Final
Butler upends Xavier with gritty effort
Dec 24, 2008 - 6:50 AM CINCINNATI (Ticker) -- Butler took a page out of Xavier's playbook to end its struggles against an old conference foe.Matt Howard and freshman Gordon Hayward each scored 19 points as Butler outmuscled No. 12 Xavier for a 74-65 upset on Tuesday.
Willie Veasley chipped in 12 points for the Bulldogs (10-1), who snapped a seven-game losing streak against the Musketeers, a former Midwestern Collegiate Conference foe. This was their first meeting since November 17, 1998.
Butler played hard-nosed throughout, overcoming 35 percent (20-of-57) shooting by forcing 17 turnovers and holding its own with more athletic Xavier on the boards. Howard grabbed 14 rebounds and Hayward 10 as the Bulldogs trailed just 40-38.
"I'm excited about the way our team played," Butler coach Brad Stevens said. "I thought our guys played with pretty much poise. I thought Matt was unbelievable tonight. He played so hard on every possession."
Butler also came up big at the free-throw line, making 26-of-30 attempts in the second half to stave off any charge by Xavier.
The Bulldogs ended up beating a ranked team for the first time since topping four-seeded Maryland in the second round of the 2007 NCAA Tournament.
Xavier (9-2), which has lost two straight including a lopsided loss to then-No. 6 Duke, 82-64, on Saturday, pulled within 68-65 on a 3-pointer by Derrick Brown with 1:52 remaining.
Ronald Nored converted two free throws for the Bulldogs, and Hayward blocked a dunk attempt by Jamel McLean with 41 seconds left.
The block was one of four in the game for the 6-8 swingman.
"Gordon Hayward, I cannot believe how good of a player he is for a freshman," Xavier coach Sean Miller said. "Couple him with Matt Howard, a relentless warrior."
Hayward also sank two foul shots with 18 ticks to play and, after a missed 3-pointer by Dante Jackson, Shelvin Mack added two more from the stripe in the closing moments for Butler.
Hayward went 10-of-10 from the line and Howard finished 9-of-13 for Butler, which improved to 1-1 against ranked teams this season.
Brown scored 17 points for the Musketeers, who saw a 15-game winning streak at the Cintas Center snapped.
They could not come up with a big shot in the second half, shooting 3-of-14 from the arc after halftime.
C.J. Anderson added 15 points and Jackson nine for Xavier, which was sunk by a subpar performance from the line, missing 10-of-22 attempts.
"We were not surprised," Anderson said. "Maybe, we didn't give as good an effort as we could have. Butler did a really good job defending us inside."
Third-leading scorer B.J. Raymond had just three points, going 1-of-7 from the field and 1-of-5 on 3-pointers for the Musketeers.
- NCAA BB
FINAL 1ST 2ND TOTAL
--- --- -----
BUTLER 29 45 74
XAVIER (12) 26 39 65 FINAL
Dec 23 9:11 PM - NCAA BB
BUTLER 29
(12) XAVIER 26 HALFTIME
Dec 23 7:49 PM
Related News
- Merry Christmas, Xavier Nation! Dec 25
- Xavier gets back in the win in Big East home opener Dec 23
- Xavier v. Seton Hall: preview, matchups, keys to the game Dec 23
- Should I still be hopeful? Dec 22
- Xavier 66-81 SJU: Big East play starts with a comprehensive beating Dec 20
- Xavier v. St. John's: preview, matchups, keys to the game Dec 20
- Xavier closes out non conference play with a win over Winthrop Dec 16
- Xavier v. Winthrop: preview, matchups, keys to the game Dec 16
- Xavier is trying to eliminate the three pointer Dec 12
- What’s in the NET today? Dec 11
- The Quincy Olivari Game Dec 9
- A quick review Dec 9