Junior guard DJ Davis scored 17 points against DePaul at Hinkle Fieldhouse. Photo by Andrew Buckley.

SARAH HOHMAN | SPORTS EDITOR | shohman@butler.edu

It was a slow game, but a needed win for the Bulldogs at home. Despite a sluggish start, Butler defeated DePaul 74-60 on Jan. 20.

Neither team got off to a hot start, and there was very limited offense to start the game. Butler’s 6-0 run in the middle of the first half proved to be the momentum shift that was needed. The Dawgs’ 11 points off turnovers in the first half compared to DePaul’s zero proved to be a key factor as well.

After a very tough stretch for junior guard DJ Davis, the guard put up a well-rounded game. He finished with 17 points, five steals and three rebounds. Head coach Thad Matta expressed how excited he was for Davis during the game.

“I’m happy for him,” Matta said. “DJ is a great kid, and he cares. He wants to play well. [When] he hit that first one, I thought I blew my arm out of my socket because I was so excited for him. Bottom line, we need DJ to play. We need him to be who he is.” 

Along with Davis, Butler’s two most consistent players, senior guard Posh Alexander and junior guard Pierre Brooks, were the other two leading scorers. Brooks put up 20 points and collected four rebounds. Alexander finished with 17 points and collected six steals. 

Let’s go beyond the box score.

Not letting up 

In slow games like this one, it is very easy to let the opponent back into the game. However, the closest the Blue Demons got was within nine in the second half. Davis was a big part in keeping the Dawgs ahead. 

“My last couple of games defensively haven’t been great,” Davis said. “I hadn’t made a shot in the last couple of games. I just wanted to come in and show that it wasn’t going to be a third game [without making a shot].” 

Takeaways 

Butler’s backcourt brought the energy against the Blue Demons. Alexander and Davis were leaders in their defense and transition offense.

Matta emphasized the importance of the defense in a matchup like this one. 

“Posh is all over the place,” Matta said. “I thought he was tremendous tonight. He did a great job leading this team and getting this team ready going into this game.”

With the guidance of these leaders, this team needs to play a good stretch of basketball in the Big East to keep within reach of a tournament berth.

“We’ve got to build,” Matta said. “We’ve got to get some rest. We’ve got a huge week coming up.”

Butler will travel to Washington, D.C. to face off against Georgetown on Tuesday, Jan. 23.