Butler (9-3) at Florida (7-4)
Saturday, Dec. 29; 4PM
O'Connell Center; Gainesville, Fla.
TV: ESPNU - Jay Alter (@jaltersports) & @Chris_Spatola
RADIO: 107.5FM, 1070AM, TuneIn Radio App, XM 381, SiriusXM Internet 972 - @MarkMinner & Nick Gardner (@n_gardner)
Full Notes (PDF)
The Bulldogs close out the non-conference portion of the 2018-19 schedule, traveling to Florida for a Saturday afternoon match-up in Gainesville. It is actually the second meeting of the season between the two teams, which also faced off as part of the Battle 4 Atlantis.
The game will air nationally on ESPNU. The Butler duo of Mark Minner and Nick Gardner will have the radio call on 107.5FM, 1070AM and the TuneIn Radio app.
Butler enters the game with a 9-3 record; Florida is 7-4. Saturday's game is the first half of a home-and-home agreement between the two programs, which will see the Gators return the game at Hinkle Fieldhouse during the 2019-20 season.
THE SERIES: The Bulldogs and Gators have met four times previously, splitting those match-ups. The first three meetings each came in the NCAA Tournament. Butler defeated Florida, 74-71, in the 2011 Elite Eight. The Gators won a 2007 Sweet 16 contest (65-57) and a 2000 First Round meeting (69-68). The 2011 and 2000 games each went to overtime. A member of the Butler staff (LaVall Jordan in 2000, Brandon Crone in 2007, and Emerson Kampen in 2011) were on those Butler teams.
FIRST TIME AROUND: A gritty defensive performance propelled Butler to a 61-54 win over Florida Nov. 23 in the final contest of the 2018 Battle 4 Atlantis on Paradise Island, Bahamas. The Bulldogs limited Florida to 29-percent shooting in the second half, including a 1-of-12 mark from three-point range. That allowed Butler to overcome a five-point halftime deficit and pull out the win. Junior Kamar Baldwin led the Bulldogs with 19 points, including 13 after the halftime break. His eighth point gave him 1,000 for his career as he became the 40th Bulldog to accomplish the feat. Baldwin added six rebounds and a team-best five assists. Paul Jorgensen posted 16 points and a game-high seven rebounds.
ON THE DEFENSIVE: Only two of Butler's 12 opponents this season have scored more than 70 points (Butler's 83-76 win over Ole Miss, Nov. 16, and Indiana's 71-68 win over Butler, Dec. 15). The Bulldogs' defense is allowing only 63.5 points per game on average, which is the stingiest mark in the BIG EAST and Top 35 nationally.
Butler's defense limited UC Irvine to only 54 points in the team's most recent outing; no UCI player reached double figures.
BEHIND THE ARC: The Bulldogs shot 53 percent (9-17) from three-point range against UC Irvine Dec. 21, the fifth time this season that Butler has shot 40 percent or better from behind the arc.
ACCEPTING YOUR CHARITY: Butler used a 20-of-23 performance at the free throw line (87 percent) Dec. 21 to beat UC Irvine. On the season, the Bulldogs are shooting 77 percent on free throws. That leads the BIG EAST and is Top 20 nationally. Butler made all 18 of its second-half free throw attempts in solidifying the win over Ole Miss Nov. 16. For the game, Butler went 23-of-27 (85 percent). Baldwin was a perfect 12-of-12 on the night.
NOT A WELCOMING ENVIRONMENT: Including the win over UC Irvine Dec. 21, Butler has now won 50 consecutive home games against non-conference foes. The streak dates back to a loss to Pittsburgh in the 2012 College Basketball Invitational (CBI). That current streak now trails only Duke nationally. Opponents who have fallen victim at Hinkle Fieldhouse during the streak include Ole Miss, Vanderbilt, Tennessee, Cincinnati, Northwestern (twice), Utah, Princeton (twice), Saint Louis, Chattanooga, Belmont, and Vermont.
The Bulldogs are 7-0 at Hinkle this season, averaging 81.3 points per game while shooting 51 percent from the field and 41 percent from behind the arc.
DOING THE DISHES: Sophomore Aaron Thompson handed out seven assists in the team's most recent game, a win over UC Irvine Dec. 21. For Thompson, it was the fourth time this season that he registered seven or more assists in a game. Thompson handed out a career-high nine assists as part of Butler's 27-assist performance against Northern Illinois Dec. 8. Thompson is third in the BIG EAST in assists (4.8) and sixth in assist/turnover ratio (2.1).
Thompson led the Bulldogs to a 76-67 win over Presbyterian Dec. 18 with a career-high 18 points, making eight of his 10 attempts from the field.
'PAULING' OUT: Paul Jorgensen led the Bulldogs with 19 points in the win over UC Irvine, which included a 5-of-7 performance from behind the arc. Jorgensen has hit at least five three-pointers in three games this season. He has led the team in scoring in five games this season. Jorgensen's 15.3 points per game are 12th in the BIG EAST and second among the Bulldogs. His 2.8 three-pointers per game are seventh in the conference. Earlier this season, he set career-highs with 27 points and six three-pointers in the win over Ole Miss Nov. 16.
HANDLE WITH CARE: Butler is averaging only 10.6 turnovers per game, which leads the BIG EAST and is top 15 nationally. Butler is also in the top 30 nationally in assist/turnover ratio (1.4). In two separate games this season, Butler has posted a season-low seven miscues.
JUMP RIGHT IN: Jordan Tucker, who recently became eligible as a midyear transfer, has suited up in three games as a Bulldog. In his two most recent games, Tucker has posted 24 points in 26 minutes of action, scoring in double figures in both games.
Tucker was one of four Bulldogs in double figures against Presbyterian Dec. 18. It was the third time that Butler had put four players in double figures this season, in addition to the Dec. 8 Northern Illinois game that featured a season-high five Bulldogs with 10 or more points.
BIG IN THE BIG EAST: On the season, Kamar Baldwin is in the BIG EAST Top 10 in points, assists, steals, minutes, and free throw percentage. He is 18th in rebounding. Baldwin has posted four or more assists in nine games. In eight games, he has registered both at least four rebounds and four assists.
Baldwin has 130 career steals, ninth on Butler's all-time list.
FROM DOWNTOWN: In the last-second loss to Indiana as part of the Crossroads Classic, redshirt junior Sean McDermott went 6-of-10 from behind the arc, leading the Bulldogs with 20 points. It was his third game this season with six or more three-pointers. McDermott has registered three 20+ point games on the season and has led the Bulldogs in scoring in five games.
McDermott is fifth in the BIG EAST in three-pointers made per game (2.9).
POINT-BRUNK RANGE: On the season, Joey Brunk's .735 (36-49) field goal percentage leads the BIG EAST. Five of Brunk's six career double-digit scoring performances have come this season. Brunk has posted 7-of-7 (vs. Miami Nov. 10) and 6-of-6 (vs. Northern Illinois Dec. 8) performances already in 2018-19.
Brunk matched his career-high with eight rebounds, while adding a career-best four assists in the win over Presbyterian Dec. 18.
HOT DAY AT HINKLE: Butler scored a season-high 95 points in a Dec. 8 home win over Northern Illinois. The Bulldogs registered season-bests with 17 three-pointers and 27 assists on the team's 34 field goals.
Butler hit 16 three-pointers against Middle Tennessee Nov. 22, which also set a Battle 4 Atlantis single-game record (previously held by UMass in a 2011 game against Utah).
