As students trickled back to campus after Fall Break, the men’s basketball team tipped off its second of three exhibitions ahead of the regular season. The Dawgs downed Indiana State 81-74 for their first unofficial victory of the season at Hinkle Fieldhouse, with head coach Ronald Nored besting his own former coach, Matthew Graves, now the man at the helm for the Sycamores.
A blowout win would have been a breath of fresh air for the Bulldogs after a hard-fought first half against Indiana turned into a landslide in the other direction. Instead, the aptly named home squad found itself in another dogfight. Butler got out to a 10-point lead at the under-eight timeout in the first half against the team from Terre Haute, Ind. and held on to an eight-point advantage at the half.
First-year guard Baron Walker was a surprise catalyst, pouring in eight points in his first five minutes of action to bring the Bulldog faithful to their feet. Walker was not the only member of the backcourt to stand out, though. Graduate guard Jalen Jackson led Butler in scoring for the second consecutive game, while also dishing out a game-high seven assists.
Nored praised the way the pair can coexist effectively on the court.
“When he’s on the floor with Jalen, those guys can share the ball and initiate offensive responsibilities with the other guys,” Nored said. “Baron is more of the initiator, and I think that’s the benefit to having Baron and Jalen. Those guys are both willing to [play] off the ball and share the ball.”
Despite the Dawgs’ strong guard play, Indiana State would not go away in the second half, trimming the lead to two points with seven minutes remaining in the game, spurred on by a burst from redshirt senior guard Karmani Gregory. The Sycamore standout led all scorers with 22 points.
Butler did manage to absorb the run, though, with six consecutive points from Jackson reinvigorating both the Bulldogs and the crowd. That scoring punch provided just enough momentum for the home team to hang on for the victory.
“It’s just a matter of resiliency,” Drayton Jones said. “It’s been a big thing for all our guys to stay competitive and stay prepared no matter the circumstances. Basketball is a game of runs … It’s a game of not one punch, but several.”
Led by their senior center, the Dawgs’ much-improved rebounding played a significant factor in their ability to come away victorious. Jones came down with a game-high nine boards, while junior forward Treyson Anderson snagged eight.
Indiana State gave up just about any hope at offensive rebounding in order to get back in transition defense, but Butler controlled the glass even beyond that, to the tune of a 44-29 rebounding advantage.
“What we wanted to focus on most was rebounding, pushing the pace and playing our style of basketball,” Jones said.
Still, at the end of the night, nobody in the building cared much about scoring or rebounding. The greater concern was the health of Jackson, who went down in a heap after fighting around a screen late in the game. Jackson appeared to be grabbing his left knee. Now, Butler fans must hold their collective breath for their veteran leader whose season was ended early by a left ankle injury last year.
Nored stated postgame that Jackson will be seen by doctors in the days following the game. He praised his point guard’s work ethic.
“You’re not going to find a harder worker than Jalen Jackson,” Nored said. “Going down after six games [last season] was hard for him and he’s so excited to be back on the floor.”
With or without Jackson, the Bulldogs’ exhibition slate will conclude with a road matchup against Ohio State on Oct. 25.