Butler (9-10, 2-6 BIG EAST) vs. Creighton (12-5, 4-2 BIG EAST)
Wednesday, Jan. 26;  6:30PM 
Hinkle Fieldhouse; Indianapolis, Ind.
TV:  FS1 - Aaron Goldsmith & Donny Marshall
Radio:  1430AM - @MarkMinner & Nick Gardner (@n_gardner)
Varsity Network Radio App, XM383, SiriusXM App 973
 
The Bulldogs return to Hinkle Fieldhouse for a two-game homestand that begins Wednesday night with a match-up against Creighton.
 
THE SERIES: Creighton owns a 14-10 advantage in the all-time series that dates back to 1933. The Bulldogs are 8-3 against the Bluejays in games played at Hinkle Fieldhouse, including a 6-2 mark since Butler and Creighton both joined the BIG EAST prior to the 2013-14 season. Prior to becoming conference foes, the two teams had not met since 1975.
 
Full Notes (PDF)
 
Creighton Leads, 14-10
Streak: Creighton, W2
At Hinkle Fieldhouse: Butler Leads, 8-3
LaVall Jordan (at BU) vs. Creighton: 4-5
First Meeting: Creighton, 27-22; 1/30/33 (at CU)
Last Meeting: Creighton, 87-56; 3/10/21 (in NYC)
 
• Chuck Harris's career-high of 29 points came against Creighton March 6, 2021 in Omaha.
• The 17 points by Bo Hodges Sunday at Providence were the most he has scored in a Butler uniform.
• Harris and Hodges were inserted into the starting line-up for Sunday's game at Providence; for Hodges, who missed the first 14 games of the season (knee), it was his first start of the 2021-22 season.
• Butler is coming off stretches that included four of five games on the road and Top 25 opponents in six of seven games.
• According to KenPom, Butler has played the fourth-toughest schedule in the nation so far this season; eight of Butler's 10 losses have come to teams currently ranked among the Top 30 in the NCAA NET metric.
• Bryce Nze has led the Bulldogs in rebounding in 10 of the 12 games he has played this season.
• Harris led the Bulldogs with 21 points vs. Providence, his third 20-point game of the season which includes 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 Jan. 18 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 Jan. 18 at UConn.
• Bryce Golden is shooting 56.3 percent from the field this season, which is second in the BIG EAST.
• Sunday's game vs. Providence was Aaron Thompson's seventh time this season (in his 16 games) with five or more assists.
• Thompson is the second Bulldog to register 500 career assists (516).
• Thompson's 20 points vs. Xavier Jan. 7 were one shy of his career-high.
 
ONE SEASON AGO: Butler and Creighton met three times during the 2020-21 season as each team won on their home court and the Bluejays took a victory at Madison Square Garden in the BIG EAST Tournament quarterfinals.
 
At Hinkle on Jan. 16, 2021, the Bulldogs pulled out a 70-66 overtime win. The Bluejays were ranked No. 8 nationally. Aaron Thompson led the Bulldogs with 17 points.
 
Creighton picked up a 93-73 win over Butler in Omaha on March 6 and an 87-56 victory at the BIG EAST Tournament March 11. 
 
LAST TIME OUT: No. 21 Providence came away with a 69-62 win over Butler Sunday afternoon at the Dunkin' Donuts Center. Nate Watson led the Friars with 18 points, including a personal 9-4 run that turned a 58-56 Providence advantage into a 67-60 lead with 1:07 to play. Providence shot 51 percent for the game and went 10-of-14 from the free throw line. The Bulldogs shot 47 percent from the field, but only 5-of-20 from behind the three-point line and only attempted four free throws on the afternoon.
 
Chuck Harris led the Bulldogs with 21 points; Bo Hodges added 17 points and eight rebounds. His 17 points were a personal-best for him in a Butler uniform. Both players were inserted into the starting line-up for Sunday's game.
 
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 10 teams in this week's AP poll (No. 6 Purdue -- Crossroads Classic, No. 10 Michigan State -- Gavitt Games, and No. 7 Houston -- Maui Invitational in Las Vegas).
 
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.
 
HOME SWEET HINKLE: Butler is 54-18 at Hinkle Fieldhouse in LaVall Jordan's five seasons as head coach of the Bulldogs.