GAME 10:  #18/19 Butler (9-0) at #11/11 Baylor (7-1)  --  BIG EAST-Big 12 Battle

The Bulldogs return to the road Tuesday night, traveling to Baylor for a match-up of Top 20 teams. Butler, one of eight remaining undefeated teams nationally, is 9-0. Baylor is 7-1 with wins over Villanova and Arizona already this season. The game is part of the inaugural BIG EAST-Big 12 Battle.
 
DETAILS:
Tuesday, Dec. 10;  8PM CT
Ferrell Center; Waco, Texas
TV:  ESPN2 - Rich Hollenberg (@RichOnSports) & @Chris_Spatola
RADIO:  93.5/107.5/1070 - @MarkMinner & Nick Gardner (@n_gardner)
TuneIn Radio App, XM 380, SiriusXM Internet 970
@ButlerMBB  |  ButlerSports.com
 
THE SERIES: The teams have never met.
 
Butler is 13-5 all-time against current members of the Big 12 Conference. Baylor head coach Scott Drew is a 1993 graduate of Butler.

Notes (PDF)
 
• In pursuit of the 1972 Dolphins, Butler is one of eight undefeated teams remaining nationally.
• Butler owns the nation's longest streak of consecutive non-conference home wins at 56.
• Butler is off to its first 9-0 start since 2006-07.
• Five of Butler's nine wins this season have come against power conference opponents. With Baylor and Purdue remaining, seven of Butler's 13 non-conference games will be against power conference foes.
• Butler is ninth nationally, only allowing opponents an average of 56.2 points per game.
• Butler is committing only 9.9 turnovers per game, which is second nationally.
• The Bulldogs are shooting 49.6 percent from the field, which leads the BIG EAST and is 18th nationally.
• Butler's nine three-pointers vs. Florida Saturday tied the Bulldogs' season-high.
• Florida scored 62 points Saturday, becoming only Butler's third opponent to crack 60 points.
• Kamar Baldwin is two points shy and Aaron Thompson is one assist shy of moving into 10th place on those respective Butler career lists.
• Thompson had a season-high 16 points (two shy of his career-high) in Saturday's win over Florida.
• Baldwin scored 31 points in Tuesday's win at Ole Miss, just missing his career-high by one point. He scored his 31 points on only 16 shots.
• Butler's opponents have hit only 26.5 percent from behind the arc, the 11th-best defensive effort in the nation.
• With his 64.8 field goal percentage, Bryce Nze leads the BIG EAST and is 17th nationally.
• Butler has been out-rebounded only once this season.
• Butler's 1.52 assist/turnover ratio is eighth nationally; individually, Thompson's 3.06 A/TO ratio is 19th in the NCAA.
 
TOUGH SLATE: Butler is in the midst of playing five consecutive power conference opponents, and only Saturday's win against Florida came on the Bulldogs' home court. The Bulldogs' 9-0 start includes five wins over power conference opponents. Baylor (Tuesday) and Purdue (Dec. 21 as part of the Crossroads Classic) remain among Butler's final four non-conference games of the season.
 
Butler, along with Florida and Baylor, each won in-season tournament titles. The Bulldogs won the Hall of Fame Classic in Kansas City, while Florida won the Charleston Classic (defeating the BIG EAST's Xavier in the championship game) and Baylor won Myrtle Beach Invitational (defeating the BIG EAST's Villanova in the championship game).
 
DAWG-GONE DEFENSE: Butler has limited opponents to an average of only 56.2 points per game. That mark is ninth nationally. Only three of Butler's opponents have eclipsed 60 points. The Bulldogs have been particularly good guarding the three-point line, as opponents have hit only 26.5 percent of their attempts from behind the arc. That defensive effort is 11th nationally.
 
HANDLE WITH CARE: Butler is committing only 9.9 turnovers per game, which is the second-best mark nationally. The Bulldogs' 1.52 assist/turnover ratio is eighth in the NCAA. That has helped Butler shoot 49.6 percent from the field so far this season, a number that leads the BIG EAST and is 18th nationally.
 
Butler opened the season with five consecutive single-digit turnover games, including a season-low six in the Nov. 9 win over New Orleans.
 
REBELLING AGAINST OLE MISS: Kamar Baldwin scored a season-high 31 points on 11-of-16 shooting, leading Butler to a road win over Ole Miss Dec. 3. The senior matched a career-high with four three-pointers, and the 31 points were one shy of his season-high.
 
CLASSIC PERFORMANCE...HALL OF FAME PERFORMANCE: Kamar Baldwin earned MVP honors at the 2019 Hall of Fame Classic in Kansas City, leading the Bulldogs to the title with 22 points in the championship game win over Stanford Nov. 26. Seventeen of those points came in the final 8:34 of the contest, including the game-winner with five seconds remaining.
 
In ONLY the second halves of back-to-back games against Ole Miss and Stanford, Baldwin scored a combined 36 points on 15-of-22 shooting.
 
The Hall of Fame Classic is Butler's seventh in-season tournament championship since 2001.