During the regular season, the Butler Bulldogs shot 3-point field goals at a 34.5% clip. Surely, that's a low number compared to some of Butler's teams from the recent past. All things considered, however, 34.5% is a percentage almost smack-dab in the middle among all NCAA Division I basketball teams this year.
But this isn't the regular season.
There's simply no way to logically explain it — especially with this team's relative struggles from long distance — but something about that arc brings out the best in the Butler Bulldogs during the NCAA Tournament.
What's the first thing a Butler fan thinks of when they hear the name Darnell Archey? Louisville — NCAA Tournament, 2003.
What about Pete Campbell? South Alabama — NCAA Tournament, 2008.
Thursday against UTEP in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament, Shelvin Mack did his best to add his name to Archey and Campbell's company.
In beating UTEP 77-59, a series of triples from Mack was the springboard which allowed Butler to blow the game wide open. The first duo came immediately following the start of the 2nd half, and another duo came on back-to-back possessions with just under the 15:00 minute-mark of the 2nd half. He'd add two more throughout the rest of the half, finish the game 7-of-9 from beyond the arc, on his way to a game-high 25 points. As a team, Butler shot 13-of-31 from the 3-point line, 10-of-19 in the 2nd half.
In this tournament, as they say, the 3-point shot is the great equalizer. For Butler, it was the great divider, showing everyone the difference between an elite mid-major program... and a pretty good one.
Essentially, the Bulldogs shot their way into this tournament's Second Round. And no better time than now to find the touch from the 3-point line. In Butler's last two games, they're shooting a combined 22-of-50 (44%) from the 3-point line. No question, shooting 25 triples per game is either a recipe for great success, or devastating failure. There is rarely any middle ground. But, for Butler, those attempts are coming within the flow of their offense — which is often at its best when their defense is in high gear.
One thing truly led to another in the 2nd half against UTEP. Mack got a steal before, in transition, he hit his first 3-pointer of the 2nd half. In fact, there were multiple players who collected a steal on the defensive end, and turned it into points for someone else on the offensive end. It was a snowball effect — and they don't deal with snow very well (or often) in El Paso.
Here's what the players, and Coach Stevens, had to say about Thursday's win over UTEP...
In this setting, there's really very little time to enjoy a hard-earned victory. A blowout victory on this stage is a rarity, so I'm sure Butler got plenty of enjoyment from simply performing the way they did. After the game, some had already begun thinking about their next game: Saturday vs. Murray State.
Of course, we'll have much more on Friday as both teams will discuss Saturday's showdown for a trip to the Sweet 16. And, if you missed the HLN Live Blog during Thursday's tilt with UTEP, you'll have another chance to take part on Saturday during Butler's game with Murray State.
