The Bulldogs will take I-74 East to Cincinnati for a Tuesday night tip with Xavier.
 
Butler (11-6, 2-4 BIG EAST) at Xavier (8-8, 2-3)
Tuesday, Jan. 16;  6:30PM
Cintas Center; Cincinnati, Ohio
 
TV: FS1 - Jeff Levering & LaPhonso Ellis
Radio: WXNT 1430AM, Varsity Network Radio App, SiriusXM 380, SXM App 970 - @MarkMinner & Nick Gardner (@n_gardner)
 
The Series with the Musketeers
• The first meeting between Butler and Xavier came in 1937.
• The two programs have been rivals in three different conferences: the Midwestern Collegiate Conference, the Atlantic 10 for a single season in 2012-13, and in the BIG EAST since the 2013-14 campaign when both programs, along with Creighton, joined the league.
• Xavier's 46-26 series lead is largely due to a 26-5 advantage in games played in Cincinnati.
• The teams split the season series in 2022-23 with each team winning on its home court.
 
Series: Xavier Leads, 46-26
Streak: Xavier, W1
At XU: Xavier Leads, 26-5
First Meeting: XU, 28-26, 1/16/1937 (at XU)
Last Meeting: XU, 78-66, 3/4/23 (at XU)
 
Of Note
• Butler coach Thad Matta spent three seasons leading the Xavier program. From 2001-04, Matta posted a 78-23 mark and made three NCAA Tournament appearances.
• Butler is coming off a 78-72 loss to Seton Hall Saturday as the Pirates scored the final eight points of the game.
• Posh Alexander led the Bulldogs with 17 points against Seton Hall.
• Alexander is tied for the BIG EAST lead at 2.12 steals per game. His 5.2 assists per game are fifth in the league.
• Butler went 15-for-16 from the free throw line Saturday against Seton Hall, for a season-best .938 mark.
• On the season, Butler ranks fifth nationally in free throw shooting at 79.1 percent. Butler has shot 70 percent or better from the line in all but one game this season.
• DJ Davis and Pierre Brooks II have combined to go a perfect 30-for-30 from the free throw line in BIG EAST games.
• Davis ranks second nationally in free throw percentage (96.1). He has two separate games going 10-for-10 from the charity stripe and has hit 49 of his 51 attempts on the season.
• The Bulldogs committed only eight turnovers against Seton Hall. Butler has committed 10 or fewer turnovers in eight games this season, including a season-low five against Providence Dec. 23. Butler is 8-2 when committing fewer turnovers than its opponent.
• Seton Hall had 13 blocks Saturday against Butler, the most ever by a Bulldog BIG EAST opponent.
• Brooks' 16.1 points per game scoring average is eighth in the BIG EAST; he has scored in double figures in every game this season.
• In BIG EAST games, Jalen Thomas ranks sixth in field goal percentage (57.1), ninth in blocks (1.0), and tenth in rebounding (7.2).
• Butler defeated No. 11/12 Marquette, 69-62, Wednesday night on the road.
• The win was Butler's first "true road win" over a ranked team since beating No. 2 Villanova Feb. 22, 2017.
• Butler's win snapped Marquette's 19-game home winning streak and ended the Golden Eagles' 20 consecutive home BIG EAST wins.
• The Bulldogs' defense limited Marquette to 33-percent shooting, including a 5-for-31 mark from three-point range.
• Thomas posted his second double-double of the season with 10 points and a career-high 14 rebounds against Marquette.
• Landon Moore matched his season-high with 14 points on 4-for-5 shooting.
• Brooks is averaging 2.6 made three-pointers per game on .411 shooting from behind the arc; those figures are fourth and seventh, respectively, among the BIG EAST leaders.
• Butler has scored at least 80 points in nine games this season; the Bulldogs only hit the 80-point mark six times total a season ago.
• Butler's 80.8 points per game rank among the Top 50 nationally.
• The Bulldogs rank 11th nationally, committing just 13.6 fouls per game.
• Davis, Brooks, Jahmyl Telfort and Alexander all have games scoring 20 or more points this season. Butler has three games with two Bulldogs each eclipsing 20.
• Butler owned a 46-22 advantage in points in the paint over Georgetown in the BIG EAST opener Dec. 19. Butler has outscored its opponent in the paint in 11 games.
• Butler out-rebounded Georgetown, 37-29, in the BIG EAST opener. Butler is 9-0 this season when out-rebounding its opponent.
• Butler shot 52 percent from the field Dec. 9 vs. Cal; the Bulldogs have shot 50 percent or better in six games this season.
 
Home, Sweet Hinkle
• Butler is 8-2 at Hinkle Fieldhouse so far this season.
• Thad Matta is 31-9 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 seven of its 10 home games this season (going over the 90-point mark five times).
• Butler is 77-2 over its last 79 non-conference home games, winning 15 straight.
 
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.