The future of this blog

I know that posts have been coming less frequently in the past few weeks, and I have not even written one for certain games.  There is a reason for that.  I was recently given an opportunity to cover West Coast Conference basketball as a staff writer on Fansided's West Coast Convo site.  I will be writing multiple articles a week there, which will take up a good portion of my free time.

I want to make it clear that I am NOT abandoning this blog.  Butler has always been one of my favorite college basketball teams and I do want to write about them.  But don't expect more than a couple of posts per month.  For example, for the month of December I will probably only have articles about the Purdue and Villanova games.

Thanks for reading my articles on this blog for the past 18 months, and don't worry, there is still more to come from this site.

Marshall's missed free throws allow Oklahoma State to squeak past Butler

Khyle Marshall missed two free throws with Butler down by one point and 8 seconds left.  My worst nightmare became a reality.  All season long I have been worried about anyone other than Dunham at the free throw line.  And the 55% free throw shooter Marshall (that percentage is now lower), is one guy who has good form but missed the first shot short and the second one long.  Nonetheless, Butler played admirably against the #5 team in the country.  I guess they ran out of miracles after last season.  Kellen Dunham had a makeable layup at the end that wouldn't fall.  The Bulldogs had their chances but Marcus Smart certainly left the door open with three consecutive missed free throws, so it was not just the Bulldogs missing free throws.  This has been an exciting Old Spice Classic and I am looking forward to the game tomorrow against an opponent yet to be decided.

Butler Survives Poor Free Throw Shooting to Defeat Vanderbilt in Overtime

I was not planning on doing a game recap for this game, but I caught the last 10 minutes of regulation and the overtime period on Fox Sports 1, so I will discuss my impressions of the portion of the game I saw.

1. There is no one to trust at the free throw line.  I thought I trusted Kellen Dunham (I tweeted that during the end of the second half), but he missed the front end of a one-and-one.  Marshall, Woods, and Aldridge also missed many free throws down the stretch.  This was the main reason Butler blew their 14 point second half lead.

2.  Elijah Brown is ready for the big stage.  With a lovely double-clutch jumper in the paint along with a couple of high pressure free throws, he is inching closer to the starting lineup and could potentially take Erik Fromm's spot if Butler decides to go small.

3. Khyle Marshall knows his strengths and weaknesses.  A number of times he was forced to dribble right and then spun back to the left with an impressive array of floaters, jump hooks, and finger rolls.  He was absolutely the MVP of this game and it is nice to see him stepping up as a senior and filling the scoring void of Clarke/Smith/Jones.

4. The rotation is essentially 9.  Rene Castro plays spare minutes as the 3rd string point guard and Nolan Berry may see a minute or two here or there, but it looks as though Morgan, Chrabascz, Brown, and Aldridge are the only bench players who will see major minutes.

*Anyone familiar with US History will appreciate ESPN's clever title in their game recap: http://scores.espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=400504469

*Butler next plays at Ball State on Saturday, and I may or may not be able to watch and put a game recap.  But their will definitely be another article on Wednesday, November 27.  So stay tuned Bulldog fans!  Its an exciting time of year with the Old Spice Classic coming up.

Next blog entry: November 27

Apologies to anyone who has visited this blog over the past 8 days and saw no content about Butler's first two games.  I have been overwhelmed by schoolwork and while I have watched parts of both the Lamar and Princeton games, I did not get a chance to write about the games.  On November 27 (the day before Thanksgiving) I will post my thoughts on Butler's first four games and preview the Old Spice Classic as well.

Andrew Smeathers to transfer from Butler

Yep.  That's right.  I will be changing the background to this blog shortly after I write this post.  Andrew Smeathers, Butler's sharpshooter who has seen limited action in two seasons mainly due to injury and the emergence of Roosevelt Jones, is transferring from Butler but will finish out the current academic semester.  This is a puzzling move for Butler fans because one would think that Jones' injury opened up over 30 minutes in Butler's rotation.  Maybe the strong offensive play of Elijah Brown and the strong defense of Devontae Morgan, coupled with Butler's three forward lineup, gave Smeathers the notion that minutes would be hard to come by.  Nonetheless, Smeathers is gone and although he could have made an impact, other players such as the two I just mentioned are more than capable of stepping up in his absence.

Butler defeats DePauw 93-68 in Final Exhibition

Another exhibition contest, and another victory.  While it was nice to win by 25, there are still major concerns for the Bulldogs.  One would be defense, which Miller said would need a lot of work over the next week. The other is point guard play.  No one got more than 2 assists for Butler, and while Alex Barlow may start at point guard, he doesn't have the court vision necessary to consistently find other teammates.  I followed the Creighton exhibition game last night, where Grant Gibbs had 6 assists and Devin Brooks had 7.  I would love to see that kind of output from Barlow.  And if not Barlow, either Castro or Aldridge.

On a more positive note, here are the players who stood out in my opinion:

Kellen Dunham: Another strong shooting performance, 7/11 shooting, 3/6 threes, and 6/6 at the line.  I know this isn't strong competition, but it is great to see Dunham shooting well after his Australia trip shooting woes.

Elijah Brown: 18 points on 6/11 shooting.  Continues to be an explosive weapon off the bench with the ability to drive the ball and also shoot from the outside.

Alex Barlow: Despite no assists, Barlow did everything else well last night. 9 points, 3 steals, 3/4 shooting, 1/1 threes.

Erik Fromm: I was pleasantly surprised by his aggressiveness inside, putting up 10 total free throws in the game.  Now I did not watch the game so I don't know exactly how he got fouled, but this is nonetheless a positive note.

Devontae Morgan: Reminds me a lot of Shawn Vanzant during his first 3 years at Butler.  Not much offensively, but a stud defensively.  He had 2 steals today, so I'm hoping he can become Butler's defensive stopper as a situational player.

Butler hosts Lamar in the first regular season game next Saturday at Hinkle Fieldhouse.

Butler Passes the Century Mark to Defeat Nova Southeastern

This game was never really close and the Bulldogs dominated with excellent shooting from nearly the entire team.

The standout players for me were:

Elijah Brown, 11 points 5 assists.  No one else had more than two assists, so Brown proved he can both score and distribute.  Expect him to be in the starting lineup very soon.

Kellen Dunham, 16 points, 3-5 three point shooting: With no Rotnei Clarke as a defensive distraction, teams will target Dunham beyond the arc so it was nice to see him shoot well tonight.

Nolan Berry, 11 points, 6 rebounds:  This freshman was also as good as advertised despite not seeing much action early in the game.  Expect him to push Marshall, Fromm, and Woods for playing time in the frontcourt with his varied offensive game.

Jackson Aldridge, 8 points, 2 assists, 1 turnover:  After two atrocious shooting seasons it was nice to see Jackson hit a couple of three balls in the first half.  Only one turnover is also key for him since ball control problems is what has kept him on the bench during his Butler career.

Butler faces Brad Stevens' alma mater DePauw in their second exhibition game on Saturday. Stay tuned for more game recaps!

Butler's First Exhibition Game Tonight!

Hello Butler Bulldogs fans!  Long time no see.  I am typing this just as tip-off for Butler's first exhibition game is about to happen. I haven't posted in a while partially because there hasn't been any major news about the team the past couple months (save recruiting).  Anyway, I will be posting a game summary for tonight's contest against Nova Southeastern by the end of tonight and will continue to do so throughout the season for most games.

Final Non-Conference Schedule

November 9                      vs. Lamar

November 16                    vs. Princeton
November 19                    vs. Vanderbilt

November 23                    @ Ball State

November 28                    vs. Washington State (Old Spice Classic)

November 29                    Old Spice Classic

December 1                     Old Spice Classic
December 7                      vs. North Dakota
December 9                      vs. Manchester University (IN)

December 14                    vs. Purdue (Crossroads Classic)
December 21                    @Evansville
December 28                    vs. NJIT

Here is Butler's non-conference schedule that I had been keeping track of since May.  For television stations and game times, look at the IndyStar article below.

http://blogs.indystar.com/butler/2013/09/05/a-look-at-butlers-2013-14-schedule/

Butler's Big East Schedule released

Date	Opponent	TV	Time
December 31	vs. Villanova	Fox Sports 1	7:30 PM ET
January 4	@ Xavier	FSN National	2:00 PM ET
January 9	vs. DePaul	Fox Sports 1	7:00 PM ET
January 11	vs. Georgetown	Fox Sports 1	5:00 PM ET
January 14	@ Creighton	Fox Sports 1	9:00 PM ET
January 18	vs. Marquette	CBS Sports Network	2:00 PM ET
January 21	@ Providence	Fox Sports 1	9:00 PM ET
January 25	vs. St. John’s	FSN National	4:00 PM ET
January 29	@ Seton Hall	Fox Sports 1	9:00 PM ET
February 4	@ Marquette	Fox Sports 1	9:00 PM ET
February 8	@ Georgetown	CBS	1:00 PM ET
February 11	vs. Xavier	Fox Sports 1	9:00 PM ET
February 13	vs. Creighton	CBS Sports Network	7:00 PM ET
February 18	@ St. John’s	Fox Sports 1	9:00 PM ET
February 23	vs. Providence	Fox Sports 1	6:00 PM ET
February 26	@ Villanova	Fox Sports 1	8:00 PM ET
March 6	@ DePaul	Fox Sports 1	7:00 PM ET
March 8	vs. Seton Hall	Fox Sports 1	5:00 PM ET

Butler Memories: My all-time high moment(s) as a Butler fan

This was really tough to decide but I was able to narrow it down to two moments.  First one, Butler vs. Syracuse 2010 Sweet 16.  Butler dominates the first half, Syracuse comes back to take a 4 point lead late in the second half.  For a while I thought Butler could pull off the unimaginable upset, but when future NBA players Wes Johnson and Andy Rautins got going offensively, things looked grim for the Bulldogs.  Butler was down 4, had lost all momentum, and desperately needed a big bucket.  Then then they get a huge three pointer from one of the worst three point shooters on the entire roster.  That's right, Ron Nored hit one with the shot clock running down.  That shot completely changed the game.  A Matt Howard layup, a Willie Veasley three pointer and tip-in later (both which got fortunate bounces on the rim), Butler had a six point lead with under a minute left.  You know what I enjoyed most about that 10-0 run?  It was probably the only stretch of the 2010 NCAA tournament where neither Hayward nor Mack was scoring.  This run further illustrated Butler's depth, and that it was not just a two man team as many fans nationally may have thought. Butler was supposed to beat UTEP and Murray State in the first two rounds. The Bulldogs were never supposed to win this game but they did, which made it really special for me to watch as they proved everyone wrong.

Second one.  Butler vs. Florida, 2011 Elite Eight.   I was concerned about this match up from the start.  Vernon Macklin, Alex Tyus, and Chandler Parsons were a formidable front court that the Bulldogs just could not match up with.  For most of the game that proved to be true, as Macklin and Tyus had ginormous games while Shelvin Mack was trying to carry Butler offensively.  So late in the second half, Brad Stevens had a decision to make.  Zach Hahn was a defensive liability, Chase Stigall and Ron Nored were offensive liabilities, so Butler needed a third guard to go alongside Shelvin Mack and Shawn Vanzant, who had emerged as a consistent offensive weapon in addition to his tremendous defense.  Chrishawn Hopkins, who had been entirely out of the rotation since mid-December, was the player Stevens chose.  It was just four minutes, but Hopkins 3 point shot proved to be as momentous as Nored's was the previous year.  Incidentally, the two games felt eerily similar down the stretch.  That's why I had trouble picking between the two games.  The Hopkins 3 was followed by a fortunate bounce on a Shawn Vanzant three (similar to Veasley's), and Shelvin Mack and freshman Khyle Marshall took it from that point, carrying the Bulldogs to an overtime victory.  As poor of circumstances as Chrishawn Hopkins left Butler University on, I will always fondly remember him just for that one shot.  Because without it, there is no way Butler makes it back to the Final Four in 2011.  Once again Brad Stevens pushed a risky button, but pushed the right one, further illustrating his intuition on the basketball court.  Just like the Syracuse game, Butler was playing against a more talented team, and I was very pessimistic heading into the Florida game, but was elated when the Bulldogs once again surprised me pulling out the dramatic win.

How the Jones injury impact Butler's rotation

As Brad Stevens said when Rotnei Clarke was injured last season, not one guy is gonna replace his production.  It is going to be a collective effort.  The same applies here for the Roosevelt Jones injury.  Depending on how you look at Jones was either a 2 or a 3.  I'm not gonna do minute projections as I did last year, because you never no what's going to happen and your predictions will have not taken something into account (ie. Hopkins dismissal).  So here's how other players at those positions will be impacted:

Kellen Dunham: will likely be playing > 30 minutes a night
Elijah Brown: should see increased playing time at the 2 spot as Dunham slides over to the 3
Devontae Morgan: defensive specialist who should see minutes to guard opposing team's best perimeter player
Andrew Smeathers: Should see more time if the Butler is struggling shooting, which could possibly mean extended minutes.

Additional Notes
- I also see some combination of Barlow/Aldridge/Castro at the 1, but the Bulldogs could also go small and play Castro at the 2 for a while alongside Barlow/Aldridge, who are both clearly point guards.
- In addition, I expect Khyle Marshall to play some 3, as well as possibly Chrabascz if necessary.  However at this point, it seems to me that Chrabascz will be the odd one out in the rotation.

Marshall's veteran leadership necessary for young Bulldogs team

Khyle Marshall is the last player left at Butler who played significant minutes on a final four team. He had an impressive 2011 NCAA tournament, and also played well for the USA U19 team that summer.  I'd say the last two seasons have been a bit underwhelming for Marshall, who showed so much potential as a freshman, but then I have to realize that he played under 22 minutes a game both seasons.  The reason his minutes were so limited was because of Kam Woods, who at the same position played just under 20 minutes per game.  So the two of them essentially shared the minutes at the 4 spot.

Marshall has made great strides since his freshman year, especially on his 15 foot jump shot.  I definitely expect a big jump from junior to senior years, not only with his play on the court, but also as a mentor to the younger players.  I remember thinking back in the fall of 2010 how lucky Marshall and Andrew Smith were to have Matt Howard as a big man mentor.  Well now Marshall needs to be the same for freshmen Nolan Berry and Andrew Chrabascz, in order to maximize the production of those two guys on the court.

Now that Roosevelt Jones is out for the season, I expect Marshall to play 5-10 minutes per game at the 3 spot.  It really cant be more than that because  Butler's deep back court will demand plenty of minutes.  He definitely has the ability to play either the 3 or the 4.  I am looking forward to a great senior season for Khyle Marshall.

Jones Injury; Blog will be updated soon

First off, I would like to apologize for not posting on this blog for a while, and abandoning my coverage of Butler's Australia trip halfway through, it was just too hard to find the box scores.  I have been on vacation and my internet connection has been just awful.  As you probably already know, Roosevelt Jones has a torn ligament in his left wrist and will miss the entire 2013-14 season.  While this is a devastating blow to a Butler team stepping up in level of competition, there are a number of guys who can collectively replace his production.  I will talk more about those players this weekend when I return from vacation.

Bulldogs play big lineup and win, but Dunham struggles

This will be shorter than the last game recap because I don't have very much time right now.  Butler won their second game of the Australia trip 82-76 over Kings.  Kellen Dunham went 5/22 from the field and 0/11 from field.  This is actually a concern for me looking forward to this season.  If the Bulldogs cannot establish a second reliable 3 point shooter, and Dunham has to take a majority of the 3 point shots, many contested, he will struggle mightily.  The same thing happened two years ago when Chase Stigall and Chrishawn Hopkins were both under 30 percent because Butler had no reliable 3 point shooters.  I'm hoping Erik Fromm can be that reliable shooter, and he had another good game with 18 points on 2/6 3 point shooting.  With Khyle Marshall at the 3 and Kameron Woods at the 4, they both thrived.  Woods had 11 points and 15 rebounds, and has the potential to be a double-double guy with his long arms.  Marshall had 14 points and 7 rebounds.  The only notable freshman performance was Elijah Brown who scored 6 points.

Devontae Morgan was once again effective on defense with 3 steals, and also scored 7 points.  Jackson Aldridge had an efficient game scoring 11 points, but 0 assists/2 turnovers is troubling.  In fact the entire point guard position is troubling.  The three potential candidates for point guard, Aldridge, Barlow, and Castro, combined for 1 assist.  I think it will be very hard for Butler to win playing point guard by committee, as it is the most important position on the floor.  Roosevelt Jones is also an option at point guard, but he did not play in this game following the injury he suffered on Tuesday.  I sure hope it is not serious because Jones is the heart and soul of this team in my opinion.

Australia Trip: Game 1 recap

Butler played a close game against the Norths Bears Invitational Team, but ended up pulling away in the second half for a 77-65 victory after being tied with the Bears at halftime.  He are quick individual recaps.

Kellen Dunham: Dunham was by far the most impressive offensive player, scoring 22 points on 5/11 3-point shooting.  Look for Dunham to make a big leap during in his sophomore season to help ease the 3-point shooting void left by Rotnei Clarke.

Erik Fromm: Fromm also has big shoes to fill in Andrew Smith's.  He played well today with 14 points and 6 rebounds.  If he can bring his 3 point % up (1/4 today, 31% last season), he has a chance to play a major role offensively for the Bulldogs.

Roosevelt Jones: Jones played the first 4:25 missing one shot and getting one steal, and did not play the rest of the game.  I read on twitter that he has a sprained wrist, but I don't know how long he will be out for.  If he needs to sit a couple of games on this trip, he should feel free to do so.

Khyle Marshall: Marshall had a decent game with 8 points and 7 rebounds, but his 4/9 shooting leaves something to be desired.  Marshall needs to step up big time if Butler is going to have success in the Big East.

Jackson Aldridge: After being in Brad Stevens' doghouse most of last season, maybe a new coach and a fresh start is what he needed, as he earned the start at point guard in this game.  (or maybe he just started because this is a homecoming trip for the native Australian).  He wasn't too impressive, going 1/5 from the field, with 3 assists and 2 turnovers.

Alex Barlow: In my opinion, Barlow played the best out of any of the potential point guards, with 5 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, and no turnovers.

Kameron Woods: Despite only shooting 1/4 from the field, Woods once again proved himself to be the best rebounder on the team grabbing 9 rebounds.

Andrew Smeathers: I was pleasantly surprised by Smeathers' performance, considering he was a bench warmer last season.  8 points on 2/5 3 point shooting.

Devontae Morgan: Not too much from him in his 8 minutes of action, but 3 points on 1/1 shooting, and 2 steals.  I've heard comparisons of Morgan to Shawn Vanzant, maybe he can become a great defensive stopper and get minutes that way.

Nolan Berry: Most impressive of all the Butler freshmen, Berry scored 9 points on 4/6 shooting and 1/2 from downtown.  While he might not make the impact Kellen Dunham made last season as a freshman, expect Berry to see considerable minutes from Day 1.

Rene Castro: Did not attempt a shot from the field, but went 2/2 from the line, dishing out 2 assists and 1 turnover.  I know he is considered a combo guard, but I feel comfortable with him playing the point this season.

Elijah Brown: Certainly aggressive, but shot 0/5 from the field, to go with 3 rebounds and 2 assists.  Brown reminds me a little bit of Illinois' Brandon Paul when he was a freshman, which at this point can be considered a good and bad thing.

Andrew Chrabascz: 0/2 free throw shooting 2 rebounds, and nothing else in under 7 minutes of action.

Michael Volovic and Elliot Kampen: Both walk-ons played the last 1:31 of the game once the outcome was decided.  Walk-on Steven Bennett did not play.

Catching up on Butler news

I haven't been up to date with some notable, news-worthy events pertaining to Butler, so I will do my best to recap them now.

1. Brad Stevens' Boston Celtics staff now consists of three other Butler players/staff: Micah Shrewsberry (Butler assistant coach, 2008-2011), Ronald Nored (Butler point guard, 2008-2012), and Drew Cannon (Butler graduate manager/statistical analysis, 2012-13).

2. Brandon Miller's 3rd assistant coach will be former Gardner-Webb head coach Chris Holtmann.  While there, he faced Butler in November 2011 at Hinkle Fieldhouse in a game that was part of the Hoosier Invitational.  Butler won the game, 68-66.

3. Butler will face Washington State in the first round of the Old Spice Classic on Thanksgiving Day.

4. Butler will face NJIT at Hinkle Fieldhouse this upcoming season.

5. Vanderbilt lost two of its best players today: Kevin Bright, who will play professionally in Germany, and Kedren Johnson, who was suspended for the 2013-14 season.  Now you may be wondering what this has to do with Butler.  Well Vanderbilt is coming to Hinkle Fieldhouse to play Butler this season, and that game just got a lot easier.

6. Former Butler guard Willie Veasley will be the video coordinator for the Illinois State men's basketball team this season.  Veasley was instrumental in Butler's 2010 Final Four run, played professionally in Japan in 2010-11, and was most recently the video coordinator at IUPUI.

Stay tuned for two pieces coming to this blog in August.  I still have to write about my all-time high as a Butler fan, and I am also writing a piece about Khyle Marshall.  
Until then, Go Bulldogs!

Butler Memories: My all-time low point as a Butler Bulldogs fan

I have some spare time so I thought I would reflect on my highs and lows as a Butler Bulldogs fan.  We'll start with the lows.

Let me set the scene.  February 3, 2011.  Butler has just lost back-to-back Horizon League games in overtime.  Both games were winnable, and the Bulldogs were just unable to come up with crucial baskets down the stretch in both.  While these two games were against two of the better teams in the Horizon League in Milwaukee and Valparaiso, they are still games that Butler should have won. Butler was 6-4 in the Horizon League at this point, quite disappointing for a team that return a majority of its players back from a squad that went 18-0 in league play the previous year.  I was looking forward to the Bulldogs' next game against Youngstown State, who was 1-10 in the HL going into that contest.  This was supposed to be the game that is the springboard for a potential climb back up the standings.  A step in the right direction.

I was not able to watch this game as I was busy doing work this Thursday night in February.  But that night, I had the mentality that I would wake up the next morning and Butler would be 7-4 in league play.  So later that night, once the game is over, I click on the box score on ESPN.com, and there it is.  At first I thought it was a score reporting mistake.  Youngstown State 62, Butler 60.  That was as shocked as I had been in a while (although my shock from Brad Stevens' latest coaching decision dwarfs any other time I was shocked).  Then I look at the play-by-play to find out that Butler had an 8-point lead with under 4 minutes to go in the game.  In my mind the game should not have even been close, and that the starters should have been sitting by the 4 minute mark.  But no, Butler was shut out on its last six possessions and Youngstown state went on a 10-0 run to win the game.  As hard as it was, last year I finally watched the game in its entirety on Youngstown State's UStream channel.

Butler was now 6-5 in Horizon League play, and I can truthfully say this was low point in all of my years as a Butler fan.  However, this game turned out to be a wakeup call, because Butler did not lose another game until April, winning the rest of its Horizon League games, winning the Horizon League tournament in Milwaukee against the Panthers.  That was quite a redemption game, as Butler lost by 24 to Milwaukee in the first game and lost in over time the second game.  Butler then proceeded to make it all the way to the National Championship game.  If you were to tell someone on February 4th that Butler (14-9, 6-5 Horizon) would be in the National Championship game, they would've thought you were crazy.  But this game turned out to be a springboard for an exciting run through February and March.  While I would've preferred Butler to not lose to a poor team such as Yougnstown State, it did make their NCAA tournament run that much sweeter.  The season could've fallen apart, but through a bloody face, the dethroning of a 2 and a half year starter, and a newly-bespectacled coach, Butler was able to do what no one thought was possible.  Make a second consecutive National Championship appearance out of the Horizon League.

Butler point guard discussion 2013-14

This is probably the biggest question mark heading into the 2013-14 season.  Rotnei Clarke, who played most of his 33 minutes per game at point guard, has exhausted his eligibility.  While Roosevelt Jones averaged over three assists per game last season, he had a poor assist-to-turnover ratio and his best position is clearly small forward.  That leaves us with 3 candidates for starting point guard: Alex Barlow, Rene Castro, and Jackson Aldridge, with one of the first two guys likely to get it.  Now had this been Brad Stevens coaching, I would have said Barlow would be the starting point guard initially, for two reasons.  First, in his six years as head coach Brad Stevens has never started a freshman from day one with exception to the 2008-09 season when he started three of them (Hayward, Mack, Nored).  But that season was different from this upcoming one in that Butler had an extremely young team with so many new faces.  The second reason is that Brad Stevens was a defensive-oriented coach (at least more than most college coaches), and that side of the floor is where Barlow excels.  Brad Stevens was always extremely complimentary of Barlow's defense in the past two years.  Now I'm not stating Coach Miller won't value defense as much as Stevens.  I'm just saying that Miller hasn't had the closest eye on the Butler program and its players.  Therefore, Barlow is going to have to prove that he can run the team on offense, because he cannot just dribbling up the court and then immediately handing it off to Roosevelt Jones.  The offensive end is where Castro has the edge, and on a team where scoring will not come as easily as it did last year, it becomes more necessary to have a point guard with a scoring mentality, and Castro certainly has that.  Castro also seems to have a decent three point shot, so he can take some of the perimeter attention away from Kellen Dunham.

Jackson Aldridge was buried on the bench because of his 20% shooting percentage and his ineffectiveness running the team on offense.  Unless he makes major improvements, expect him to say on the bench.  So as I see it right now, Castro will be starting and playing 20-25 minutes per game, Barlow will come off the bench and see 15-20 minutes of playing time, and Aldridge will be used sparingly.  But these are just my opinions.  How do you see the breakdown in playing time at the point guard spot.  Comment below as I am always open to reading other peoples ideas and thoughts.

Butler hires Brandon Miller as new head coach

Butler has hired Butler alumnus Brandon Miller as the new head coach of the Butler Bulldogs. Miller, who played for Butler from 2000-2003, was the video coordinator and director of basketball operations from 2003-2007 at Ohio State under former Butler coach Thad Matta, was an assistant coach at Butler in 2007-08, spent three more years at Ohio State after that, and was most recently an assistant coach at Illinois under John Groce.  In addition, it does not appear that any of Butler's current players are leaving the program which is great news looking forward to 2013-14.  

Brad Stevens leaves Butler to become head coach of Boston Celtics

That's right.  I didn't see it coming either.  It doesn't seem like a coincidence that 2 days after Butler is no longer a mid-major program that Stevens would leave.  Maybe that has something to do with it.  I have always believed Brad Stevens would be at Butler for the next couple of decades, becoming one of the best college basketball coaches in history.  Stevens and his family always seemed so satisfied with where they were. I guess this was to big of an opportunity to pass up, a head coach in the NBA.  While I know he will do a great job rebuilding in Boston, I wouldn't count out the chance that he returns to coaching college basketball like Rick Pitino did.  Nonetheless, I wish him the best of luck in his future endeavors.

Now, for what this means for the future of Butler basketball.  If a new coach were to be hired within Butler University, it would most likely be Terry Johnson, who has been Stevens' assistant coach the for all six of Stevens' years as head coach, or Brandon Miller, a former player and current assistant.  LaVall Jordan, a former Butler player and assistant coach and current assistant at Michigan, also seems to be a front-runner for the job.  I could also see Butler looking outside the program at someone like Bill Carmody who got fired at Northwestern in March.  Whoever becomes the next head coach, I surely hope the continue preaching all of the values of "The Butler Way," and that Butler doesn't not change its values now that they are a high-major program.  In terms of recruiting, I'm almost positive that it is too late for any of the incoming freshmen to decommit, since they should already be on campus in summer school at this point.  I will discuss next season more once a new head coach is announced.

Until then, go Bulldogs!

Matt Howard signs with Ratiopharm Ulm in Germany

After spending all of last season in France, former Butler forward Matt Howard will be playing for Ratiopharm Ulm in Germany for the 2013-14 season.  Notable players who have played for Ratiopharm include 2-time NCAA national champion Lee Humphrey and former NBA player Allan Ray.  Last season in France, playing for Chorale de Roanne, Howard averaged 9.0 PPG and 6.1 RPG in 24.7 MPG.  2 years ago, Howard had a stint in Germany with Neckar Ludwigsburg (in the same league as Ratiopharm) averaging over 12 PPG. Before that he had a brief, injury plagued stint with Olympiacos in Greece before the team released him.  I'm looking forward to watching Matt continue his professional basketball career in Europe with the hope that he could still eventually become one of those journeymen who makes the NBA at age 30.

Butler to open Big East competition against Villanova on New Year's Eve

According to SportsNola.com writer Lenny Vangilder, Butler will host Villanova on New Year's Eve, December 31st, to begin Big East play.  This game is the fourth game of a five game marathon on the new channel Fox Sports 1.  December 31 is a Tuesday this year, so I would imagine this game would be the Bulldogs' second game following Christmas.  They will most likely play their last non-conference game on Saturday, December 28.

Also, I was sad to hear that David Woods will not be covering Butler basketball for the Indianapolis star anymore.  He did a great job covering games, scheduling, recruiting, coaches' and players' perspectives, and I enjoyed reading his "Bulldog bits" at the end of each article.  He is part of what inspired me to start writing this blog, so I will miss his coverage a lot.  I wish him the best of luck covering Olympic sports for the Star in the future.

Stay tuned for more Bulldog schedule updates!

Starting Lineup Discussion: Who starts alongside Marshall?

Khyle Marshall is a two year starter for Butler, and as a freshman he made significant contributions off the bench in Butler's national championship run in 2011.  While inconsistent at times, he has earned to the right to start as an undersized power forward.  For the first time since the 2009-10 season, Butler will not be starting a traditional center as Andrew Smith has been a starter for the last three years.  Three players have a legitimate chance of starting at the other forward spot, and all bring different strengths to the court.  I am going to look at why these three players should or should not be starting.

Kameron Woods: Woods is the tallest player on Butler's 2013-14 season at 6'9, but he is quite slender for his size and there are questions concerning his ability to defend Big East centers.  However, what Woods lacks in strength he makes up for in wingspan and athleticism.  Last season, he was Butler's third leading rebounder at nearly five rebounds per game in only 17 minutes per game.  Offensively, his game developed well towards the end of last season, and he possesses many of the abilities that Marshall does: mid-range jump shot, athleticism, ability to finish alley oops.  Maybe that could be an argument against starting both Woods and Marshall because they have similar abilities.  While I am not so sure that Woods will start, he should come off the bench and play more than 20 minutes per game while sharing the floor with Marshall for a few minutes here and there.

Erik Fromm: Erik Fromm is your traditional pick and pop big man, with the ability to hit three point shots as well as mid range jump shots.  He is not the rebounder that Woods is, but that is partly because he only played about 11 minutes per game.  Last season, Fromm grabbed a rebound every 4.45 minutes and Woods grabbed a rebound every 3.48 minutes.  Fromm has more strength to guard big men but he still won't be able to defend as well as Andrew Smith did.  I cannot emphasize how much Smith will be missed; Smith might even be missed more than Rotnei Clarke.  Starting Fromm would space the floor and give Butler a second three point shooter in the lineup alongside Kellen Dunham, but still has limitations on both ends of the floor.

Nolan Berry: I have already heard comparisons of Nolan Berry to Matt Howard.  While Berry may have the offensive skill level of Matt Howard, he weighs only 190 pounds, so I don't like his chances of starting as a freshman in the Big East.  He might become an option to start if Fromm or Woods is unable to replace Andrew Smith's offensive production.  Still, I think he has a lot to learn and a lot of strength to add before he sees major minutes in a Butler uniform.

Stay tuned for more Butler lineup discussion (specifically the point guard position) in the coming weeks!

Why I don't cover Butler basketball recruiting

The beginning to my last entry might have been slightly misleading when is said there hasn't been very much Butler basketball news lately.  There have been numerous reports of Butler's offers to players in the 2014 and 2015 recruiting classes, but I really don't care about these offers unless the player signs with Butler.  Even when a player does commit to Butler, I don't really analyze his game until the fall.  Its not that I don't care how these Butler commits are doing in high school, but unless they suffer a severe injury their senior year of high school, I don't really care what happens until they are officially on the Butler roster.  So was I concerned when incoming freshman Nolan Berry got injured? Yes.  But unless something dramatic happens, I will only cover players who are listed on the roster on Butler's website.  I will have posts about Butler basketball alums from time to time or compare these alums to current players, briefly referencing them in a post.  This blog is about Butler basketball only and I am going to make sure that it continues to be that way.

2013-14 Schedule Update (UPDATED 9/5)

Butler fans! Sorry, long time no post.  There hasn't been any major news about Butler basketball the last couple of months.  That being said, the non-conference schedule is starting to take shape.  Here are couple of important notes about the schedule and then I will list the schedule as it stands right now.

• The Bulldogs will most likely be playing 12 non-conference games.  (The NCAA rule is 27 games + an early season tournament).  
• This is accounted for with 18 conference games, the 3 game Old Spice Classic, and 9 other non conference games.
• If they play a non-bracketed game against another team in the Old Spice Classic, then they would play 13 non conference games.  (Only Gonzaga and West Virginia did this last year)
• Butler will not be playing at Indiana State in the BracketBuster return game this season; that game will be played in 2014-15.  (Most likely Butler didn't want to play 3 road games in the state of Indiana in the same year; they are already playing at Ball State and Evansville).

Here is what is known so far:

November 9                      vs. Lamar

November 16                    vs. Princeton
November 19                    vs. Vanderbilt

November 23                    @ Ball State

November 28                    vs. Washington State (Old Spice Classic)

November 29                    Old Spice Classic

December 1                      Old Spice Classic
December 7                      vs. North Dakota
December 9                      vs. Manchester University (IN)

December 14                    vs. Purdue (Crossroads Classic)
December 21                    @Evansville
December 28                    vs. NJIT

UPDATE: Butler will not host Northwestern until the 2014-15 season.

Stay tuned for more schedule updates along with any other relevant Butler basketball news.

That's a Wrap: Kellen Dunham, Devontae Morgan

The last of my player recaps, here are freshmen Kellen Dunham and Devontae Morgan.

Kellen Dunham: The first ESPN top 100 recruit in Butler (ESPN is what I look at for recruiting class rankings) was quite impressive for most of the season, as he seemed to adjust from the high school game to college quite well.  He shooting keyed Butler's victories over North Carolina and Gonzaga.  However, his shooting and overall production took a dip starting with the Saint Louis game on January 31.  From that point on, he only averaged 7.3 PPG, and shot 29.5% from beyond the arc.  Now its arguable that every freshman hits a wall at some point, but his struggles directly coincided with the Bulldogs' February slump.  There is no doubt that they are a much better team when he is shooting well.  His defense is not quite up to the standard of most Butler players, but I'm sure he will improve as his career progresses.  Dunham is one of the biggest pieces Butler has for the future, and he is certainly capable of shooting better, which could eventually give him a chance to become on of the better players in Butler history.

Devontae Morgan: I don't have too much to write here because I didn't see much of him this season.  Morgan was a bench warmer this season, who mainly saw action when Butler was in a blowout, on both ends.  Stevens would occasionally use him when Butler's starting guards were just playing so poorly (VCU, Saint Louis).  I don't know how complete Morgan's offensive game is, but he has the athleticism to succeed at the D1 level, as shown by the SportsCenter top 10 play against IUPUI.  Only time will tell if Morgan will get an opportunity to have a major role in Butler's backcourt, or if he will transfer just like 450 D1 players do every season.

That's it for the player recaps.  Postings will be rather infrequent over the next few months, but do expect Butler news from time to time.  Thanks for reading.

Go Bulldogs!

That's a Wrap: Jackson Aldridge, Andrew Smeathers, Elliot Kampen

Jackson Aldridge: I had pretty low expectations for Aldridge coming into this season, based on what had transpired at the 2012 CBI Tournament.  He had lost his backup point guard job to walk-on Alex Barlow after a season of poor shooting and far too many turnovers for a point guard.  So I was definitely surprised to see him get the minutes he did in November of this season, especially in the North Carolina game where he played a season high 21 minutes.  But by mid December, Alex Barlow had not only taken his spot in the rotation, but Barlow even took a starting spot from Kellen Dunham.  From the beginning of A10 play onward, he only played a total of 50 minutes, most of them garbage minutes.  While his shooting was atrocious this season, I don't believe it is a large enough of a sample size to take to seriously.  Still, Aldridge has a long way to go on both ends of the court before he sees major minutes in a Butler uniform again.  In the summer of 2011, I remember thinking that he was going to have a bigger impact than Roosevelt Jones.  While that came nowhere close to happening, I haven't yet given up hope that Aldridge can help fill the tremendous void left by Butler last two point guards, Rotnei Clarke and Ronald Nored.

Andrew Smeathers: After off-season surgery and an inconsistent freshman season, I was an advocate of redshirting Smeathers.  With Kellen Dunham coming in, I knew minutes would be hard to come by at the 3.  Now that the season is over, I still wish Smeathers had sat out this year.  He averaged only 2.4 minutes per game in slightly more than half of Butler's contests, and like Aldridge, his shooting was also quite poor.  Still, he came to Butler with a reputation as a shooter and I still think he can become a situational offensive weapon.  What I mean by that is coming in for the last possession of the half and spotting up in the corner, and other circumstances where Butler needs a basket.  The potential is still there, but like Aldridge, it will a long uphill battle for Smeathers to get significant playing time.

Elliot Kampen: Kampen only played 12 minutes this season, fewer than any other player.  The only game he has ever gotten significant minutes in is the Milwaukee game last season where Butler was shooting so poorly they couldn't even get the ball in the Atlantic Ocean.  (Yes it was that bad)  While still a walk-on who will never see important time on the court, he can still become a leader and a vocal presence in the locker room.  From Nick Rodgers to Alex Anglin to his older brother Emerson Kampen, Butler has a history of high character walk-ons that Elliot Kampen will try to add his name to that list.

Footnote: In my blog post about Chrishawn Hopkins way back in October, I said that Wright State was on a downward trend after being picked last in the Horizon preseason poll.  I sincerely apologize for that comment.  I didn't know how successful that group of team-oriented role players could be, and I will most certainly think twice before making another radical comment like that one.

That's a Wrap: Roosevelt Jones, Kameron Woods, Alex Barlow (Sophomores, part 1)

Sorry for the delay, I have been quite busy lately.  Nonetheless, here is my season recap for Butler's sophomore class.

Roosevelt Jones: Jones made some major strides in certain areas of his game, and remained stagnant in other areas.  After the departure of near 4-year starting point guard Ronald Nored, many thought it would it would be Rotnei Clarke to fill the assists void left by Nored.  But it was Roosevelt Jones who showed the ability to handle the ball under pressure and deliver the ball where it needed to be.  Yet there is still room for improvement for Jones as a ball-handler and passer, as he only had a 1.22 assist/turnover ratio.  In terms of scoring, Jones was even more aggressive getting in the lane for floaters, a shot he has completely mastered.  Shooting the ball continues to be a difficulty for Jones, as he has not displayed any ability to shoot a jump shot.  Also, he continues to have poor form and inconsistent results from the free throw line.  Jones rebounded well for his size getting almost 6 rebounds per game despite only being 6'4.  Overall, Roosevelt Jones was one of Butler's better players this season, doing a little bit of everything on offense in addition to being a defensive stopper, as exemplified by the last play of the Gonzaga game.  He still has a long way to go to become a complete player, but I am confident that he will be able to lead a younger Bulldogs squad to success next season.

Kameron Woods: I made a point of this all season, but going from 37% from the field as a freshman to nearly 55% as a sophomore is truly remarkable.  Woods realized that he was not a good three point shooter, as he attempted only four all season, which certainly helped his shooting percentage.  Woods was able to use his long arms to grab many offensive rebounds.  In fact, he had more rebounds than points this season.  His mid-range jumper developed so much that I believe it is now better than Khyle Marshall's mid-range.  To improve for next season, he needs to get stronger so that he can play alongside Marshall in the front court.  That will also be a necessity because Butler has no true center next season, so Woods will have to play big the same way Matt Howard did as an undersized center for his first three years.

Alex Barlow: With Butler's depth at the guard spot coming into the season (even after the loss of Chrishawn Hopkins), I wasn't sure how much playing time Alex Barlow would receive.  In November, it seemed as though Jackson Aldridge had taken the backup point guard spot from Barlow during the Maui Invitational, but Barlow quickly won those minutes back and eventually got into the starting lineup.  Brad Stevens said that Barlow is one of he's ever had at Butler, which is saying something considering that Butler has had some great defensive players in recent years.  (Nored, Shawn Vanzant, Willie Veasley).  The game winning shot at Indiana, and consistent hustle and effort kept him on the court all season long.  I have no doubt that Alex Barlow will continue to lead the more inexperienced players for Butler for years to come and he will continue to have a major impact at Butler.

That's a Wrap: Khyle Marshall, Erik Fromm

Khyle Marshall

This Season: There were high expectations for Marshall this season. And for the first six games of the season, he met those expectations, averaging 13.7 points per game and 6.3 rebounds per game. However, as the season went on, his production dropped, as well as his minutes.  After the Indiana game, his playing time exceeded 26 minutes only once.  He slowly saw his minutes drop, as Kameron Woods began chipping away at Marshall's playing time.  By the end of the season, Woods was even playing more than Marshall.  In fact, over the final six games of the season, Marshall was averaging 17.5 minutes per game compared to 21.0 MPG for Kam Woods in that time span.  The problem for Marshall this season was that he is not a true post player, and a majority of his points are scored on dunks and great passes from teammates.  Marshall was largely unable to create shots for himself in the post.  I will say that Marshall improved his mid range jump shot, but his free throw shooting did not make that same stride.  At 6'6, Marshall was unable to take advantage of his athleticism to grab rebounds, as he averaged only 3.4 RPG over the final 21 games of the season.  To put it more simply, the combination of Kameron Woods' long arms and his improving jump shot (to the point where it was as good as Marshall's) kept the undersized Marshall on the bench for the majority of key stretches in the second half of games.

Butler Career: Marshall started his Butler career with one of the best mentor's a big man could ever have: Matt Howard.  Marshall showed both promise and inconsistency as a freshman with some outstanding games such as the game against Florida in the Elite Eight, and other games where he seemed invisible in single digit minutes.  As a sophomore, Marshall, along with Andrew Smith, did an admirable job trying to replace the production of Howard.  However, after playing with the USA U-19 team the summer before, Marshall largely failed to be the dynamic scorer that Butler so desperately needed in 2011-12.  This season was largely similar to last season, and Marshall was unable to sustain his strong start to the season, and faded towards relative obscurity down the stretch (if that's even possible for someone who has highlight reel dunks regularly).  Marshall has one more chance to reach his potential in college, and fill the void left by another big man, this time Andrew Smith.  I would like to see Marshall play small forward at times next season, because it would give him a size advantage down low, and it is the position he will most certainly play at the next level.

Erik Fromm

This Season: Like Marshall, Fromm followed up last season with an eerily similar one this season.  He continued in his role from last season backing up Andrew Smith, but was actually slightly more efficient this season.  His 2 point field goal percentage went slightly up, his 3 point percentage went slightly down.  While I wouldn't exactly call Fromm a strong interior defender, he definitely improved his post defense and rebounding to a point where he doesn't get manhandled by a Cody Zeller caliber player.  It was definitely difficult for Fromm losing his father but he was still able to play relatively well after that incident.  

Butler Career: When Erik Fromm came to Butler, I expected him to be the three point shooter that Florida's Erik Murphy is now.  Like Chase Stigall, Fromm's 3 point shooting has disappointed me in his three years, two as role player, one as bench warmer.  Fromm will need to replace Andrew Smith's 3 point production next season, and will probably get more looks from outside.  He also needs to get stronger as he will see more minutes at the 5.  His current frame might cause him to pick up fouls at that position, similar to the way being undersized plagued Matt Howard at the 5.

I hope Fromm can be a strong mentor for Nolan Berry, as those two battle it out for minutes in Butler's crowded front court next season.

Notes

- Expect to see the wrap up for sophomores by the end of the week.  There are quite a few of them, so it will take some time.  

- As I was writing this article, I saw this tweet from IndyStar's David Woods: 

Coaching news: Brandon Miller returning to #Butler staff; Darnell Archey & @RonaldNored to join Matthew Graves at So. Ala. Story coming.

- I will discuss the above tweet more in a later post.

In the meantime, go Bulldogs!

That's a Wrap: Rotnei Clarke, Andrew Smith, Chase Stigall, Emerson Kampen

(For those wondering about the title, I am a frequent visitor of insidethehall.com)

Rotnei Clarke
This Season: Essentially, Clarke was everything he was advertised as when he transferred to Butler in the summer of 2011.  He shot an immense amount of threes, and while shooting 41%, that was actually a few percentage points down from his junior season at Arkansas.  Clarke was never a true point guard at Arkansas, and that was more than visible this season.  Clarke had more turnovers than assists this season, and he was often moved off the ball in favor of Roosevelt Jones toward the latter part of the season.  He certainly had his fare share of turnovers in crucial moments this season, but so did most of the Bulldogs players.  As much as a deficiency he had in passing ability, he brought great 3-point shooting to a team that so desperately needed it.  His buzzer beater against Marquette will go down as one of the best buzzer beaters in college basketball this season.  His leadership both on and off the court will be sorely missed on a young Bulldogs squad next season, and he made the most of his two years at Butler.
Butler Career: While this was only season that Clarke suited up in for Butler, I truly believe that his offensive presence in practice last season was a major contribution to Ronald Nored winning the 2012 Horizon League Defensive Player of the Year.  Clarke set a great example with his work ethic, and represented the Butler Way in many different aspects.

Andrew Smith
This Season: While Smith's shooting percentage was slightly down this season, he made up for that with increased productivity at the free throw line.  Nothing else changed drastically for Smith this year, as he remained a solid rebounder and decent three point shooter.  Smith could have scored more this season if Butler guards were more inclined to feed him the ball down low instead of remaining three point shot happy.  While he certainly had some struggles finishing inside on his jump hooks, he was clearly the leader of Butler's front line,  and did everything he could have reasonably been asked for.
Butler Career: Smith faced quite a difficult situation when he arrived on Butler's campus in the fall of 2009.  He was the only new player, as everyone else on the roster was a returning player.  He was the only one who had to learn the offense that the other players already new.  Needless to say there was a great deal of pressure on Smith as Butler's one-man recruiting class of 2009.  While he played very few minutes during his freshman season behind Matt Howard, Avery Jukes, and Gordon Hayward in the frontcourt, he gained valuable experience and was even able to make a contribution in Butler's Elite Eight game vs. Kansas State that season.  As a sophomore, Smith starting at center made Matt Howard a much better player, as Howard could roam around the perimeter with his newly developed 3 point shot while Smith was being physical in the paint.  Even though he made big leaps and bounds from his freshman season, Smith struggled in the 2011 NCAA tournament, often sitting on the bench in favor of Khyle Marshall.  As a junior, Smith was expected to lead Butler back to the NCAA tournament, but the team's lack of three point shooting caused opposing defenses to clamp down on Smith in the paint, which led to many offensive struggles for both Smith and the team in 2011-12.  Smith was slightly more aggressive as a senior and was able to keep his 11 point per game average while playing strong post defense and providing  excellent leadership.  Smith will definitely be severely missed next season as the Bulldogs try to make it back to the NCAA tournament.

Chase Stigall
This Season: I thought Stigall had a chance to start this season following the dismissal of star guard Chrishawn Hopkins, but strong play in the early season from Roosevelt Jones, Alex Barlow, and Kellen Dunham left the senior on the bench most of the time.  Stigall was relegated to only 10 minutes per game this season, and his playing time steadily decreased during the course of the season.  Stigall was never a great shooter in his Butler career, and he once again hovered around 30 % from distance the entire season.  He was certainly an upgrade to Dunham on defense when he came in the game, but his shot selection was often questionable for a guy who wasn't a particularly good shooter to begin with.  I will remember the two 3's he made to propel Butler to beat Indiana, as that was easily the highlight of his season.  I still commend the way he was able to accept his diminished role, which truly shows he selfless nature as a basketball player.
Butler Career: No one has had as many different roles on Butler as Stigall had.  From bench warmer during his freshman season, to role player off the bench for the majority of his sophomore season, to a starter playing over 20 minutes per game towards the end of that season, taking minutes away from the defensively challenged Zach Hahn.  For November through January of his junior season, he was a starter playing almost 30 minutes per game.  In February and March, he returned to the bench as a role player playing about 15 minutes per game.  As a senior, he played about 10 minutes per game coming off the bench.  Had Stigall become a 38-40% three point shooter, he would've played as much as Kellen Dunham did this season, given the fact that he is clearly a better defender than Dunham is.  But unfortunately, Stigall's inconsistent 3 point shooting kept him in and out of games during his five years in a Butler uniform.  Nonetheless, he always set a great example for younger players, and I was pleased that he was able to contribute for the team in many different aspects, especially on the defensive end, which is what he should be remembered for.

Emerson Kampen
This Season and Butler Career: Brad Stevens said on Dan Dakich's radio show that Kampen was one of the most important players on the team that does not get any credit.  While he averaged less than one minute per game season, I will say this.  No one was as comfortable with a difficult task this season than Emerson Kampen.  It is not easy to have precision on those full court baseball passes, but Kampen did a great job at getting the Bulldogs great looks in short time clock situations this season.  The Marquette game last week and the Evansville game last season are two great examples of Kampen's ability to make the difficult pass to lead to a basket, by Andrew Smith in both situations (although Smith's basket was dubiously waived off in the Evansville game).  EK was also a model of humility and high character.  His contribution to the team does not show up in the box score, but it is quite visible in the Butler locker room.

NCAA Tournament recap, Graves' coaching job, and more

I'm typing from my iPod on a train right now so please excuse any typos.  I'm sorry I haven't posted anything in a week, but I have been traveling on vacation and have had little access to a computer.  I wasn't able to watch Butler vs. Bucknell, though I heard that Butler's bigs did a great job on Mike Muscala.  Rotnei Clarke's shooting really helped Butler overcome a six point deficit in the second half.

I was able to watch the entire second half of the Marquette game.  I was consistently upset with Butler's guards, who missed Andrew Smith on the low post on numerous occasions.  Not only was Smith playing well, more attention on Smith inside could've opened up more perimeter looks for Clarke and Dumham, who both played poor second halves.  Defensively, I felt that Smith did a good job hedging out on Marquette's ball screens, but Clarke could not stay with the Marquette guards, and Roosevelt Jones could've done more to help on defense.  As close as this game was down the stretch I just wasn't sure that the Bulldogs would be able to do enough to win.  Maybe that was because Matt Howard wasn't on the court for BU.  Despite Smith's free throws and a nice baseline jumper from Kam Woods in the last couple of minutes, Butler was just too turnover prone, which has been a problem the entire second half of the season.  Neither Smith nor Clarke
Was able to get good looks from three to win the game, and a great defensive play from who else, Alex Barlow, went for nothing.  So the Bulldogs ran out of the March magic they had in 2010 and 2011.  2013-14 could be a difficult year without the on court ability of Andrew Smith and Rotnei Clarke, and the leadership of Chase Stigall and Emerson Kampen (I should mention that it was Kampen who through the long baseball pass to Smith for the goal-tended layup in the final minute).  But I will talk more about next season as the spring and summer months move on.

In other Butler news, long time assistant coach Matthew Graves (Butler, '98) has accepted the head coaching position at South Alabama.  While he was a great assistant coach and I am sad to see him go, he is more than ready for a head coach job after having been under the tutelage of a head coach like Brad Stevens.  I wish Graves nothing but the best at South Alabama.

Lastly, I will be doing individual player analysis for every Butler player by class.  Expect that to come in the next week or two.

Also, if you are reading this, thank you for taking time to read my blog.  I know I am not the best writer, but I truly have a passion Butler basketball and really live this team win or lose.  I thank you for sticking with my blog despite all the late/missed entries, awkwardly phrased sentences, and any other mistakes I may have made.

Go Bulldogs!