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Butler Basketball: Keys to success against Morehead State in 2019-20

By Lukas Harkins

PHILADELPHIA, PA - MARCH 02: Aaron Thompson #2 of the Butler Bulldogs shoots the ball against Jermaine Samuels #23 of the Villanova Wildcats in the first half at the Wells Fargo Center on March 2, 2019 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA - MARCH 02: Aaron Thompson #2 of the Butler Bulldogs shoots the ball against Jermaine Samuels #23 of the Villanova Wildcats in the first half at the Wells Fargo Center on March 2, 2019 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /
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SYRACUSE, NY – NOVEMBER 10: Walker of the Eagles makes. (Photo by Brett Carlsen/Getty Images)
SYRACUSE, NY – NOVEMBER 10: Walker of the Eagles makes. (Photo by Brett Carlsen/Getty Images) /

Opponent Intel: Morehead State Eagles

Butler’s opponent in this matchup will be Morehead State, a mid-major program out of the Ohio Valley Conference. They finished last season with a 13-20 (8-10 OVC) record and went 0-17 against teams ranked in the top-190 of KenPom. With regard to the 2019-20 season, the Eagles are once again expected to finish in the middle of the conference as they were picked sixth in the preseason (out of 12).

After five games, the Eagles rank at just No. 244 in KenPom while holding a 4-1 record that includes one win over a top-300 team (Samford – No. 157 in double-OT). The Eagles most recently took on Missouri on the road and their offense sputtered while producing just 52 points in an 18-point defeat. They are not particularly strong on either end of the floor but do boast a dynamic guard with the ability to take over games for stretches.

Jordan Walker, a 6-foot-0 senior guard who played at Cathedral High School in Indy, averaged 15.8 points per game last season on 39.8% shooting from beyond the arc. He is the clear-cut top offensive option for the Eagles and can be difficult to stop when he gets hot. Walker was held to just 14 points on 4-for-11 shooting against Missouri earlier this season but did average 16.3 points per game (45.5% from three) against high-major opposition (3 GP) a year ago. He can definitely be a three-level threat and Butler’s Aaron Thompson will likely draw this matchup defensively.

With regard to the other pieces of Morehead State’s roster, Walker’s starting backcourt partners are two other Hoosier State natives in Justin Thomas and Djimon Henson. Thomas is the team’s main distributor but he can also be a viable scoring option as well. He is averaging 9.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 4.6 assists per game as he consistently outplays his size of 5-foot-11. Thomas played high school ball at Pike. Henson brings a bit more size to the table but he still stands at just 6-foot-3 for their starting “3”. He played at Lawrence North prior to Morehead State and is posting 7.8 points per game thus far.

Off the bench, head coach Preston Spradlin turns to Malik Riddle as a spark-plug scorer and Ta’Lon Cooper as an all-around contributor to fill out his remaining backcourt pieces.

Moving to their frontcourt, the Eagles do not boast a ton of size. In fact, their roster only includes four players listed at 6-foot-7 or taller and all of them are in their first season at the D1 level. The most notable of these is perhaps Tyzhaun Claude. Although he comes off the bench, the 6-foot-8 big is averaging 7.8 points and 7.8 rebounds per to begin this season. The other freshmen receiving minutes in the frontcourt across all five games have been LJ Bryan (6.6p/4.4r) and Julius Dixon. Jaden Stanley-Williams has sat out the last two contests.

Of this group of freshmen/newcomers (JSW has three eligibility years left), Claude has been the best performer so far. It is Bryan, though, that has drawn all five starts to begin the year alongside notable upperclassman James Baker. A 6-foot-6 junior, Baker is second on the team so far this season with 12.4 points per game. He is the next offensive option behind Walker.