Butler (9-2) vs. Georgetown (7-4)
Tuesday, Dec. 19;  6:30PM
Hinkle Fieldhouse; Indianapolis, Ind.
 
TV: FS1 - Jeff Levering & LaPhonso Ellis
Radio: WXNT 1430AM, Varsity Network Radio App, SiriusXM 384, SXM App 974 - @MarkMinner & Nick Gardner (@n_gardner)
 
The Series with the Hoyas
• Both Butler and Georgetown own 7-3 advantages on the other's home court as part of their all-time series.
• The teams first met in the 2009 Jimmy V Classic in New York City before becoming BIG EAST foes beginning with the 2013-14 season.
• The teams split their two match-ups during the 2022-23 season with each winning on the road.
• Only a total of four players on the 2023-24 rosters saw action in either of the two games last season: Butler's Jalen Thomas and Connor Turnbull, and Georgetown's Jay Heath and Wayne Bristol, Jr.
 
Series: Tied, 11-11
Streak: Georgetown, W1
At Hinkle: Georgetown Leads, 7-3
First Meeting: Georgetown, 72-65, 12/8/09 (Jimmy V; NYC)
Last Meeting: Georgetown, 68-62, 2/19/23 (at Butler)
 
• Tuesday's game serves as the BIG EAST opener for both teams and is the first conference tip of the season as the opening BIG EAST slate includes a second game later Tuesday night and three games Wednesday.
• Butler carries a six-game winning streak into Tuesday's game.
• The Bulldogs are 7-0 at home this season, averaging 90.6 points per game on 49.7-percent shooting. Butler has outscored its seven opponents by an average of 23.1 points per game.
• Butler's nine non-conference wins heading into BIG EAST play are the most since the 2019-20 season.
• Butler's 84.7 points per game rank 26th nationally.
• Butler has scored at least 80 points in eight of its 11 games to start the season; the Bulldogs only hit the 80-point mark six times total a season ago.
• The Bulldogs hit a season-high 15 three-pointers Friday night against Saginaw Valley, going 15-for-32 from behind the arc. Eight different Bulldogs hit at least one.
• Butler scored a season-high 50 bench points against Saginaw (holding a 50-12 advantage). Twelve different Bulldogs scored in the contest.
• With a career-high 17 points Friday against Saginaw, Finley Bizjack became the tenth different Bulldog to hit double figures in a game this season. Friday night was the sixth game this season with five or more Bulldogs scoring in double figures.
• The Bulldogs had 25 assists on 35 made field goals in the win over Saginaw.
• Butler shot 52 percent from the field Dec. 9 vs. Cal; the Bulldogs have shot 50 percent or better in six games this season.
• The Bulldogs rank second nationally, committing just 12.6 fouls per game.
• Butler's 78.5-percent free throw percentage is tenth nationally. The Bulldogs have shot 70 percent or better from the free throw line in every game this season.
• Butler has committed 10 or fewer turnovers in five games this season. Butler is 7-0 this season when committing fewer turnovers than its opponent.
• Butler out-rebounded Texas Tech, 40-24, Nov. 30. The +16 differential was the best of the season so far for the Bulldogs. Butler is 8-0 this season when out-rebounding its opponent. 
• The Bulldogs trailed 37-34 at halftime Dec. 9 vs. Cal, giving the team its first win of the season when trailing at intermission (1-2).
• Augusto Cassiá made his Butler debut Friday night after being sidelined by a muscle strain in his leg to begin the season. Cassia had three points and four rebounds in 14 minutes of action.
• Posh Alexander led the Bulldogs in the Dec. 9 win over Cal with a season-high 21 points to go along with six assists.
• Alexander ranks third in steals (1.91 per game) and fifth in assists (5.3 per game) among the BIG EAST leaders.
• Pierre Brooks II scored 15 points in only 20 minutes of action against Saginaw; Brooks has scored in double figures in every game this season.
• DJ Davis ranks tenth nationally in free throw percentage (94.3). He has two separate games going 10-for-10 from the charity stripe and has hit 33 of his 35 attempts on the season.
• Against Buffalo Dec. 5, Jahmyl Telfort matched or set new career-highs in rebounds (nine), assists (eight) and steals (four) to go along with 18 points. His career-high eight assists came one game after setting a then career-high of seven against Texas Tech Nov. 30.
 
Home, Sweet Hinkle
• Thad Matta is 30-7 at Hinkle Fieldhouse as the head coach at Butler (2000-01 and his current stint that began prior to the 2022-23 season).
• Butler has scored at least 80 points in six of its seven home games this season (going over the 90-point mark five times).
 
Balancing Act
• Ten different Bulldogs have scored in double figures in at least one game so far this season.
• Butler's balanced attack has seen at least five players score in double figures in the same game six times this season, including most recently in the Dec. 15 win over Saginaw Valley.
 
Working Overtime
• Butler is 2-0 in overtime games so far this season with a single-overtime win over Texas Tech Nov. 30 and a double-overtime win over Cal Dec. 9.
• In the three overtime sessions totaling 15 minutes, Butler scored 44 points. Over those 15 minutes, the Bulldogs shot 72 percent from the field, 80 percent from three-point range, and 93 percent at the free throw line.
• Butler has nine assists against one turnover in those 15 minutes.
• Butler scored on every possession during the overtime period in the Bulldogs' 103-95 win over Texas Tech Nov. 30. Butler went 4-of-6 from the field, but collected offensive rebounds on both misses and scored. The team went 10-for-10 from the free throw line and did not commit a turnover.
 
Top Team Performances
• Prior to the Nov. 30 win over Texas Tech, the Bulldogs last scored 100 points in a game Dec. 30, 2017 when Butler defeated No. 1 Villanova, 101-93, at Hinkle Fieldhouse.
• The 86 points scored by the Bulldogs in the Nov. 23 loss to No. 19/20 Florida Atlantic were the most by Butler in a loss since a 90-87 loss to No. 21 Seton Hall Jan. 6, 2018.
• The Bulldogs forced ETSU into 19 turnovers and converted those into 36 points Nov. 13.
• No ETSU player reached double figures, the first time that Butler's defense has accomplished that since the Feb. 29, 2020 win over DePaul.
• Butler limited SEMO to 29-percent shooting in the Nov. 10 win; the Bulldogs last held an opponent under 30 percent Jan. 1, 2023 at Georgetown.
• The Bulldogs went to the line 34 times, making 26 against SEMO. That is more makes and attempts than Butler had in any game last season.
• The 60 second-half points by the Bulldogs against Eastern Michigan in the season opener were the most in a half by Butler dating back to a 63-point performance in the second half of a Jan. 16, 2017 game against Marquette.
 
Top Individual Performances
• Jahmyl Telfort (26) and DJ Davis (25) combined for 51 points in Butler's 103-95 overtime win over Texas Tech Nov. 30 as part of the BIG EAST-Big 12 Battle. Telfort and Davis are the first pair of Butler teammates to each score 25 or more in the same game since Chuck Harris (29) and Simas Lukosius (27) in a March 9, 2022 win over Xavier in the BIG EAST Tournament.
• Posh Alexander posted his first career triple-double in the win over Texas Tech Nov. 30, finishing with 10 points, 11 assists, and matching his career-high with 10 rebounds. It's the first triple-double by a Butler player since Roosevelt Jones at St. John's Feb. 6, 2016, and just the third Butler triple-double since 1984.
• Pierre Brooks II scored a career-high 26 points in the Nov. 24 win over Penn State; he followed that with 25 points in the Nov. 26 win over Boise State. Brooks is the first Bulldog with back-to-back 25-point games since Kelan Martin, who accomplished the feat in his final two games at Butler as part of the 2018 NCAA Tournament (27 vs. Arkansas and 29 vs. Purdue).
• Twenty of Brooks's 25 points against Boise State Nov. 26 came in the second half; he is the first Bulldog to score 20 points in a half since Chuck Harris on March 6, 2021.
• Connor Turnbull's six blocks Nov. 13 against ETSU were one shy of the Butler single-game record.