Butler's Wake

Some teams wear you out mentally. Some teams wear you out physically. Butler does both. Their flexibility on offense and their toughness on defense have left Butler's opponents exhausted for their next game. It started in Anaheim and has never been more prevalent than the second half of Horizon League play.

At the beginning of league play, somebody asked Valparaiso head coach Homer Drew if he thought it would be an advantage to be Butler's travel partner. He side-stepped the question, like most good coaches do, and harped on the "one game at a time" mantra that makes reporters yawn.

What Homer should have said was: YES!!!

Butler's opponents have a combined record of 287-222 this season, 65 games over .500. Those same teams are 11-16 in games after they've played the Bulldogs. This includes losses by Clemson, Minnesota and UAB. So even if you beat the Bulldogs, they will take enough out of you to affect your next game.

This trend started early. Butler opened their season against Davidson and won a hard-fought contest, 72-63. Davidson didn't win a D-I game for another two weeks and started out 1-8 vs. D-I competition.

Fast forward to the first round of league play. Butler beat Valparaiso at home on December 5th and Valpo proceeded to get trounced by another nationally ranked team, Purdue, in their next game. Valpo getting beat by a "Top 5" team on the road shouldn't be a surprise. But, a closer look at the numbers shows they trailed 22-3 in the first half and were never in the game. An in-state rivalry game, against a nationally ranked team, and Valpo came out flat. Verdict: Butler Hangover.

Never has the "Butler Hangover" been more prevalent than the last five weeks. Since January 14th, Butler's opponents are 2-9 in their next game.

This coincides a bit with Valpo's turnaround in Horizon League play, but not all of these teams immediately played the Crusaders after the Bulldogs.

Here is the streak:

1/14 Butler defeats Cleveland State, 64-55
CSU's next game: LOSS @ Valpo, 78-71

1/16 Butler defeats Youngstown State, 91-61
YSU's next game: LOSS vs. Milwaukee, 69-59

1/21 Butler defeats Loyola, 48-47
Loyola's next game: LOSS vs. Valpo, 86-67

Timeout.

The Ramblers' loss to Butler, followed by their loss to Valpo, is a prime example of a "Butler Hangover". It has all the symptoms.

Big crowd vs. Bulldogs? CHECK.
Great environment inside the Gentile Center? CHECK.
Women's team defeats previously unbeaten (and nationally-ranked) Green Bay prior to Men's game? CHECK.
Heartbreaking loss to Butler? DOUBLE-CHECK.
Give up almost twice as many points to Valpo? CHECK-PLUS.

It's difficult to lose such a close game in the Horizon League, and then have to turn around less than 48 hours later and get up for another league game. It's even more difficult when that team is Butler and they've physically worn you down and mentally stretched you to your limits.

Let's continue...

1/23 Butler defeats UIC 84-55
UIC's next game: LOSS @ Wright State by 36!

1/29 Butler defeats Green Bay 75-57
Green Bay's next game: LOSS vs. Valpo, 84-79 (The only two home losses in league play for the Phoenix)

1/31 Butler defeats Milwaukee 73-66
Milwaukee's next game: LOSS @ Green Bay, 61-54 (A 27-point turnaround from their 20-point win at home against GB)

2/4 Butler defeats Detroit 63-58
Detroit's next game: LOSS @ Valpo, 74-70

2/6 Butler defeats Wright State 74-62
WSU's next game: WIN vs. Milwaukee, 68-63 (Worth noting that it was 5 days after the loss @ Butler)

2/8 Butler defeats Loyola 62-47
Loyola's next game: WIN vs. UIC, 80-63 (Worth noting that it was another 5 day recovery period for Loyola)

2/11 Butler defeats Youngstown State 68-57
YSU's next game: LOSS vs. Valpo, 77-75

2/13 Butler defeats Cleveland State 70-59
CSU's next game: LOSS (last night) @ Green Bay, 74-57 (Not very competitive in the second half)

It seems like losing to the Bulldogs takes a certain amount of wind out of a team's sails. They win and have you anguishing over the loss for several days.

There is one team out there that seems to have the hangover antidote and that's the Wright State Raiders. WSU is 2-0 following losses to Butler, the only team in the league that can make that claim. Cleveland State seems hardest hit with losses at Valpo and at Green Bay, perhaps their two most disappointing performances of the season. THIS might as well be playing on the Vikings' team bus.

Butler has dominated the league in so many ways this season, but this could represent one of the most impressive ways they've done so. They beat you, and then beat you again while you're playing someone else. Butler has its hands wrapped tightly around the throat of the Horizon League, and doesn't look willing to relent anytime soon. They are in the heads of the other nine teams, and to dispute that would be ignoring the facts.