Source: Icon Sportswire / Getty
INDIANAPOLIS — The Butler Bulldogs are out to prove people wrong this season. That’s according to Posh Alexander who helped lead the Bulldogs to a 74-64 victory over Georgetown to open Big East play Tuesday inside Hinkle Fieldhouse.
“You know, everybody talked down on us,” Alexander said. ‘They talked bad about us, saying that we are a ‘horrible team.’ We’re ‘not good. Not great.’ Just using that as motivation to bring the team along. That’s what happened tonight.”
That happened on a night that the Bulldogs did not shoot the ball particularly well. By the end of the night, Butler would be 4-of-18 from behind the arc, which led them to have to rely on physical play and athleticism from Alexander and Pierre Brooks to make things happen.
Butler secured the lead heading into the first under-16 media timeout in the first half and never surrendered the lead for the entirety of the game. The Hoyas hung tough with the Dawgs late in the first half getting to within two-points off a 7-0 run ending with three minutes left.
The Dawgs closed the first half on a 13-to-2 run sparked by a three-pointer from DJ Davis midway through to put the Dawgs up 40-27 at the half.
Georgetown never closed the gap to within eight points for the remainder of the game, cruising to their first win in Big East play this season.
Head coach Thad Matta said the result shows he has brought in the right players to keep rebuilding the Butler basketball program.
“One of the biggest priorities we looked at in recruiting was character,” Matta said. “We have a locker room full of guys that have something to prove. There is a why to who they are. We’ve gotta continue to build because each game keeps getting tougher and tougher.”
Matta said they intend to clean up their shooting, but still applauds his squad for adapting to what will work in the event they have off nights in that regard.
“We had some really good looks tonight that didn’t go down for us,” he said. “We want to be a team that can do both. Be balanced from three, be balanced at the rim, balanced from the free throw line. We’ve got to keep working the shooting, but Pierre (Brooks) is not going to go 1-for-7 again.”
Brooks finished with 13 points, the same total for Alexander. Davis (12 pts) and Jahmyl Telfort (12 pts) were also in double figures.
The Dawgs will take on Providence on Saturday in their first true road conference game.
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Butler Overcomes Slow Shooting Night Beating Georgetown In Big East Opener was originally published on wibc.com
