Butler (12-5, 2-2 BIG EAST) vs. #25/22 Creighton (13-3, 3-1 BIG EAST)
GAME 18:  Tuesday, Jan. 9  |  8:30 p.m. ET  
Omaha, Neb.  |  CenturyLink Center
TV: FS1  |  @JustinKutcher & @NickBahe
Radio: 107.5 FM, 1070 AM & TuneIn Radio App  |  @MarkMinner & @n_gardner 
@ButlerMBB  |  ButlerSports.com

Notes (PDF)

This will be the 16th match-up between the two programs and the ninth since the programs both joined the BIG EAST prior to the 2013-14 season. The teams first met (twice) during the 1932-33 season. Creighton leads the all-time series, 9-6. Creighton swept the 2016-17 season series, the only BIG EAST foe to take both match-ups against the Bulldogs.
 
• Creighton will be Butler's fourth consecutive Top 25 opponent. The Bulldogs have only faced four straight ranked foes once previously in program history (the team's NCAA Tournament run to the 2010 national championship game). Butler did not face four consecutive ranked teams during the 2011 national championship game run.
• It took Butler five BIG EAST games to match up with an opponent who entered the contest with at least one conference loss.
• Kelan Martin's scoring average of 25.8 points per game in BIG EAST contests is second in the conference.
• Kelan Martin has scored 20+ points twice and has one double-double in six career games against Creighton. Kamar Baldwin averaged 12.5 points per game in two meetings with the Bluejays as a freshman.
• The two highest-scoring games of Kamar Baldwin's 51-game career (31 at Georgetown, 28 at Xavier) have come in the team's four most recent games.
• Through four BIG EAST games, Butler is averaging 89.5 points per game. They are also giving up an average of 89.5 points per game.

LEAD DAWG: Senior Kelan Martin has scored 20 or more points in nine of the team's last 11 games. He has 11 20-point games on the season. His scoring average of 25.8 points per game in BIG EAST contests is second in the conference.
 
Twenty of Martin's 27 points against Seton Hall Saturday came in the second half. He is the first Bulldog to score 20 in a half since Kamar Baldwin had all 21 of his points in the second half of a win over Xavier Jan. 14, 2017.
 
BACK AND FORTH: Through four BIG EAST games, Butler is averaging 89.5 points per game. They are also giving up an average of 89.5 points per game. The Bulldogs trail only Villanova in scoring in conference contests. The Wildcats are also the only team giving up more points than the Bulldogs. Butler defeated Villanova, 101-93, on Dec. 30.
 
ACCEPTING CHARITY: Butler made a season-high 25 free throws in Saturday's loss to Seton Hall. The Bulldogs shot 89 percent (25-of-28), which was the second-best percentage of the season. For the season, Butler is shooting an impressive 76.1 percent from the free throw line. Henry Baddley leads the team at 90.9 percent, followed by Kelan Martin's 87.7 percent mark. Those two players combined to go 13-of-14 Saturday against Seton Hall.
 
ENLISTING THE RESERVES: Butler has received strong efforts off the bench in BIG EAST play from Henry Baddley, Sean McDermott and Nate Fowler. Baddley had 14 points against Seton Hall Saturday, the second-best scoring output of his career. McDermott has games of 12 and 11 rebounds, respectively, over the team's four BIG EAST games, the two-best marks of his career. Fowler had 11 points against Seton Hall following nine rebounds at Xavier. Coach LaVall Jordan called on the three players off the bench against Villanova; the trio combined for 26 points on 10-of-11 shooting.
 
Over the last five games, Baddley is Butler's fourth-leading scorer (9.2 points per game). During that stretch, he has made eight of his nine three-point attempts.
 
ON THE BOARDS: Butler has out-rebounded eight of its last 10 opponents, including a slight 32-30 advantage over Seton Hall Saturday. Sean McDermott is averaging 7.3 rebounds per game in BIG EAST play, which is Top 10 in the conference. Kamar Baldwin has pulled down five or more rebounds in seven straight games, including a season-high nine against Villanova Dec. 30.
 
OTHER SIDE OF THE COIN: Butler has been on the right side of two impressive second-half comebacks this season (against Ohio State and Georgetown). On Saturday, the Bulldogs had an 11-point lead with 10 minutes to play before the visiting Pirates came back to post a 90-87 victory. It was the first time that Butler relinquished a 10-point, second-half lead since March 4, 2017 when the same Seton Hall team came to Hinkle Fieldhouse and overcame a 10-point Butler lead with seven minutes to play to win 70-64.
 
Saturday marked Butler's first loss when leading at halftime (10-1).
 
SOPHOMORE SURGE: Entering BIG EAST play, sophomore Kamar Baldwin had one 20-point outing among his first 47 career games. He has two in the team's last four games, a career-high 31 points at Georgetown and a 28-point game at Xavier. In between, he posted 19 points in the win over (then) No. 1 Villanova.
 
DYNAMIC DUO: Kelan Martin (25.8) and Kamar Baldwin (23.0) are combining to average 48.4 points per game through the team's first four BIG EAST contests. They have five 25-point performances between them in those four games. Butler had only 14 25-point outings in the 2016-17, 2015-16, and 2014-15 seasons combined.
 
WATCH THE AWARDS PILE UP: For his efforts in leading Butler to wins at Georgetown and over No. 1 Villanova during the week of Dec. 25, Kelan Martin was recognized as the BIG EAST Player of the Week. It is his second weekly award of the 2017-18 season and the sixth of his career. On the national level, Martin was named the Lute Olson Award Player of the Week (by CollegeInsider.com) and the Oscar Robertson Trophy Player of the Week (by the USBWA). Martin also received the Lute Olson Award recognition once last season.
 
MORE ON THE WIN OVER VILLANOVA:
• Since the beginning of the 2016-17 season, Villanova is 0-3 vs. Butler, and 46-2 against all other teams.
• Butler made 10 straight three-pointers in the Dec. 30 win over No. 1 Villanova, a program record. The previous mark was seven (vs. Detroit, Feb. 4, 1993).
• Butler has three wins over a team ranked No. 1 since the beginning of the 2012-13 season. Those three wins are the most in the country during that stretch according to ESPN. That includes two wins over Villanova in 2017 and a 2012 Crossroads Classic victory over Indiana.
• Butler is the first team to score 100 points in a win over a No. 1-ranked team since UMass defeated Arkansas in 1994 (according to ESPN).
 
HANDLING AND APPLYING PRESSURE: Butler committed a season-low five turnovers Jan. 2 at Xavier. The Bulldogs are committing only 11.9 turnovers per game this season, while forcing 15.1 from their opponents. The +3.2 turnover margin is third in the BIG EAST. Butler is averaging 7.1 steals per game, highlighted by Kamar Baldwin and his 1.8 swipes per game. His mark is fourth in the conference. Kelan Martin, Paul Jorgensen and Aaron Thompson also average one steal or better per game.
 
AT THE LINE: In Butler's 12 wins, the Bulldogs get to the line 2.5 more times per game than their opponents. In the team's five losses, Butler's opponents have attempted 128 free throws, while the Bulldogs have taken only 62 attempts.
 
HOT AT HINKLE: Butler is 9-1 this season at Hinkle Fieldhouse. At Hinkle, the Bulldogs are averaging 88.0 points per game while shooting 54 percent from the field. Butler has reached 80 points in nine of the games. Butler is 3-4 away from its home court, averaging 69.7 ppg on 40-percent shooting.