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No. 14 Butler looks for sixth consecutive victory

Jan 7, 2008 - 5:33 PM No. 14 Butler (13-1) at Loyola Chi (5-9) 8:00 pm EST

CHICAGO (Ticker) -- The last three times No. 14 Butler was victorious at Loyola-Chicago, the Bulldogs had to go to overtime to pull out a win.

Butler (13-1, 2-1 Horizon) will face the Ramblers (5-9, 1-3) in a meeting of the longest-standing league members on Monday. The Bulldogs will be looking to extend their winning streak to six games.

The teams were charter members of the Midwestern City Conference, now known as the Horizon League. The teams have met twice annually since 1980-81. Butler has won three of its last road games against Loyola and leads the all-time series, 43-29.

Butler has matched the best 14-game record in school history, previously accomplishing a 13-1 mark on five occasions, including last season.

The Bulldogs have three starters averaging double figures, led by senior guards Mike Green (15.6 points per game) and A.J. Graves (15.5 ppg). Freshman forward Matt Howard averages 11.8 points and senior forward Pete Campbell, who has made seven starts in 11 games, averages 11.3 points.

Graves averaged 20.7 points in three games against the Ramblers last season and has scored in double figures seven straight games against Loyola.

The Ramblers have lost four of its last five games to drop to four games under .500, Loyola's lowest mark since the 2004-05 campaign. Junior guards J.R. Blount (14.9 ppg) and Justin Cerasoli (12.2) lead the Ramblers in scoring.