Usually, there’s a slight hangover after beating a #1 team. This wasn’t the case with the #19-ranked Butler Bulldogs on Saturday at a sold out Hinkle Fieldhouse. It wasn’t an easy task, but Butler defended the Dawg Pound before heading home for a short Christmas break, defeating intra-state foe Evansville on Saturday, December 22, 75-67.
The Evansville Purple Aces made the drive from southern Indiana and were of the mindset that they would be the team that would force Butler to falter directly after beating a #1 team. Losing each of the last two seasons in overtime against Evansville, the Bulldogs were out to put a halt to that. And a halt is exactly what Butler executed and is now 5-0 versus Indiana opponents (Hanover, Ball State, IUPUI, Indiana and Evansville) and has won those by an average of 16 points.
Four minutes into the game, Evansville found itself in a 9-3 swing to open the game. Five of those points were by Egidijus Mockevicuis (Kursnai, Lithuania) and two each from Colt Ryan (Batesville, IN/Batesville) and Troy Taylor (Anderson, IN/Anderson). Andrew Smith (Zionsville, IN/Covenant Christian) and Kameron Woods (Louisville, KY/Eastern) then combined for six points to tie things up at 9-9, getting the Hinkle crowd riled up and ignited the Bulldogs on the hardwood.
Ryan Sawvell (Mundelein, IL) scored six in a row for the Purple Aces, but Kellen Dunham (Pendleton, IN/Pendleton Heights) and Rotnei Clarke (Verdigris, OK/Verdigris) also provided six for Butler to knot the game at 15-15.
Just like he’s become as of late, Roosevelt Jones (O’Fallon, IL/O’Fallon) became an x-factor, scoring five in a row and giving the Bulldogs two different leads. After Jones gave Butler its first lead at 17-15, DJ Balentine (Kokomo, IN/Kokomo) tied it right back up at 17-17. Jones was then fouled by Balentine, sinking a jumper and converting the free throw for the old-fashioned three-point play and a 20-17 lead, which they wouldn’t relinquish for the rest of the game.
The Dawgs then ran off on a 15-6 run, capped off by three Dunham free throws, for a 30-21 lead with 4:46 left in the first half.
Evansville made a run of its own, going on a 10-5 jaunt to close the gap at 35-31. It almost became a one-point tilt at the break, but Evansville’s Colt Ryan missed a three-point attempt with seconds left.
Head Coach Brad Stevens and company were up four at half, 35-31. They knew that Evansville wouldn’t go away and would stick around for all 40 minutes. They’re that kind of team that’s gutsy and gritty and might find themselves in the NCAA Tournament field in the middle of March.
Butler kept the lead, but mainly Evansville at just enough distance throughout the remainder of the game. The lead grew to nine a couple different times in the second half and 14 was their largest at 64-50 on a Rotnei Clarke three with 4:29 left, forcing a Purple Ace timeout.
Evansville tried putting this game on the shoulders of senior guard Colt Ryan, as he scored 19 of his game-high 25 points in the second half. Ryan also had five rebounds, five assists and five steals. It obviously wasn’t enough.
A Kameron Woods free throw gave the Bulldogs a seven point lead (71-64) with just 0:33 left. Colts Ryan knocked down the final trey for his game-high 25. It was fitting that Andrew Smith and Rotnei Clarke each sank a pair of shots from the charity stripe to seal the game, giving Butler a 75-67 win over the Evansville Purple Aces.
Evansville had a couple more in double-figures, with Ned Cox (San Antonio, TX) with 12 and Ryan Sawvell 10. On a positive note, Evansville forced 17 Bulldog turnovers and only committed 10 as a team. They also had nine steals to Butler’s five, but were outrebounded 39-29.
The Butler Bulldogs (9-2) had too much for the Purple Aces (7-5) in the second half. Andrew Smith netted 16 of his 20, along with 6 rebounds and 4 assists, while Rotnei Clarke scored 10 of his 20 in each half. Woods also grabbed 8 of his team-high 12 rebounds, finishing with a double-double, adding 10 points.
Kellen Dunham contributed 13 points, including 5-for-5 at the free throw line. Roosevelt Jones had 12, but was slow getting up after colliding face-to-face with an Evansville defender in the second half.
Both teams shot dismal from outside-the-arc, with Butler shooting 4-of-16 (25%) and Evansville going 4-of-15, but the Dawgs made up for it with decent overall shooting (24-for-49). Butler got to the free throw line when it mattered and that’s what the deciding factor in this battle was ultimately. The Bulldogs shot a stellar 23-for-27 (85%) from the charity stripe as a team, while the Purple Aces were just 13-of-18 (72%).
Butler takes a short break to be with their families over Christmas, but then gets back to work Wednesday for their road trip into SEC country. It will be the Bulldogs’ third true road game, the previous two were Xavier (lost, 62-47) and Northwestern (won, 74-65). Playing at Vanderbilt (5-5) will be a place that Butler has never played. The Dawgs are 3-0 all-time against Vanderbilt, but the two haven’t met since the 1929-30 season, which Butler won, 39-14. The two will meet up Saturday night, December 29 at 8 p.m. at the Commodores’ Memorial Gym in Nashville, Tennessee.
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