Butler (9-9, 2-5 BIG EAST) at #21/21 Providence (15-2, 5-1 BIG EAST)
Sunday, Jan. 23;  12PM 
Dunkin' Donuts Center; Providence, R.I.
TV:  FS1 - @John_Fanta & Vin Parise
Radio:  1430AM - @MarkMinner & Nick Gardner (@n_gardner)
Varsity Network Radio App, XM381, SiriusXM App 971
 
The Bulldogs return to the East coast for a Sunday tip at Providence. Butler was recently out East for a three-game, six-day road trip that concluded Tuesday.
 
Full Notes (PDF)
 
THE SERIES: Providence holds a 13-5 advantage in the all-time series with Butler,  which includes a 6-2 advantage for the Friars in games played in Rhode Island. Providence and Seton Hall are the only two BIG EAST opponents whose series history with Butler didn't begin until the Bulldogs joined the BIG EAST prior to the 2013-14 season.
 
Providence Leads, 13-5
Streak: Providence, W1
At Providence: Providence Leads, 6-2
LaVall Jordan (at BU) vs. PC: 3-6
First Meeting: PC, 65-56; 1/21/14 (at PC)
Last Meeting: PC, 71-55, 12/30/20 (at PC)
 
ONE SEASON AGO: Similar to Butler's recent back-to-back contests against UConn, the Bulldogs did the same against Providence during the 2020-21 campaign. The teams played Dec. 23, 2020 and Dec. 30, 2020 in back-to-back match-ups for the Bulldogs (PC played DePaul on Dec. 27).
 
In the Dec. 23 game at Hinkle Fieldhouse, Butler came away with a 70-64 victory. Five Bulldogs scored in double figures, but it was Myles Tate who led the way with eight points, eight rebounds and seven assists.
 
In the Dec. 30 game in Providence, the Friars rebounded for a 71-55 win. David Duke and Nate Watson combined to go 18-for-23 from the field for 40 points. Jair Bolden led the Bulldogs with 15.
 
• Sunday's tip will mark Butler's fifth game over an 11-day span.
• Sunday's tip at Providence will also conclude stretches that will see Butler play four of five games on the road, and face Top 25 opponents in six of seven games.
• According to KenPom, Butler has played the fifth-toughest schedule in the nation so far this season; eight of Butler's nine losses have come to teams currently ranked among the Top 30 in the NCAA NET metric.
• Butler's Jair Bolden and Providence's Justin Minaya were teammates at South Carolina during the 2019-20 season. They were fifth and sixth, respectively, on the team in scoring that season.
• Bryce Nze has led the Bulldogs in rebounding in 10 of the 11 games he has played this season.
• Chuck Harris led the Bulldogs with 16 points vs. UConn Thursday, his highest output since scoring a season-best 26 points in the Dec. 7 win at Oklahoma.
• Butler is 6-0 this season when winning the rebounding battle.
• Freshman Jayden Taylor led the Bulldogs with 19 points in Tuesday's loss at UConn, the second-best scoring output of his career.
• Taylor is third among true freshmen in the BIG EAST in scoring.
• Freshman Simas Lukosius scored a career-high 17 points in Tuesday's game with UConn.
• Bo Hodges, who missed the first 14 games of the season due to a knee injury, played a season-best 22 minutes vs. UConn Thursday.
• Jair Bolden's 23 points Jan. 13 at Georgetown were a new high for him in a Butler uniform.
• Bryce Golden is shooting 57.3 percent from the field this season, which is second in the BIG EAST.
• Thursday's game vs. UConn was Aaron Thompson's sixth time this season (in his 15 games) with five or more assists.
• Thompson is the second Bulldog to register 500 career assists (510).
• Thompson's 20 points vs. Xavier Jan. 7 were one shy of his career-high.
 
BACK TO BACK: In an odd scheduling quirk due to a game being rescheduled from New Year's Day due to COVID issues at the time, No. 25 Connecticut picked up a pair of victories over Butler in a 48-hour span. The Huskies won 76-59 in Hartford Tuesday and 75-56 Thursday at Hinkle Fieldhouse.
 
Butler freshmen Jayden Taylor (19) and Simas Lukosius (with a career-high 17) combined for 36 of Butler's 59 points in Tuesday's game. Thursday's match-up featured a five-point margin with four minutes to play. Chuck Harris led the Bulldogs with 16 points. 
 
TOUGH SLATE: In addition to a true round-robin format that has Butler playing all 10 BIG EAST foes both on the road and at home, the Bulldogs challenged themselves significantly with this season's non-conference schedule.
 
Butler's non-conference opponents include three of the top 14 teams in this week's AP poll (No. 4 Purdue -- Crossroads Classic, No. 14 Michigan State -- Gavitt Games, and No. 10 Houston -- Maui Invitational in Las Vegas). Oklahoma, Butler's BIG EAST-Big 12 Battle opponent, is receiving votes in the poll. Texas A&M, another Maui Invitational opponent, is 15-3.
 
WEEKLY HONOR: Simas Lukosius was selected as the BIG EAST Freshman of the Week as announced Jan. 3. This is the first weekly honor of Lukosius's career. Lukosius led the Bulldogs to a 63-59 win over DePaul Dec. 29 in the team's only action of the week. The 6-6 guard scored a team-best (and career-high) 15 points. He hit two free throws with four seconds remaining to ice the game after scoring 13 points in the first half. He added four rebounds.
 
Both Jayden Taylor and Simas Lukosius got the start in the regular season opener against IUPUI Nov. 9. Freshmen starting in their first Butler game is a rarity. Multiple freshmen starting their first collegiate game at Butler was last done in 2008 (Gordon Hayward, Shelvin Mack, Ron Nored). The only other freshman to start his first Butler game between 2008 and 2021 was Myles Tate in 2020.
 
QUITE THE BATTLE: As part of the annual BIG EAST-Big 12 Battle, the Bulldogs picked up a 66-62 overtime road win Dec. 7 at Oklahoma. Chuck Harris led the Bulldogs with 26 points. Butler trailed by 10 points at the half and by 13 early in the second half before clawing all the way back. After Oklahoma forced overtime with a three-pointer with two seconds remaining in regulation, the Sooners took a 62-58 lead in overtime before Butler scored the game's final eight points.