This time Butler gets further than Duke
Wisconsin's Jordan Taylor (11) reacts in front of Butler's Zach Hahn (3) after Taylor lost a ball out of bounds during the second half of the NCAA Southeast regional college basketball semifinal game. (March 25, 2011) Credit: AP
Could the Butler mystique do it again? Cinderella got all the way to the NCAA title game against Duke last season before the last shot turned into a pumpkin. But imagine this: On the same night defending champion Duke was bounced from the "Big Dance,'' little Butler swept past Wisconsin, 61-54, in a Southeast Regional semifinal to reach the Elite Eight.
The Bulldogs (26-9) shut down Wisconsin's pair of nominees for the Wooden Award as player of the year, Jordan Taylor and Jon Leuer, holding them to a combined 7-for-31 shooting. The bigger Badgers shot only 30.4 percent from the field and were outrebounded 37-31 as eighth-seeded Butler advanced to the Southeast final Saturday afternoon against Florida (29-7).
It was a teary group of Badgers who appeared in the interview room after the game. They put together a dramatic 25-9 surge late in the game to cut a 20-point Butler lead to 56-52 on a three-pointer by Taylor with 34.1 seconds to play, but it was too little, too late.
Taylor finished with 22 points (6-for-19 shooting) and was the only Wisconsin player in double figures. Leuer had only three points, shooting 1-for-12.
Asked if they could put their finger on what makes Butler so good at this time of year, Taylor said, "They're scrappy; they're relentless. They're tough kids, and that's what makes them winners.''
"They're tough kids who play to their strengths,'' Leuer added.
The Bulldogs were led by Matt Howard with 20 points and 12 rebounds, and they got 13 points from Shelvin Mack and 10 from Shawn Vanzant.
They finished the first half on a 15-8 run to take a 33-24 lead at the break and then forced the Badgers to miss their first 10 shots of the second half while pushing the lead to 20 at 47-27.
Howard said the Bulldogs set the tone with their early defense on Taylor and Leuer. "If you let Taylor and Leuer get open and hit their first four or five shots, they may continue hitting,'' Howard said. "With guys like that, it takes team awareness, and you do what you can to help your teammates.''
Although the Bulldogs struggled at midseason and seemed in danger of missing the tournament altogether, they suddenly find themselves one step away from the Final Four again. Is it hard to believe?
"To me, it's the same as last year,'' Mack said. "You're going through the process, so you can't really enjoy it.''
Butler coach Brad Stevens said he hadn't thought about being alive while Duke is out, but he said, "Being back here, I don't know how to put it in words. I got a text from a friend who said, 'We're [Butler fans] probably having more fun than you are.' That's probably true, but we're very happy.''
