Butler Basketball: Bulldogs knock off undefeated, top-ranked Villanova

1 of 4

INDIANAPOLIS, IN – DECEMBER 30: Butler Bulldogs fans celebrate on the court after defeating the Villanova Wildcats at Hinkle Fieldhouse on December 30, 2017 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) /

Behind a 101-point outburst, Butler basketball upset the Villanova Wildcats for the third consecutive time. How did they do it and what does it mean?

Just days after a remarkable second-half comeback and double-overtime victory over Georgetown, the Butler Bulldogs returned home for one incredible encore. In just their second Big East conference game of the season, Butler rallied behind a scoring explosion and their “Home Sweet Hinkle” crowd to knock off the No. 1 ranked Villanova Wildcats, 101-93.

Leading the way for the Dawgs in this one was senior wing Kelan Martin. The cool senior finished the game with 24 points on an efficient 7-for-12 from the field. In addition, he stepped up the line in crunch time and delivered with crucial free throws. He finished 6-for-7 from the charity stripe.

Joining Martin in the 20+ club for Butler was junior Paul Jorgensen. The “Prince Harry of Harlem” delivered all night long with electric play. In what was the biggest game of his career so far, he stepped up to score 23 points on 8-for-13 from the field and 4-for-7 from 3-point land.

Kamar Baldwin also followed up his 31-point effort against Georgetown with a solid game. The young sophomore added 19 points in this one to go with nine rebounds and a game-high seven assists.

For Villanova, they were led by Big East Player of the Year frontrunner Jalen Brunson. He finished the game with 31 points on 12-for-21 shooting from the field as the lead man for head coach Jay Wright. Late in the second half, it was Brunson who was the catalyst of the big Villanova run that cut into Butler’s 23-point lead.

In addition to Brunson, Mikal Bridges dropped in 21 points on his own while knocking home three 3-pointers. Donte DiVincenzo (16 points) and Eric Paschall (15 points) rounded out the scoring attack for the Wildcats. The biggest missing link in this one for Villanova offensively was freshman Omari Spellman, who scored just four points on 2-for-7 shooting.

Now, with the recap completed, let’s take a look at how this win happened and what it means to both teams.