Butler, winners of six straight, begins a five-game stretch that includes four Top 25 opponents when the Bulldogs travel to No. 17/18 Houston Saturday. The game is part of the BIG EAST-Big 12 Battle that matches up teams from both conferences. Butler is 3-1 in previous Battle games, which includes home wins over Texas Tech (2023) and Kansas State (2022), a 2021 road win at Oklahoma, and a road loss at Baylor in 2019.
 
THE SPECIFICS:
Butler (7-1) at #17/18 Houston (4-3)
Saturday, Dec. 7 • 5:30PM ET / 4:30PM CT
Fertitta Center • Houston, Texas
 
FOLLOW ALONG:
TV: ESPN2 • Roxy Bernstein & Sean Farnham
Audio: Varsity Network App, SiriusXM 385, XM App 975 & TuneIn • @MarkMinner & Nick Gardner (@n_gardner)
 
TEXT TO SCROLL THROUGH AT YOUR LEISURE:
• While Butler is 2-0 away from Hinkle Fieldhouse this season (winning the Arizona Tip-Off), Saturday's game serves as the Bulldogs' first true road contest of the season.
• The Bulldogs last played in Houston in the 2011 Final Four, defeating VCU in the national semifinals before falling to UConn in the championship game.
• Butler's field goal percentage defense is ranked fifth nationally as opponents have hit only 36.1 percent of their attempts from the field.
• Butler has made at least 17 free throws and has shot at least 70 percent from the free throw line in each game so far this season. The Bulldogs went 20-for-25 from the line against Eastern Illinois Tuesday.
• Butler ranks 11th nationally, averaging 19.8 made free throws per game. 
 • The Bulldogs defeated Northwestern and No. 25 Mississippi State in taking the Arizona Tip-Off title over Thanksgiving. Butler is 3-0 against power conference opponents so far this season (also defeating SMU) with non-conference match-ups with Houston and Wisconsin remaining.
• The Arizona Tip-Off title was Butler's first in-season, multi-team event championship since the 2019 Hall of Fame Classic in Kansas City.
• Jahmyl Telfort earned Tournament MVP honors at the Arizona Tip-Off, averaging 23.5 points per game in the team's two contests. Telfort scored 23 in the win over Northwestern and then followed that with 24 in the championship game win over Mississippi State.
• For his performance in Arizona, Telfort was named the BIG EAST Player of the Week. He is the first Bulldog to receive the weekly honor since Jayden Taylor Feb. 13, 2023.
• Telfort was extremely efficient in Arizona, making 56 percent of his shots, including a 6-for-10 performance from three-point range and making all 11 of his free throw attempts.
• Pierre Brooks II joined Telfort on the All-Tournament Team after registering 22 points and nine rebounds in the win over Mississippi State.
• As part of shooting 53 percent from the field against Mississippi State, Butler made 12 of 22 attempts from three-point range (54.5 percent). Butler ranks eighth nationally, making 41.8 percent of their long-range attempts.
• Telfort and Patrick McCaffery led the Bulldogs with 20 points apiece in Tuesday's win over Eastern Illinois; it marks the second consecutive game that Butler had two players each score 20 or more. (Telfort has scored 20 or more in three straight games and four times this season.)
• McCaffery went 5-for-8 from three-point range against Eastern Illinois, his second game this season connecting on five three-pointers. He is 17th nationally, making 50 percent of his three-point attempts.
• Telfort, Brooks and McCaffery rank 1-3 in the BIG EAST in minutes played per game.
• Telfort's scoring average of 17.9 points per game is fourth in the BIG EAST.
• Andre Screen is sixth in the BIG EAST at 7.1 rebounds per game; he has five straight games with at least eight rebounds.
 
Houston...They are a Problem
• Over the last four seasons, Houston has posted a record of 125-19, advancing to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament each year, including one Final Four appearance.
• Houston is currently ranked No. 17 and No. 18, respectively, in the national polls. The Cougars were ranked No. 4 in both preseason polls.
• Houston is 4-3 on the season and enters the contest with Butler on a week of rest following the Players Era event in Las Vegas. Two of Houston's three losses came in that event: to Alabama and San Diego State. Houston's other loss this season came against Auburn.
• Houston's trademark defense is allowing opponents an average of only 59.3 points per game. L.J. Cryer and Emanuel Sharp lead the team in scoring, with each just over 14 points per game.
 
One Time with the Cougars
• Butler's only previous match-up with Houston came in the 2021 Maui Invitational, which was moved to Las Vegas due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
 
Series:  Houston Leads, 1-0
Streak: Houston, W1
In Houston: First Meeting
First Meeting: Nov. 22, 2021; UH, 70-52, Maui Invitational played in Las Vegas
 
The Line of Demarcation
• The three-point line has been telling for Butler and its opponents this season.
• On the season, Butler is shooting 41.8 percent from behind the arc, which is eighth nationally.
• Conversely, Butler is holding opponents to just a 26.5-percent mark from three-point range, a defensive effort that is 16th nationally.
• Butler makes 8.9 three-pointers per game, while the opposition is averaging only 5.5 makes per game.
• That differential from three-point range  matches up almost identically to Butler's +12.8 points per game scoring margin so far this season.
 
Value The Ball
• While Butler is making it tough on opponents to make shots, those opponents are getting a shot almost every time down the floor as Butler is forcing only 8.1 turnovers per game; that is 352nd nationally.
• Butler's average of 14.3 turnovers per game ranks 352nd nationally and is last in the BIG EAST.
• Butler's season turnover margin of -6.1 is 354th nationally. Butler has committed more turnovers than its opponent in each game this season.