Butler (15-8, 6-6 BIG EAST) vs. Providence (15-8, 6-6)
Saturday, Feb. 10;  2PM
Hinkle Fieldhouse; Indianapolis, Ind.
 
TV: FS1 - Wayne Randazzo & Donny Marshall
Radio: WXNT 1430AM, Varsity Network Radio App, SiriusXM 387, SXM App 977 -- @MarkMinner & Nick Gardner (@n_gardner)
 
The Series with the Friars
• Providence owns a 19-5 advantage in the series against Butler.
• All 24 match-ups, including three as part of the BIG EAST Tournament, have come since Butler joined the BIG EAST prior to the 2013-14 season.
 
First Time Around
• Providence picked up an 85-75 overtime win over Butler Dec. 23 in Rhode Island in what served as the BIG EAST opener for both teams.
• The Friars scored the first 15 points of the game before Butler slowly chipped away, taking their first lead (43-42) with 15:11 remaining in regulation.
• PC's Ticket Gaines hit a three-pointer with two seconds remaining in regulation to tie the game at 69-69 and send the game into overtime.
• Ten of Devin Carter's 24 points came in the overtime period.
• DJ Davis (22) and Pierre Brooks II (20) led the Bulldogs, with 17 of Davis's points coming in the second half.
• Josh Oduro (19 points, 14 rebounds) and Bryce Hopkins (12 points, 13 rebounds) each posted double-doubles for Providence. Hopkins has since been lost for the season due to a knee injury.
• Due to a mechanical issue with the plane that was to transport Butler from Indianapolis to Providence the night before, the Bulldogs stayed in Indianapolis and flew to Providence the morning of the game, going straight from the airport to the arena for the noon tip.
 
Series: PC Leads, 19-5
Streak: PC, W7
At Hinkle: PC Leads, 7-3
First Meeting: PC, 65-56; 1/21/14 (at PC)
Last Meeting: PC, 85-75 (OT); 12/23/23 (at PC)
 
Of  Note
• Saturday's game will celebrate Black History Month in partnership with the Black Fives Foundation.
• Butler is in the midst of a five-game stretch that is expected to include four Top 25 opponents.
• Butler's 71-62 loss at UConn Tuesday night halted the team's four-game BIG EAST winning streak, which was one win shy of a program-best five straight BIG EAST wins (Jan. 21-Feb. 7, 2015).
• Posh Alexander handed out his 500th career assist in Tuesday's game at UConn.
• DJ Davis led Butler with 21 points at UConn Tuesday night.
• Davis has scored 20 or more points in three consecutive games and in six of Butler's 12 BIG EAST contests.
• Davis has made 11 of 22 attempts from three-point range (50 percent) over the last three games.
• Davis made all six of his free throw attempts Tuesday night, raising his season mark to 96.2 percent, which is No. 1 nationally.
• Butler made 14 of 15 free throw attempts at UConn. 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.
• Jahmyl Telfort is averaging 20.5 points per game over the last four games. That includes two of his four 20-point performances this season.
• Andre Screen pulled down nine rebounds Tuesday at UConn, a season-high for the 7-1 transfer.
• Butler was not able to overcome a 4-for-18 performance from three-point range in the loss at UConn; the .222 percentage from behind the arc matched the second-lowest output of the season for the Bulldogs.
• The Bulldogs have eclipsed their overall win total from last season and matched their number of conference wins from 2022-23 despite having a month remaining on the regular schedule.
• With the Bulldogs' Feb. 2 win at No. 13 Creighton and the Jan. 10 win at No. 11/12 Marquette, Butler has two true road wins against Top 15 opponents in the same season for the first time in program history.
• Showcasing the season-long prowess of the Bulldog offense, Butler has allowed 90 points in four games this season...and has won three of those games.
• The Bulldogs made 13 of 22 attempts from three-point range in the 99-98 win at Creighton Feb. 2. The 59.1-percent clip was a season-high and Butler's best three-point percentage since a Feb. 25, 2015 win over Marquette (6-for-10).
• Butler committed only five turnovers at Creighton, matching the team's season-low. Butler has 13 games this season with 10 or fewer turnovers, and the Bulldogs are 11-4 this season when committing fewer turnovers than their opponent.
• The Bulldogs overcame a halftime deficit by scoring 54 second-half points at Creighton. That was the highest-scoring half for Butler in a BIG EAST game since Feb. 6, 2018 vs. Xavier.
• Butler shot 55 percent from the field at Creighton, improving to 7-1 on the season when shooting 50 percent or better. The Bulldogs are now 13-0 on the season when shooting better from the field than their opponent.
• Butler has 12 games this season scoring 80 or more (including seven games of 90 or more).
• Butler is 12-0 this season when out-rebounding its opponent.
• The Bulldogs rank tenth nationally, committing just 13.8 fouls per game.
 
Where the Dawgs Stack Up
• Posh Alexander leads the BIG EAST and is 17th nationally at 2.36 steals per game.
• Alexander is fourth in the conference and 46th nationally with 5.1 assists per game.
• Pierre Brooks II is third in the BIG EAST in both three-point percentage (42.3) and fourth in three-pointers made per game (2.61). His three-point percentage ranks 18th nationally.
• Brooks is eighth in the BIG EAST in scoring at 16.0 points per game.
• Alexander's 52 steals are already tied for 11th on Butler's single-season list.
• Jalen Thomas ranks seventh in the BIG EAST in blocks (1.26) and 15th in rebounding (6.5).
 
The Month of Opportunity
• Butler's February schedule includes eight games, all against teams ranked No. 67 or better in the NCAA NET metric (as of Friday, Feb. 9). Four of those games, including the win at Creighton Feb. 2, are on the road. Life in the BIG EAST...
 
Home, Sweet Hinkle
• Butler is 10-2 at Hinkle Fieldhouse so far this season.
• Thad Matta is 33-9 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 eight of its 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.
 
The BIG EAST Honors The Black Fives
• For a third consecutive season, the BIG EAST Conference will celebrate Black History month by renewing its partnership with the Black Fives Foundation, a nonprofit public charity whose mission is to inspire excellence by preserving, teaching and honoring the pre-NBA history of African Americans in basketball. 
• For 22 games, the BIG EAST Men's and Women's Basketball Teams will be wearing shooting shirts with the Black Fives mantra "Make History Now". Women's basketball coaches will wear "Make History Now" lapel pins and men's basketball coaches will wear lapel pins that recognize the 100 Year Anniversary of the Black Fives Era's most prolific team, the New York Rens.
• Black basketball teams, known as Black Fives, were prevalent from 1904 through 1950 when the game, like society, was racially segregated.  The men and women of the Black Fives Era opened doors for generations of African American basketball players, coaches, and contributors while staging culturally rich, socially meaningful events that strengthened and inspired Black communities, many of which are situated within the footprint of BIG EAST schools.