Teamwork, boardwork get Butler back on track
By CHRIS GOFF
ISL Correspondent
Perhaps sharing the ball was a large emphasis in Butler’s players-only meeting heading into a big road game at Massachusetts.
If so, the Bulldogs did it, tallying 18 assists on the evening, their most in nearly two months. With Butler’s season at a crossroads, the team’s chemistry came around real fast. As far as productive, rhythm passing is concerned, the Bulldogs looked as sharp as they have in weeks – raising hopes that the month of March again will be their zenith.
Butler had lost two straight coming in and needed a win to come away with a winning record on the eight-game Atlantic 10 road slate. What was amazing about Thursday night’s effort was that Butler won so easily that a large crowd, though slightly short of a sellout, never turned the William D. Mullins Center into a noise machine. The fans seemed as deflated as a punctured basketball.The Bulldogs took the air out of the game and matched up well with a fast-paced team by limiting their transition opportunities and dramatically reducing the influence of offensive maestro Chaz Williams, who possessed the ball far less than he desired as perhaps the league’s best pure point guard. Williams, a shot-maker for the most of the season, was a basket case Thursday night, going 2-for-9.
Butler played with the same energy and confidence it showed earlier in the season, and it’ll only get better from here if the Bulldogs can bring their pride, their executive and their desperation every time. On Thursday, the hungrier – if not needier – team got the victory. The Bulldogs fly home from Massachusetts tomorrow morning the beneficiaries of a strong team effort, a night in which all five players smartly executed the same plan, as if they knew each other’s moves a step in advance.
Meanwhile, the Minutemen played as if they had just met a few weeks ago, settling for poor looks, going one-on-one against well-positioned defenders and trying to create shots outside of motion and flow.
Butler outcompeted them tonight, and all of the grit statistics favored the visitors:
Second-chance points: Butler 17, UMass 5.
Points in the paint: Butler 36, UMass 30.
Rebounds: Butler 37, UMass 20.
Coach Brad Stevens adjusted to the Bulldogs’ recent slump by putting an extra shooter into their starting five. Facing a team with big wings, Stevens removed Alex Barlow and slid Kellen Dunham in at shooting guard. Dunham struggled mightily, scoring two points in 18 minutes, but Barlow put together a strong effort from the bench, piling up four points, three assists and four steals.
For the game Butler missed 29 shots from the field and five live-ball free throws, for a total of 34 available rebounds. Out of those caroms, exactly half (17) ended with Butler back in possession. That is true backboard domination by a frontcourt that flexed a lot more muscle.
No surprise that the Bulldogs sent a message they won’t be backing down. No sane person would bet against Butler around this date on the calendar, given the proud, defiant mentality of Stevens that trickles down to his players. On Thursday, they played like a team ready to get its act together.
Let’s examine the subplots:
OUT OF THE WOODS: Kameron Woods scored a career-high 17 points, and the resurgent sophomore missed only four shots from the field. He also had perhaps the signature plays of the game, a pair of backdoor cuts that resulted in lob passes from Jones. If Woods can play as a skillful big man, Butler is covered for those nights when Khyle Marshall just doesn’t have it.
TURNOVER TURNAROUND: Butler masterfully limited the transition opportunities available to the Minutemen by hanging onto the ball. The Bulldogs only had 12 turnovers, which is beneath their season average, and UMass scored just 10 points off of those mistakes. Although the Minutemen typically do not press with the goal of forcing turnovers – their main agenda is to cause offenses to shoot quicker and play at a faster pace – Butler mostly dictated the tempo with a sound game plan that involved throwing the ball over the heads of defenders when UMass set up full-court pressure. A hard-fought defensive battle this was not, but neither was it a running game. Butler had nine fast-break points, the Minutemen had six, which caused Williams to appear fragile and ineffective.
THAT’S MR. SMITH TO YOU: Andrew Smith, who organized a team meeting at his house earlier in the week, played anything but timid. The senior leader scored 11 points and snatched eight rebounds after halftime, helping make sure that UMass would never be able to slice even a point off Butler’s eight-point edge at intermission. On inbounds plays, the ball went to Smith in the middle of the floor, and Butler relied on him to make the right decision. Smith did, every time, committing not one turnover in 37 minutes of action. The 6-foot-11 center is the guy who can take the Bulldogs to the next level. He is typically not a great rebounder, but his presence in the lane is a stabilizing force on both ends. Smith, like his teammates, just didn’t defend well at VCU. Tonight Smith schooled Cady Lalanne.
LAST WORD: Butler found ways to be effective against UMass’ length in a building with which its players had no familiarity, and after more than a month of uneven results, the Bulldogs finally resembled the team that inched as high as No. 9 in the AP Top 25. It was real nice to see Woods show up in a major way. Butler appears to be gearing up for a March charge. A win over Xavier and rally in the A-10 tournament are still needed to get the Bulldogs into a more manageable position in terms of NCAA tournament seeding.
NEXT: The Bulldogs face Xavier (17-12, 9-6) at Hinkle Fieldhouse Saturday at 6:30 p.m. The game is televised on CBS College Sports Network.
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