Bulldogs vs Salukis
Tonight at 9pm on ESPNU is the Butler-Southern Illinois game, a clash of two of the premier mid-major basketball programs in the country. The game is in Carbondale this time, as last year’s Bracketbuster game in Hinkle required the Dawgs to return the favor this year. Last year’s game was pretty miserable…I remember going to the game, sitting in a packed Hinkle, and watching AJ Graves puke on the sidelines, while the rest of the team puked out a basketball game and lost 68-64. The game really wasn’t as close as the score indicated, unfortunately. SIU played smothering defense, and had outstanding guard play and defense from Jamal Tatum, who has thankfully graduated. Graves was pretty much shut down entirely, and the cause is dependent upon your school affiliation. If you’re a Butler fan, it was clearly because he had the flu. If you’re a Saluki fan, it was obviously because they played superior defense. I remember walking dejectedly out of Hinkle afterwards, into a snowstorm that had turned the normally parking-deficient Butler campus into a slushy, snowy, profanity laden disaster zone. (I’d like to thank the two guys who helped push my car out of its deathbed, er, parking spot.)
Tonight’s game couldn’t possibly be any worse. SIU had high expectations this year, but they have fallen flat recently (5-5 record) due to a lack of offensive production. They still have a solid defense, but without Tatum they really don’t have an outside scoring threat. Josh Bone has tried to fill in the void, but he’s shooting at a lousy 28% clip. The matchup to watch tonight will be Butler’s Matt Howard against SIU’s Randal Falker. Falker is a beast down low, and while the Bulldogs handled him pretty well defensively last year, couldn’t really get anything going in the paint. Howard has uncanny post skills for a true freshman, so I look for him to come away with a double double tonight, and give the Dawgs some much needed interior scoring, as the perimeter will likely be defended to the death by the scrappy Salukis. Expect this game to be a low scoring slugfest. Both teams defend extremely well, so back to back threes by either team late in the second half could put it away. SIU has a great homecourt advantage, as they have only three or four home losses in the past five years playing in their backyard.
A quick review of each teams’ efficiency statistics, coupled with SIU’s eye popping home court record makes it obvious why Vegas has called this game a pickem (50/50), despite SIU’s 5-5 overall record. If Butler can get pre-knee-sprain production from Pete Campbell, and can get Graves (who can be a very streaky shooter) going early, the Bulldogs should have no problems.
