses to Michigan, Michigan State, and Wisconsin in the last couple weeks.

Purdue's run over the last couple seasons have been the best in program history. It culminated in Purdue playing in the national championship game last season. Now, Purdue appears to be feeling the absence of Zach Edey, Lance Jones, Mason Gillis, and Ethan Morton as its new set of leaders deal with adversary that's completely new to them.

Purdue held a player's only meeting this week in attempts to figure out what's happened in the last four games and to get on the same page. Now, a reinvigorated and excited to get out and play Purdue team will look to use Mackey Magic to get back on track with three games left to go on the season.

Purdue's four game losing streak was too much to ignore. So, Trey Kaufman-Renn, junior and leading scorer, sent out a message to the players group chat to get his team together in the locker room with no media, no coaches, and no bs.

"I think all of us knew we probably needed it," Braden Smith said before practice Thursday. "Just to talk."

Fletcher Loyer took the players part of the meeeting to heart.

"The media doesn't need to know about that, that's our thing," Loyer said.

But Kaufman-Renn was candid about his role in the meeting and the team's response.

"We had a team meeting two days ago," Kaufman-Renn said. "I scheduled that. A players only meeting. Just talked about, obviously - as players and even as a staff, the lowest we've been in a long time and needing a win as much as ever. At the same time there's a lot of good things we've seen."

Read more on the meeting here at Boiler Upload: Purdue's leaders optimistic after rare players' meeting.

Matt Painter spent the week having his own meetings with his players, going to them one by one to address concerns and encourage his players.

"I normally do it as the season progresses a couple times during the season," Painter said Thursday. "You're always talking to them in film. You're always talking to them when you're preparing. You're always talking to them in practice. You have a lot of opportunity but just sitting down - I think sometimes other things can bother players that are outside the game. So you've gotta make sur ethat everybody is not fighting themselves. Sometimes you're fighting yourself to get to a point."

Painter was encouraged to see his team getting together.

"Coaches led teams are not better than player led teams," Painter said about his team having a players' only meeting. "When you get experience, and you have players and they're leading - what gets said when the coaches aren't around are the most important. I think that's the huge piece for any team, especially when you have some struggles like we've had the last week."

That hasn't stopped Painter from feeling some frustration about his team's play. After all, he's not trying to use this team as a proof of concept. Purdue's system has already proven effective with this team.

"What we're asking them to do is things we've done and been successful at," Painter said. "That's what's frustrating. It's not something that we haven't been successful at. We've forced turnovers before. We've kept the ball out of the paint before. That's what we have to do. We have to keep the basketball out of the paint and not let people live there."

It's clear the last four games weren't fun for the Boilers. This meeting has seemed to spark a new optimism for Purdue players and have given them a chance to focus back in before its final three game stretch to finish the regular season.

"I'm really excited to be honest with you," Kaufman-Renn said about playing on Friday. "This team has so much left in it and we have so many good players, and collectively I think we're really good. I'm just excited to have that turnaround. I think we're really going to perform on Friday."

Matt Painter was more matter of fact about it than just optimistic.

"Anytime you've had the struggles we've had, you've gotta respond," Painter said.

Purdue will get a chance when UCLA returns to Mackey Arena.