Senior guard Pierre Brooks scored 26 points and grabbed seven rebounds in the loss to North Dakota State. Photo by Andrew Buckley.
SARAH HOHMAN | MANAGING EDITOR | shohman@butler.edu
Butler men’s basketball fell to the North Dakota State Bison 71-68 on Dec. 10 in a rollercoaster of a game. The Dawgs are now 7-3 to start the season.
This was a tale of two cities and then some. Butler was down 21 at halftime and Jacari White outscored the entire Bulldog offense 24-23.
The Bulldogs slowly crept back thanks to the help of dynamic duo fifth-year forward Jahmyl Telfort and senior guard Pierre Brooks who combined for 49 points on the night. With a three pointer by Patrick McCaffery with 3:56 left in the game, Butler took the lead.
The Dawgs lead would hit five, but the Bison came roaring back with two threes from Jacksen Moni.
On top of the loss, sophomore forward Augusto Cassia went down hard in the second half and did not get up. Cassia was helped to the locker room and could not put any pressure on his leg. Head coach Thad Matta said Cassia will go in for an MRI tomorrow.
Following a bad loss for Butler, let’s go beyond the box score.
Second half adjustments were not enough
The Dawgs had arguably their worst half of basketball in the first half against the Bison. Hats off to North Dakota State and White for their stellar shooting performance, but the Dawgs could not find a shot of their own.
Butler shot 31% from the field compared to the Bison’s 53% and 25% from the three compared to their 42% in the first half.
Matta said the Bulldog’s first half offensive performance was not up to standard.
“We had 23 points at halftime which is inacceptable,” Matta said. “We didn’t have a pace. We didn’t have the grit we needed offensively to counter the makes … They had one of the greatest halves I’ve ever seen a team have.”
Despite this appalling first half, the Dawgs climbed all the way back. The defense set a full court press in the second half which seemingly shut down the lights out Bison shooting. The Dawgs also started making their way down the lane and drawing fouls — taking 16 trips to the free throw line in the second half.
All in all, the Bulldogs could not finish at the end of the game, even with ample opportunities. They get their next shot at a win against a tough Wisconsin team at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Saturday, Dec. 14 at 2:30 p.m.
