Butler (10-4, 1-2 BIG EAST) vs. #4/4 UConn (12-2, 2-1)
Friday, Jan. 5;  6:30PM
Hinkle Fieldhouse; Indianapolis, Ind.
 
TV: FS1 - Connor Onion & LaPhonso Ellis
Radio: WXNT 1430AM, Varsity Network Radio App, SiriusXM 380, SXM App 970 - @MarkMinner & Nick Gardner (@n_gardner)
 
The Series with UConn
• Six of the seven meetings have come since UConn re-joined the BIG EAST prior to the 2020-21 season.
• The most high-profile meeting was the first match-up between the two programs and came in the 2011 NCAA National Championship Game, which UConn won, 53-41, in Houston.
 
Series: UConn Leads, 7-0
Streak: UConn, W7
At Hinkle: UConn Leads, 3-0
First Meeting: UConn, 53-41, 4/4/11 (NCAA National Championship Game)
Last Meeting: UConn, 86-56, 1/22/23 (at UConn)
 
Of Note
• After playing their final game of 2023 and their first game of 2024 both on the road, the Bulldogs return to Hinkle Fieldhouse Friday night to host No. 4/4 UConn.
• The Bulldogs have not played at home since Dec. 19.
• Butler is 8-0 at Hinkle Fieldhouse this season.
• DJ Davis scored a game-high 25 points in Tuesday's loss at St. John's. It marked his second consecutive (and third overall) 20-point scoring output of the season. Pierre Brooks II also had back-to-back 20-point games earlier this season (Nov. 24 vs. Penn State and Nov. 26 vs. Boise State).
• Davis went 10-for-17 from the field and his 10 makes were a career-high; his five three-pointers were a season-best and one shy of his career-high.
• In his return to Carnesecca Arena, Posh Alexander had 11 points, six rebounds and five assists.
• Alexander is among the BIG EAST leaders in steals per game (second at 2.0 per game) and assists per game (fifth at 5.1 per game).
• Brooks pulled down a team-high seven rebounds, matching his career-high. He has registered seven rebounds in three of the team's most recent five games. Brooks added a career-best three blocks at St. John's Tuesday.
• Brooks added 11 points and is the only Bulldog to score in double figures in every game this season.
• Brooks' 16.4 points per game scoring average is sixth in the BIG EAST.
• Davis (22) and Brooks (20) both eclipsed 20 points in the team's Dec. 23 game at Providence; it marked the third game this season when two Bulldogs scored 20 or more.
• Davis, Brooks, Jahmyl Telfort and Alexander all have games scoring 20 or more points this season.
• St. John's was just the third Butler opponent to shoot 50 percent or better from the field this season.
• The Bulldogs rank third nationally, committing just 12.9 fouls per game.
• Butler has committed 10 or fewer turnovers in seven games this season, including a season-low five against Providence Dec. 23. Butler is 8-1 when committing fewer turnovers than its opponent.
• 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 this season.
• Butler out-rebounded Georgetown, 37-29, in the BIG EAST opener. Butler is 9-0 this season when out-rebounding its opponent.
• Butler has scored at least 80 points in eight of its 14 games to start the season; the Bulldogs only hit the 80-point mark six times total a season ago.
• Butler's 82.2 points per game rank among the Top 50 nationally.
• For the season, the Bulldogs are shooting 77.2 percent from the line, which is 20th nationally. Butler has shot 70 percent or better from the line in all but one game this season.
• Davis ranks sixth nationally in free throw percentage (95.6). He has two separate games going 10-for-10 from the charity stripe and has hit 43 of his 45 attempts on the season.
• Landon Moore scored 14 points Dec. 23 at Providence, his highest scoring output in a Butler uniform.
• 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 trailed 37-34 at halftime Dec. 9 vs. Cal, giving the team its first win of the season when trailing at intermission (1-4).
 
Home, Sweet Hinkle
• Butler is 8-0 at Hinkle Fieldhouse so far this season.
• Thad Matta is 31-7 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 eight 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.