Butler vs Xavier Big East Tournament Preview

 

          The Big East tournament gets underway at Madison Square Garden in New York City on Wednesday. Two old rivals meet in the first round. Butler and Xavier will match up for the third time this season on Wednesday night in NYC. Butler is the tenth seed in this year's conference tournament while the Musketeers are the number 7 seed in the tournament.  

           The series between Butler and Xavier this season has been controlled by the Musketeers. Xavier won the first two matchups by double digits. Winning at Butler on January 30th by a score of 68-55 and then nearly a month later in Cincinnati on February 21st by a final of 63-51. Xavier has had the advantage over Butler this season on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball. Xavier outplayed the Bulldogs no question. All of that goes out the window on Wednesday night. Winner of this game will advance to the 2nd round of the Big East Tournament and face number 2 seed Creighton on Thursday night. For Butler, a loss means the end of the season. For Xavier, a loss means their NCAA Tournament hopes are in serious jeopardy. 

            Butler is looking to try to find some kind of positive note in what has been a very disappointing season. Away from Hinkle Fieldhouse this year, Butler is 1-10 overall. Not good at all. Another bad issue is the fact that Butler is 1-6 all time in the Big East Tournament and 0-2 all time in the conference tournament vs Xavier. These numbers don't add up very favorably for Butler. The Dawgs are looking to reverse those fortunes and find a way to get some mojo going in the Big East Tournament. Knocking out their arch rival in the opening round would definitely be a bright spot for these young Bulldogs. Butler is hoping to just be as healthy as possible for Wednesday night. Several key players are game time decisions. Seniors Bo Hodges and Bryce Nze are questionable to play. Should they be good to go, Butler has a fighters chance. If they be unable to play, Butler then has a major uphill battle in hopes of a victory. 

           Key for the Bulldogs will be to control the tempo of the game. Play at their pace and look for good shots. Butler plays at one of the slowest paces in college basketball. Watch for the Bulldogs to get Chuck Harris going early. The Freshman guard had been on a tear as of late, averaging 19.5 points per game in his last 6 games including a 29 point game last Saturday vs Creighton. He will need to have another big game on Wednesday evening for Butler to come out with a win. Defensively Butler will need to find a way to force Xavier into double teams in the paint on forwards Zach Fremantle and Jason Carter and make Xavier shoot from the outside, especially if Butler is limited in case that Bryce Nze is unable to play. If Nze is unable to play, Butler's interior defense will be much more vulnerable. Butler will have to implement a zone to try and make Xavier shoot from the outside.  

           Xavier will want to force Butler's hand early. Push the tempo, make the Bulldogs get out and run in the open floor where they are uncomfortable. Speeding up the pace on offense gets Butler out of position on defense and from there Xavier can take advantage with drives to the paint from Fremantle or Carter. If that happens then look out for senior Paul Scruggs on the wing for kick outs and he could do damage from the outside. The Indianapolis native dominated Butler back on January 30th, scoring 24 points. On defense, Xavier will have to force Butler into double teams on the perimeter to get Butler out of their offensive rhythm to create turnovers. If Xavier can get out to an early lead and push the tempo on both sides of the ball, they should be able to win this game. 

          Butler is looking to avenge their two previous losses against Xavier this season. The Musketeers are looking to keep their NCAA Tournament hopes afloat. Round three of Butler and Xavier happens on Wednesday evening at Madison Square Garden. March has finally arrived. Now the fun begins. 

Butler at Creighton Preview

 

    Butler and Creighton finish off their regular season's on Saturday in Omaha at the CHI Health Center Arena. 

    The Dawgs and Blue Jays meet for the second time this season. Back on January 16th, Butler defeated the then 8th ranked Blue Jays 70-66 in overtime at Hinkle Fieldhouse. Butler had an astonishing comeback that afternoon, coming back from a 13 point deficit with less than seven minutes to play to force overtime. The Bulldogs the went on to defeat Creighton in the extra session. Butler was led by Senior Aaron Thompson who had 17 points and 6 assists. Three other Bulldogs scored in double figures including Senior Bryce Nze who had 15 points, Freshman Myles Tate had 15 as well and Freshman Chuck Harris finished with 10 points. Creighton was led by Denzel Mahoney who finished as the game's leading scorer with 29 points. Creighton also had scorers in double figures with Christian Bishop scoring 10 and Damien Jefferson who finished with 12 points. 

    After winning on their senior day last Sunday at Hinkle Fieldhouse, Butler looks to spoil the senior day festivities in Omaha for Creighton. The Dawgs have more momentum now than they have had at any other point during this season. Butler is coming off back to back wins at home and is starting to get more confident as the season draws to a close and looks to be a team that is trying to create some havoc in the upcoming Big East Tournament next week. Butler will try to get it's first three game win streak of the season and in the process attempt to win in a building that they have struggled at mightily since joining the Big East. Creighton has had Butler's number when playing in Omaha. The Blue Jays have won 8 out of 10 overall matchups vs the Bulldogs in their home city. Butler last won in Omaha in 2015. Butler will want to get off that schneid and come away victorious on Saturday. Butler can put themselves in a good spot in the Big East Tournament with a win vs Creighton. Should the Bulldogs leave Omaha with a win, they could be as high as the 7th seed in the tournament next week. A loss could put the Bulldogs as low as the 10th seed. Creighton is already locked into the 2nd seed for the Big East Tournament no matter the outcome vs Butler. The Bulldogs certainly have more stakes at hand than the Blue Jays on Saturday.   

    For Butler to come out victorious at Creighton, they need another fast start as they did last Sunday vs Villanova. Butler relied on great three point shooting from freshman Chuck Harris and senior Jair Bolden to the tune of 10 three pointers made as a team. Butler will need to be ready to dial it up from three again on Saturday vs Creighton. If Butler is moving the ball around the perimeter and finding openings on the wing for Bolden and Harris again, it could have some great implications for the Bulldogs in their bid to upset the Blue Jays once more this season. Butler will need to rely on Freshman Myles Tate to direct the Butler offense as senior Aaron Thompson was ruled out for the rest of the season with a shoulder injury. Butler defensively will need to shut down the Blue Jays inside game. Creighton is the best team in the Big East at scoring points in the paint with an average of 55 points per game form inside the arc. Butler will need to make Creighton shoot from the outside. If Butler can imply their 2-3 zone defense to make the Blue Jays take outside jump shots and contest inside and create opportunities on the offensive side for Bolden and Harris, then Butler has a great chance at winning this game. 

    Creighton in this game will have to play up tempo and force Butler to match that style of play. Butler plays very slow and will take their time during possessions. Creighton will want to push the tempo and get Butler out of their comfort zone. What the Blue Jays will have in this game compared to the first meeting between these two is Marcus Zegarowski. In the first meeting at Hinkle Fieldhouse, Zegarowski was injured and was unable to play. He is Creighton's best player and one of the best players in the country, Averaging 14.7 points per game, Zegarowski will need to have a big game in order for Creighton to beat Butler. The Blue Jays will need to imply a man to man defense to keep the Bulldogs from getting open looks from three. Creighton will want to make Butler play faster on defense and force them into turnovers on offense by double teaming Bryce Nze and Bryce Golden in the paint. If the Blue Jays can establish an offensive rhythm early and pressure Butler on defense to cause turnovers, Creighton should come away with a victory on senior day. 

    Butler looks to extend their win streak to three games while Creighton looks to end their two game losing skid to end the regular season. Both teams want to end their regular season's on a good note to build some momentum towards the Big East Tournament next week.