Junior guard Finley Bizjack poured in a game-high 24 points against DePaul. Photo by Andrew Buckley.
DAVID JACOBS | MANAGING EDITOR | drjacobs@butler.edu
After limping out of the gate early, the men’s basketball team soon settled in offensively to hold on for an 87-80 comeback victory over DePaul.
With the starters going on a four-plus-minute scoring drought to start the game, sophomore guard Evan Haywood gave a much-needed spark with eight points consecutively off the bench to give the Bulldogs their first lead of the night.
The Indy native ended the night with 15 points and a game-high +/- of 12.
“After making those first two [three], I wasn’t focused on [scoring],” Haywood said. “I was more focused on guarding and just making sure that I’m not the weak link out there when playing team defense, and I end up flowing as a shooter.”
Going back-and-forth for the rest of the first half, the Dawgs limited themselves offensively with eight turnovers, leading to seven more field goal attempts for the Blue Demons and a 37-33 deficit heading into the locker room.
As the second period began, Butler came out with a purpose on both ends of the court, consistently turning defense into offense. The effort soon paid off, as the Dawgs found themselves in command of the game following a 16-3 run sparked by eight points from junior guard Finley Bizjack.
“It was hard to get into the flow of the game when we were turning it over [in the first half],” Bizjack said. “We were getting good shots whenever we didn’t turn it over, so once we [started] taking care of the ball and taking our time, we got what we wanted. It was easier to get into the flow and find my shot [to] make things happen.”
With an unprecedented spark of energy filling the airwaves of Hinkle Fieldhouse for the better part of the second half, the Bulldogs were able to coast the rest of the way for a strong seven-point victory.
Bizjack ended the night with a game-high 24 points as graduate forward Michael Ajayi added 17 points, eight rebounds and five assists.
Multiple factors in the second half led to the impressive in-game turnaround, but for head coach Thad Matta, it was just an all-around sharper half of basketball from his Bulldogs that led to their first win-streak in conference play of the season.
“I thought we were down by 15 in the first half,” Matta said. “We didn’t have the juice going, [and] a lot of it was turnovers. The other thing was, I told the fellas, ‘We got to make them miss.’ We [just had to] stop making as many mental breakdowns.”
The Dawgs continue their brief homestand with a Friday evening contest against a spiraling 7-13 Marquette squad in another must-win game to keep any tournament hopes afloat.
“Hopefully we can get Hinkle rocking,” Matta said. “I think it was free beer night [tonight]. Hell, I’ll buy a round if the students show up, whatever I got to do.”
