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.