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Butler Basketball: 3 takeaways from the Bulldogs’ loss at Maryland

By Lukas Harkins

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - NOVEMBER 12: Aaron Thompson #2 of the Butler Bulldogs trips while dribbling as Amir Bell #5 of the Princeton Tigers defends at Hinkle Fieldhouse on November 12, 2017 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN - NOVEMBER 12: Aaron Thompson #2 of the Butler Bulldogs trips while dribbling as Amir Bell #5 of the Princeton Tigers defends at Hinkle Fieldhouse on November 12, 2017 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) /
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INDIANAPOLIS, IN – NOVEMBER 12: McDermott
INDIANAPOLIS, IN – NOVEMBER 12: McDermott /

Butler’s 3-point defense (and offense) continues to be an issue

Maryland shot 9-for-20 (45.0%) from three in this game. For Butler, their opponent 3-point shooting is starting to become a real issue. Small sample size or not, teams are currently shooting 50.9% from three against Butler in the first three games of the season, which puts the Bulldogs at 347th (out of 351) in the nation in 3-point defense.

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Xavier vs. Butler prediction and odds for Friday February 10 (Value on total) /

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    • In addition to allowing opponents to shoot a high percentage from deep, Butler is also allowing teams to attempt a lot of threes. In just three games so far, Butler has given up 27 total made 3-pointers. While the Bulldogs themselves are just 19-for-63 (30.2%) from deep, they are clearly losing the battle from 3-point land in every game so far this season.

    On the bright side, there is hope that things will turn around for Butler in terms of 3-point shooting on offense and their coverage of the shot defensively. For starters, the Dawgs have plenty of defensive-minded players who have the ability to individually guard 3-point shooters very effectively. For example, Kamar Baldwin and Aaron Thompson are both excellent defenders who can potentially lock down on the perimeter.

    Offensively, Coach LaVall Jordan’s team can rely on the 3-point shooting ability of players such as Baldwin, Kelan Martin, and Sean McDermott to knock down their deep shots this season. All three are currently struggling from deep but it can be expected that each of them will start to shoot between 35-40% from 3-point land.

    Still, as long as Butler continues to lose the 3-point battle by this much, they will struggle to get victories.