GAME 2:  Butler (1-0, 0-0 BIG EAST) at #7/6 Villanova (5-1, 1-0 BIG EAST)
Wednesday, Dec. 16;  7PM
Finneran Pavilion;  Villanova, Pa.
TV:  FS1 - @Joe_Davis & @JimJackson419
Radio:  107.5FM/93.5FM/1070AM - @MarkMinner & Nick Gardner (@n_gardner)
TuneIn Radio App, XM 381, SiriusXM Internet 971
@ButlerMBB  |  #ButlerWay  |  ButlerSports.com

PDF Notes

The Bulldogs return to action Wednesday night, traveling to Philadelphia for a tip against No. 7 Villanova. For Butler, the match-up serves as their first game in 21 days after the program paused due to COVID-19 protocols. 

While Butler has had several gaps in its schedule of 10+ days over the years (largely between the conference tournament and NCAA Tournament while a member of the Horizon League), the 21-day in-season break looks to be the longest gap between games in Butler program history.

THE SERIES: Villanova Leads, 12-4
Streak: Butler, W1
In Pennsylvania: Villanova Leads, 6-1
LaVall Jordan (at BU) vs. Villanova: 2-5
First Meeting: Villanova, 62-54; 11/30/96 (Puerto Rico Shootout)
Last Meeting: Butler, 79-76, 2/5/20 (Hinkle)

Butler and Villanova first met in the 1996 Puerto Rico Shootout. The teams now meet at least twice a year as conference foes. The teams split a pair of match-ups during the 2019-20 season with each winning on its home floor. Butler's 79-76 win at Hinkle featured a three-pointer by Kamar Baldwin as time expired. 

While Villanova holds a 12-4 overall lead in the series, all four of Butler's wins have come in the last nine meetings. 

• Aaron Thompson scored a career-high 21 points to lead Butler to a season-opening win over Western Michigan.
• The Bulldogs had a 16-2 advantage in points off turnovers over WMU.
• Butler committed only six turnovers in the game. 
• The Bulldogs got to the free throw line 24 times vs. WMU (compared to only 10 times for the Broncos); last season, Butler was 11-1 when getting to the line more than its opponent.
• Butler has now won 59 consecutive home games against non-conference opponents, the longest active streak in the nation.
• The Bulldogs have now won their home opener in 22 consecutive seasons. That dates back to 1998 when Southwest Missouri State (now referred to as Missouri State) won a 72-57 decision at Hinkle Fieldhouse.
• Butler has won 20 or more games in 20 of the past 24 seasons.
• Aaron Thompson was second in the BIG EAST in assist/turnover ratio (2.5) and fourth in assists per game (4.7) a season ago. 
• Thompson has 390 career assists, which is already seventh in Butler history.
• Thompson was named one of 10 semifinalists for the 2019-20 Naismith Men's Defensive Player of the Year Award.
• At 6.6 rebounds per game a season ago, Bryce Nze is the BIG EAST's second-leading returning rebounder.
• Nze earned preseason All-BIG EAST second team recognition by the league's head coaches
• Nze led the BIG EAST in field goal percentage (.629) in 2019-20.
• The Bulldogs finished the 2019-20 season ranked 21st (coaches) and 23rd (AP) in the national polls; Butler was ranked No. 5 in both national polls Jan. 13, the highest in-season ranking in program history.
• Butler's 10 NET Quad 1 wins were tied for third nationally in 2019-20. 
• Butler led the BIG EAST and was 11th nationally, allowing only 62.1 points per game during the 2019-20 season.

1-0: The Bulldogs did post a 66-62 win over Western Michigan on the first evening of the 2020-21 season (Nov. 25). In a game that featured 13 ties and nine lead changes, Butler utilized a career night from senior Aaron Thompson. The point guard had a career-best 21 points, going 6-of-9 from the field and 8-of-11 from the free throw stripe.

Thompson's average of 21.0 points per game currently leads the BIG EAST; he entered his senior season averaging 5.8 points per game in 95 contests.  

HANDLE WITH CARE: Butler turned the ball over only six times against Western Michigan, continuing a strong trend from last season. Butler had 14 games last season with 10 or fewer turnovers. The Bulldogs committed a 2019-20 season-low five turnovers at Villanova Jan. 21. 

While the sample size for the Bulldogs is only one game, Butler's average of only 6.0 turnovers per game leads the nation.

HIS DEBUT WAS 'BOLDEN': Graduate transfer Jair Bolden posted 15 points for the Bulldogs against Western Michigan, the most points for a Butler newcomer in their debut since Tyler Lewis had 17 points as part of Butler's 144-71 win over The Citadel on Nov. 14, 2015. 

Bolden had nine rebounds to lead the Bulldogs, setting a new career-high on the boards in his 98th career game. 

100: The win over Western Michigan was LaVall Jordan's 100th game as head coach at his alma mater. Jordan is 60-40 in those games as the head coach at Butler. The game was also the 100th of Bryce Nze's career. The first 35 games of Nze's career came at Milwaukee, playing under Jordan in his only season coaching the Panthers. After also playing at Milwaukee as a sophomore, Nze then transferred to Butler. 

PRESEASON LOVE: The league's head coaches selected Bryce Nze to the 2020-21 Preseason All-BIG EAST Second Team. Nze is the Bulldogs' leading returning scorer (9.2 points per game). He shot 62.9 percent from the field, which is the fourth-best single-season mark in Butler history and also led the BIG EAST a season ago. Nze's 6.6 rebounds per game were sixth in the BIG EAST last season, while also leading the Bulldogs.

PRESEASON NON-LOVE: Butler was picked to finish eighth in the BIG EAST Preseason Coaches' Poll by the conference's head coaches. With Connecticut returning to the BIG EAST, there are now 11 teams in the conference. The Bulldogs were also predicted eighth a season ago before finishing the season fifth in the league standings. In fact, Butler has "bettered" its preseason pick by multiple positions in the league standings in four of the last six seasons.

NEXT DAWGS UP: Butler will look to replace 62.9 percent of its scoring from a season ago, which includes All-BIG EAST performer Kamar Baldwin (fourth in Butler career scoring) and Sean McDermott (who recently signed a two-way contract with the Memphis Grizzlies). The Bulldogs only return 21 of their made 212 three-pointers from a season ago. 

SPEAKING OF NEW DAWGS: Much of that production will come from a group of newcomers, including the highest-ranked recruiting class in program history. Graduate transfer Jair Bolden arrives from South Carolina, where he averaged 8.5 points per game last season while hitting 41.2 percent of his three-point attempts. 

ON THE BOARDS: What was one of Butler's most glaring weaknesses in 2018-19 became a strength in 2019-20. The Bulldogs out-rebounded 23 of its 31 opponents after out-rebounding only 10 of 33 in 2018-19. Butler held a 46-24 rebounding advantage at St. John's in the BIG EAST opener on New Year's Eve, its largest margin since 63-28 vs. The Citadel Nov. 14, 2015. The Bulldogs also out-rebounded Providence, 44-26, in the Jan. 10 win in Rhode Island. 

Last season, the Bulldogs finished second among BIG EAST schools in rebounding margin in all games (+4.3) and in conference games (+3.6). 

AN IMPORTANT LINE: Butler was 11-1 last season when attempting more free throws than its opponent; the Bulldogs were 7-7 when the opponent got to the line more than Butler. (Butler and its opponent attempted the same number of free throws five times.)

THE NEXT GROUP: The Butler men's basketball Class of 2021 has a distinct local Indiana feel. Coach LaVall Jordan has announced the signing of three standouts from the greater Indianapolis area to national letters of intent.

Joining the Bulldogs beginning with the 2021-22 season will be Jayden Taylor (6-4 guard; Indianapolis, Ind./Perry Meridian), Pierce Thomas (6-6 guard/forward; Brownsburg, Ind./Brownsburg) and Dionte "D.J." Hughes (6-8 forward; Indianapolis, Ind./Lawrence North). Each is ranked among the Top 10 recruits in the state and Top 50 nationally at their position by ESPN.

ON THE MEND: Senior forward Christian David continues to rehab from a torn ACL suffered Jan. 21 at Villanova. He is participating in non-contact portions of practice currently in hopes of returning to action later this season. Walk-on guard Campbell Donovan is also rehabbing a torn ACL in hopes of playing this season. Freshman Scooby Johnson suffered a torn ACL in August. He will miss the season.