Butler Wraps Up Exhibition Slate Against Indianapolis
Butler vs.
Indianapolis
Saturday, Nov. 3, 7 p.m. (ET)
Hinkle Fieldhouse - Indianapolis, Ind.
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FINAL PREP: Butler will close out its
preseason schedule and renew an old rivalry when its hosts
Indianapolis in an exhibition game on Saturday, Nov. 3. The
Bulldogs' final preseason test will tip-off at 7 p.m. (ET) at
Hinkle Fieldhouse. Indianapolis, coming off a 20-9 campaign
and ranked No. 20 in in Division II Bulletin's preseason national
poll, will be making its first appearance in Hinkle Fieldhouse
since 1987-88. The Greyhounds return second-leading scorer
Reece Cheatham (13.6 ppg) and four other letterwinners from last
year's squad, which advanced to the second round of the NCAA
Division II Tournament. Indianapolis head coach Stan Gouard
also will be looking to a host of newcomers, including Division I
transfers James Hollowell (Eastern Illinois) and Tyrae Robinson
(Ball State). Butler, coming off a 62-40 victory in its
exhibition opener against Marian, will be meeting the Greyhounds
for the 39th time. The Bulldogs will begin their regular
season at home on Nov. 10 against Elon. That contest, which
will start at 2 p.m. (ET), will be one of seven Opening Games for
the 29th Annual EA Sports Maui Invitational. The Bulldogs
will play in the Championship Round of the Maui Invitational, Nov.
19-21, in Hawaii.
Butler is 69-11 at home under head coach Brad
Stevens.
SUCCESSFUL START: Butler pulled away in the
second half, after a very competitive opening period in its
exhibition game against Marian. The visiting Knights, coached
by former Butler head coach Todd Lickliter, never trailed by more
than seven points in the first 20 minutes and were within five
points, 25-20, at halftime. But the Bulldogs, behind some
long range sharp-shooting, turned that around early in the final
period. Butler opened the second half with a 16-2 scoring run
to take command of the contest. Senior Chase
Stigall led the early second half assault with back-to-back
three-point field goals, while junior Khyle
Marshall and sophomore Andrew
Smeathers each added three points to the run. Butler led
by as many as 26 points late in the game.
DIFFERENT LOOK: Butler didn't make enough
three-point field goals to qualify for the NCAA national rankings a
year ago, but the Bulldogs' team three-point field goal percentage
(.281) would have ranked near the bottom of the national
standings. That should change dramatically, if Butler's first
exhibition game is any indication. The Bulldog gave a strong
showing of improved marksmanship in the second half against Marian
by connecting on eight of 12 shots (.667) from beyond the
three-point arc. Freshman Kellen
Dunham led the way by hitting four of five attempts from the
three-point line, while senior Chase Stigall connected on both of
his second half three-point attempts. The Bulldogs wound up
shooting .476 (10-21) from the three-point arc for the game.
The 10 three-pointers matched Butler's second-highest single game
total of a year ago.
LESSONS LEARNED: The Bulldogs' exhibition
game against Marian marked the return to Hinkle Fieldhouse of
former Butler head coach Todd Lickliter, now head coach of the
Knights. Butler coach Brad Stevens served as an assistant
coach under Lickliter for six seasons. It was the fourth time
that Stevens has lined up against a former boss, and the current
Butler coach is 3-1 in those games, including a 2-1 mark against
former boss Thad Matta and Ohio State.
NEW LEAGUE: Butler ended a 33-year
affiliation with the Horizon League and joined the Atlantic 10
Conference during the summer of 2012. The A-10 is the new
home for all Butler sports except football (Pioneer Football
League) and women's golf (Metro Atlantic Athletic
Conference). The Bulldogs will play a 16-game men's
basketball schedule in the A-10 in 2012-13. Butler's first
game in the new league will be at preseason favorite Saint Joseph's
on Wednesday, Jan. 9. The Bulldogs will play their first A-10
home game against Richmond on Wednesday, Jan. 16.
FAMILIAR LOOK: Butler head coach Brad
Stevens has 11 of the 14 players from last year's 22-15 squad back
this season, and that group includes three returning
starters. Leading the returnees is 6-11 senior center Andrew
Smith, who topped the Bulldogs in scoring and finished second
in rebounding a year ago. Smith, who started 36 of the
Bulldogs' 37 games in 2011-12, is the last active Butler player who
saw action in the Final Four in both 2010 and 2011. Stevens
also can look to returning regulars Khyle Marshall and Roosevelt
Jones. Marshall was Butler's second-leading scorer a year
ago, while Jones led the squad in rebounding. Four other
players, senior Chase Stigall, junior Erik Fromm
and sophomores Kameron
Woods and Jackson
Aldridge each played in 35 or more games last season.
Stigall, who started 18 games, led the Bulldogs with 50 three-point
field goals, while Woods topped the team in blocked shots
(39). Butler earned a bid to the postseason College
Basketball Invitational (CBI) and advanced to the semifinals of the
tournament. before losing in overtime to eventual tournament champ
Pittsburgh.
NEW ADDITIONS: Four players will be suiting
up for Butler for the first time in 2012-13, though one has already
spent a season with the Bulldogs. Senior Rotnei
Clarke, who transferred to Butler from Arkansas and sat out
last season, brings both experience and talent to the Bulldogs'
lineup. The 6-0 guard is the all-time leading scorer in
Oklahoma high school history, and he led the Razorbacks in scoring
(15.2) while earning second team All-SEC honors in 2010-11.
He's already scored 1,306 collegiate points. Also joining the
Bulldogs are a trio of freshmen, 6-6 Kellen Dunham, 6-3 Devontae
Morgan and 5-11 Chris
Harrison-Docks. Dunham led the state of Indiana in
scoring with a 29.5 average last year, while Morgan was Florida's
3A Player of the Year. Harrison-Docks averaged 23 points and
seven rebounds, while earning All-State honors in Michigan last
year.
TWENTY PLUS: The Bulldogs posted 20 wins
for the seventh consecutive season and for the 14th time in the
past 16 campaigns a year ago. The seven straight 20-win
campaigns matched the school (and conference) record for most
consecutive 20-win seasons, originally set by Butler from 1996 to
2003.
Butler has averaged 24 victories over the past 16
seasons.
HOME WORK: The Bulldogs stretched their
streak of consecutive years with at least 10 homecourt wins to 17
in a row with their victory over Indiana State in 2012 Sears
BracketBuster X. Butler added three more home wins and
finished the 2011-12 season with a 13-6 record in Hinkle
Fieldhouse.
Butler is 165-25 at Hinkle Fieldhouse since the start of the
1999-2000 season.
BULLDOG BITS:
•Butler head coach Brad Stevens used 14 different players
against Marian, and 10 of those Bulldogs cracked the scoring
column. Butler was led by junior forward Khyle Marshall and
freshman guard Kellen Dunham, both with 12 points.
•The Bulldogs hit 12 of 22 (.545) shots from the field in the
second half, including eight of 12 (.667) from beyond the
three-point arc.
•Khyle Marshall hit four of the five shots he attempted in
Butler's victory over Marian. In his last eight games in
Hinkle Fieldhouse, Marshall has connected on 33 of 49 (.673) field
goal attempts.
•Freshman Kellen Dunham, who came off the bench to share
Butler's scoring lead against Marian, tallied all 12 of his points
in the final 20 minutes.
•Senior Rotnei Clarke led the Bulldogs with 28 minutes
against Marian. Only four Bulldogs played more than half the
game - Clark, sophomore Roosevelt Jones (25), freshman Kellen
Dunham (23) and sophomore Kameron Woods (21).
•Rotnei Clarke, playing his first game in more than a year
and a half since transferring from Arkansas, posted nine points,
four rebounds, three assists and one steal in his return to
action.
•Forward Kameron Woods came off the bench to lead the
Bulldogs in both rebounds and assists in the opening exhibition
game. Woods pulled down eight rebounds in the win and
recorded a game-high four assists. He also had a game-high
two blocked shots and shared the team lead with two steals.
•Sophomore Andrew Smeathers, coming off summer hip surgery,
came off the bench to score nine points in 11 minutes against
Marian. The 6-6 guard hit three of four attempts from the
three-point line.
•Senior Andrew Smith, Butler's leading scorer a year ago,
played only 14 minutes against Marian and finished with three
points, three rebounds and one assist. Smith averaged 10.9
points last year.
•The Bulldogs advanced to postseason tournament play for the
school-record seventh consecutive year. Butler also appeared
in postseason tournaments for seven straight years from 1997 to
2003.
•Butler played 19 regular season games in 2011-12 against
teams that advanced to postseason play. Among the Bulldogs'
regular season opponents were Final Four team Louisville and NIT
champ Stanford. Nine of Butler's wins last season came
against teams that advanced to postseason tournament play.
•Center Andrew Smith will enter 2012-13 in sixth place on
Butler's all-time list for field goal shooting. Smith has
shot .546 from the field in his first three seasons with the
Bulldogs.
•Andrew Smith had Butler's top single game scoring output in
2011-12 with 25 points against Wright State in the league
tournament.
•Andrew Smith shot .593 from the field, .464 from beyond the
three-point arc and averaged 12.5 points in Butler's 22 wins.
•Forward Khyle Marshall led the Bulldogs and ranked third in
the Horizon League in field goal shooting (.553) a year ago.
He'll enter the 2012-13 season in a tie for 11th place on Butler's
all-time list for FG% (.536).
•Khyle Marshall averaged 11.5 points in 11 games after
returning from a concussion that sidelined him for two games in
early February of last season.
•Forward Roosevelt Jones set a Butler freshman record with
four double-doubles in 2011-12, one better than teammate Kameron
Woods, Matt Howard (2007-08) and current NBA player Gordon Hayward
(2008-09). Jones had three double-doubles in Butler's final
13 games.
•Roosevelt Jones led the Bulldogs with six games of 10 or
more rebounds. Teammate Khyle Marshall hit double-figures in
rebounds four times, while Andrew Smith and Kameron Woods each hit
the mark three times.
•Head coach Brad Stevens, entering his sixth season at the
Bulldogs' helm, needs just four wins to catch Joe Sexson, 1977-89,
in third place on Butler's all-time list for coaching wins.
•Brad Stevens finished 2011-12 in first place on the NCAA
Division I list for Best Coaching Starts By Wins, 5 Seasons, with
139 victories. He also holds the NCAA three-year (89) and
four-year (117) records.
•The top seven single season win totals in Butler basketball
history have been recorded since Brad Stevens joined the Bulldogs'
coaching staff. He's guided the Bulldogs to the No. 1 (33 in
2009-10), No. 2 (30 in 2007-08), No. 4 (28 in 2010-11) and No. 6-T
(26 in 2008-09) win totals as Butler's head coach, and he served as
an assistant coach on teams that posted the No. 3 (29 in 2006-07),
No. 5 (27 in 2002-03) and No. 6-T (26 in 2001-02) totals.
•Brad Stevens recorded his fifth straight 20-win season with
the Bulldogs, matching former coach (and current Athletic Director)
Barry Collier for the most 20-win campaigns by a Butler
coach. Todd Lickliter, Stevens' former boss, led Butler to
four 20-win seasons, Harlan O. "Pat" Page had two, and Paul D.
"Tony" Hinkle and Thad Matta each led Butler to one 20-win
season.
•Brad Stevens has led the Bulldogs to postseason play in each
of his five seasons as head coach. He also participated in
postseason action while serving as Butler's Director of Basketball
Operations in 2001 and as an assistant coach with the Bulldogs in
2003, 2006 and 2007. Butler is 13-5 in postseason play under
Stevens as a head coach and 20-10 with Stevens as a member of the
Bulldogs' staff.
