As Haskell Indian Nations University men’s basketball coach Jamie Morrison came out of his team’s locker room, he didn’t know the exact number of times his team had turned the ball over in its 84-66 thumping by Graceland University on Tuesday night.

“500? 600? I don’t know,” Morrison quipped.

The correct answer was 35, but the bottom line was that the Fightin’ Indians committed too many to have a shot at winning.

“We’d been trying to correct it for the past two weeks,” Morrison said.

Haskell (0-7) might need more practice. It committed 19 turnovers in the first half and 16 in the second with a combination of stolen passes by the Yellow Jackets (2-3), misguided passes, traveling calls … and about every other way to turn the ball over.

“You can’t give them 20 additional opportunities,” Morrison said of HINU’s first-half blunders that gave Graceland a solid 43-22 lead going into the half.

Although the Fightin’ Indians struggled with their shooting as a team, HINU freshman Jamison King did not. King came off the bench and registered a team-high 15 points, including a 3-for-5 showing from beyond the three-point line.

“I just came off the bench and made baskets,” King said. “That’s my role.”

What does King think is the cause of all those turnovers?

“It’s just mental errors,” he replied.

King’s production came in the second half when he put up 13 points — a strong effort, but not the consistency that Morrison wants from his team.

The coach said it was one thing to shoot well when a team already was down on the scoreboard and there was no pressure.

“What we have to do collectively is play that well at the beginning of the game,” Morrison said.

The Fightin’ Indians came out stagnant. HINU only had 12 points to show for its effort midway through the first half, compared to Graceland’s 22. The Yellow Jackets went on a 10-0 run near the end of the first half to quash any of Haskell’s hopes of rallying.

Graceland’s offensive rush came largely from speedy guard Matt Lynch, who was too quick for the Fightin’ Indians with his flashes to the basket. He led his squad with 15 points and four steals.