There's a reason that this NCAA Tournament third round game between 6-seed Butler and 3-seeded Marquette was given this much hype. CBS television's programming department, along with the rest of the nation, considers Butler as a basketball program of national prominence. CBS made the right choice for this rematch to be a primetime matchup.
With thoughts of Rotnei Clarke sinking his buzzer-beater to beat Marquette in the Maui Invitational four months ago, the Golden Eagles were looking to turn the tide their way this time. Buzz Williams' squad found a way to get to Butler down the stretch and escape with a 74-72 third round win over the Bulldogs, to advance to the Sweet 16.
The first half went back and forth with two ties and seven lead changes. Rotnei Clarke extended Butler's lead to 28-21, with three free throws, after Derrick Wilson fouled Clarke on a three attempt. Clarke then nailed a jumper with a couple minutes left to give the Bulldogs their largest lead to that point and head into the locker room with a 35-27 cushion.
Half number two would be a matter of who would outlast the other. Butler did what it could to score and keep Marquette at even just a slight distance and also grabbed their biggest lead (41-32) since going up 10 (33-23) with 3:26 left in the first.
Rotnei Clarke was a man on a mission and wasn't going to be stopped until the clock read all zeros. He was all over the floor, diving for loose balls and doing what he could to keep Butler's season going. This was just Clarke's second NCAA Tournament game in his stellar collegiate career with his first three years at Arkansas and his senior season this year at Butler.
Complete poise and intense play at both ends of the court kept Butler's hopes alive for a Sweet 16 next weekend. Marquette came back at Butler with the same. Down the stretch, it was Jamil Wilson, Vander Blue and Davante Gardner that would turn out to be the key factors to a Golden Eagle victory.
There was a somewhat controversial foul called on Butler's Kameron Woods with 0:48 left. On the left baseline, he and Jamil Wilson both went up to grab a rebound. The only reason, it appeared, that Wilson came down with the board, was that he used his body against a flat-footed Woods, charging Kam Woods with a foul. Wilson's two free throws gave Marquette a 71-69 edge.
In the final five minutes, the score was tied a couple times and the lead changed hands three different possessions before Marquette's 70-69 lead with 0:48 left would be theirs for good. They extended their lead to 74-70 on three Gardner free throws.
With four seconds left, seldom-used senior Emerson Kampen entered the game. He threw a baseball pass the full length of the court to fellow senior Andrew Smith, who put in two on a layup with 2.9 left, cutting Marquette's lead to 74-72.
The Golden Eagles gave Butler one more ounce of hope, turning the ball over back to the Bulldogs immediately. It may not have been the greatest play call out of the timeout, but with Marquette's defense, it appeared to be the only option. Andrew Smith took Butler's final shot from three-point range, missing and ending the Bulldogs' chance at a Sweet 16 berth, 74-72.
Fans more than likely anticipated sharp-shooting senior Rotnei Clarke to take the final shot, but being blanketed, Smith became the option.
For the victorious Marquette Golden Eagles (25-8), they were led by Vander Blue and his game-high 29 points, shooting 9-for-15 from the floor and a perfect 8-of-8 from the charity stripe. Jamil Wilson and Trent Lockett both netted 13 each, while Junior Cadougan added 9 and Davante Gardner chipped in with 8. Free throws were what got it done for Marquette, knocking down 23 of their 27 attempts for 85%.
Butler (27-9) was led by none other than Rotnei Clarke with a team-high 24, going 8-17 from the field, including 5-12 from outside the three-point arc. Andrew Smith poured in 17 points and 8 rebounds. Roosevelt Jones had 8 points in his 38 minutes of action.
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