HOUSTON — It’s not only the “Butler way.” It’s that Butler will find a way.
Struggling to knock down shots for the entire 40 minutes, eighth-seeded Butler (28-9) continued its amazing run and made midmajor programs smile from coast-to-coast Saturday by reaching the national championship game for the second consecutive year.
The Bulldogs’ 70-62 victory over 11th-seeded Virginia Commonwealth left a record Final Four crowd of 75,421 in Reliant Stadium shaking their heads — either in astonishment or admiration. What’s next? A sequel to the movie “Hoosiers”?
Butler limited VCU, one of the NCAA Tournament’s most potent offensive teams, to 12 points below its scoring average during its previous five games in the tournament. The Bulldogs outscored VCU 9-5 in the final 2 1/2 minutes when the game seemingly hung with every play, every shot.
“You have to have a trust in your teammates that you’re going to do the same things in the last two minutes that you did in the first 38,” said Butler senior forward Matt Howard, who probably had more floor burns than field goals (three). “We didn’t let the surrounding get to us.”
Getting 24 points from junior guard Shelvin Mack, Butler advanced to Monday night’s title game. Butler broke hearts last year in its hometown of Indianapolis, coming up just short, 61-59, when a mid-court heave at the buzzer from departed star Gordon Hayward against Duke rimmed out.
Here in Houston, the Bulldogs have their sights set on the whole enchilada.
“I told the team I’m not going to give them a chest bump until (the Final Four) is over,” Butler coach Brad Stevens said.
The last team from a non-power conference to win the national championship was UNLV in 1990 at Denver’s McNichols Arena. The Rebels played in the Big West, but that was in an era when nobody used the term midmajor, and UNLV’s Jerry Tarkanian recruited as many blue-chippers as the big boys. Can anything compare to this?
“We look at it that we want to win, not that a midmajor wants to win,” said Howard, deflecting the Cinderella story line.
How did Butler do it? The Bulldogs, facing a more athletic opponent, hit just 35.6 percent, were bothered for stretches against VCU’s pressing defense and never really found a rhythm offensively.
The difference came in the paint. Butler won the rebounding battle by a stunning 48-32 advantage. More crucial was a 16-6 domination in offensive boards that translated into 19 second-chance points for the Bulldogs, compared with six for VCU.
“Butler was the more aggressive team, and that was the difference,” VCU coach Shaka Smart said. “That’s what was different than in our previous five games. I think it was more what Butler did. But make no mistake about it, this one stings.”
How’s this for shaking off adversity: Butler’s Mack missed two free throws with 11:53 to go and his team up 44-43 and the Bulldogs desperately needing points. Undaunted, Mack took advantage of a VCU missed layup and swished a 3-pointer.
“Mack was a killer,” Smart said. “We worked on not letting them get open 3-pointers, and he goes 5-for-6.”
VCU depends even more on the 3-pointer but could make only the same number (eight) as Butler.
“Our inability to get out in transition limited our chances,” Smart said.
Has there ever been a game where the pivotal play was a failed four-point play by the loser? Maybe this time. VCU’s spectacular Jamie Skeen (27 points) was bumped by Butler’s Ronald Nored just as he bagged a 3-pointer from the left side with 2:32 remaining and the Rams down 61-54.
A converted four-point play might have turned the momentum. But Skeen’s free throw rolled off the rim. Butler, able to exhale, clamped down with its defense. VCU wouldn’t score again until 30.5 seconds remained. By then it was too late.
“They are the most physical team we’ve faced,” VCU’s Bradford Burgess said of Butler. With VCU having knocked off teams from five power conferences in the tournament, that statement would shock much of the college basketball world.
But that considering Butler is back at it, maybe shock isn’t appropriate anymore. Butler isn’t just a nice story. It has a great program.
