While the 2007-2008 season ended in familiar fashion for the Chippewas, who made it to the quarterfinals of the MAC tournament for the second straight year before being eliminated, the team showed continued progress under second-year head coach Ernie Ziegler.

The Chippewas finished the regular season with an 8-8 conference mark and tied for second overall in the MAC West division after a sub .500 third-place finish in Ziegler's first season. Prior to Ziegler's arrival from UCLA, the Chippewas recorded three straight cellar-dweller finishes in the MAC West, including a 4-24 overall mark in the season prior to his arrival.

The first thing the new coaching staff set about changing was a losing mindset that had pervaded the program. "These players have never experienced success and sometimes a losing attitude can take hold. We have to change that," noted Ziegler earlier this season when the team was struggling to find its identity and opened the season by losing its first five games. The Chippewas rebounded from their rough start in time to make noise in the MAC this season, including wins over Akron and MAC West champion Western Michigan.

In trying to find the right combination, the Chippewas frequently juggled their starting lineup as even standout point guard Giordan Watson was not immune to being benched. Watson came in off the bench in two late-season contests but returned to the starting lineup in time to become a prime factor in the Chippewas' late-season MAC run that saw CMU win three of its last four MAC contests.

While Watson departs, the Chippewas will return a strong nucleus of players that have been recruited by Ziegler, who appears to have the Chippewas on track, and perhaps more importantly, engaged in some positive thinking.

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