It wasn’t practice as usual Monday morning for the Oregon State men’s basketball team.

Coach Jay John shortened the workout, demanding more intensity at a constant rate. That was in response to the disappointing 80-73 nonconference loss at Fresno State on Saturday night.

The Beavers (1-2) started strong with a nine-point halftime lead, but the game slipped away. There were 19 turnovers that caused a second-half collapse.

Playing away from Gill Coliseum has been a challenge since last season, and both losses this season have been road games. The first one was a 28-point defeat at Tennessee Tech.

“We don’t have enough toughness, mental or physical, in order to win on the road,” John said. “We got to get it. The effort was not there in the second half. We hit a mental wall around 8-7 minutes. And right now we need the seniors playing well. I don’t have all four seniors playing well.”

John is trying to make his players uncomfortable in practice, forcing them to overcome setbacks. The comforts of playing at home help the Beavers, but officials calling the game differently from the Pacific-10 Conference crews and rowdy fans alter their game.

The team’s success and failures start with practice, John said. There was an improved attitude Monday, but there’s a long way to go for his standard.

“Our practices got stale prior to our trip to Tennessee,” John said. “Some of it was the natural boredom of practice. They picked it up last week and need to continue to get better. We need to keep elevating our toughness in practice. We have an initial read on the personality of our team, and it’s not satisfactory at this point.”

The biggest problem is turnovers. The Beavers average 20 a game, while the opponents give up the ball 13 times a contest. Nearly half of them have been by two normally sure-handed seniors Nick DeWitz (17) and Jason Fontenet (10).

John calls it a lack of offensive focus and trying to do too much. At the end of the game, he wants to keep the turnovers down to once in every eight possessions.

Losing the ball so many times also creates offense for opponents. Another result is OSU’s deflated spirits, and it takes time for players to regain their confidence.

“We are our own enemy,” guard Angelo Tsagarakis said. “We hurt our energy with our turnovers. At Fresno State, we gave them the game. They did not take it from us. The killer instinct is lacking right now. We are close (to getting it), improving every day. It’s just sticking with who we are. We need that swagger, knowing we can win those games. We need to win those games.”

John demands leadership with steady play from his four seniors, but only Lamar Hurd (11.3 ppg) and Chris Stephens (13.3 ppg) have been consistent. The rest of the team has played well only in spurts.

DeWitz averages 9.7 points a game, while Fontenet is at 2.7. DeWitz is only 9-for-22 from the field, and Fontenet is 3-for-16.

For DeWitz it’s been frustrating because of the strong season he’s coming off, being honorable mention All-Pac-10. There are high expectations on him. He’s also been facing nagging injuries.

“Nick’s adjustment to being the focal point in the defense, he’s not adjusted, yet,” John said. “It’s caused some frustration. He’s been rushing. It’s been clouding his focus. The turnovers he’s made can be prevented.”

Forward Kyle Jeffers banged his right knee again, against Fresno State after sitting out the previous game. He continues to practice, with two different knee sprains on different ligaments.

Combine his injury and a slow start with two starters, and that has forced extra minutes for younger players. It will help them in the long-run, but the Beavers are paying for it now.

Learning to win games on the road is necessary for OSU to continue its ascension of the Pac-10 standings. If not, it’s going to be a quick drop back to the bottom.

“I sense we are definitely closer than we were at Tennessee Tech,” John said. “It’s not much. It boils down to a mental and physical toughness. We got out of control for a period of time Saturday and couldn’t get it back. We didn’t have a good game. We need to have good games. My seniors need to play well on the road.”