Villanova Wildcats 21-6 (12-4) vs Butler Bulldogs 15-13 (6-11)
Where: Finneran Pavilion (Villanova, PA)
When: Wednesday, Feb. 25 at. 7:00 PM
Betting Line: TBD for when RT updates us
How to Watch: FS1
How to
Listen: Villanova Sports Radio Network
Net Rankings: Villanova 30, Butler 80 (Quad 3)
KenPom: Villanova 28, Butler 83
Torvik: Villanova 32, Butler 67
About Butler: The Bulldogs entered the previous matchup on January 3 with solid metrics and a couple of quality out-of-conference wins. Since that point, Butler’s season has gone down the drain. The Bulldogs sit at 5-8 since the home loss to Villanova, with a five game losing streak mixed in there. Butler has recently rattled off two consecutive wins though, defeating Georgetown on the road and Xavier at home. Thad Matta’s squad currently sits in sole possession of seventh place in the conference and only a half game behind DePaul for sixth, but only a half game up on Xavier, Georgetown and Providence.
As was the case last meeting, Finley Bizjack and Michael Ajayi do the majority of the scoring for the Bulldogs. The duo currently sits at second and fifth in the conference in points per game, respectively. Freshman guard Azavier Robinson, who replaced the injured Jalen Jackson in the starting lineup back in November, has missed the past six games with a wrist injury and is out for the season. Butler has elected to go big in his place, moving Efeosa Oliogu-Elabor into the starting group. The 6’6” freshman scored six points against Villanova last time out, and had a conference-high 12 against Georgetown.
Senior big man Yohan Traore has been coming on of late, averaging 13.8 points and 4 rebounds per contest off the bench over the last four games. Villanova will have its hands full down low.
Notes on Nova: The Wildcats come in off of a humbling defeat at the hands of the title-contending Connecticut and are scheduled to face another one in St. John’s on Saturday night, so a rebound performance is a must here. Villanova overwhelmed the Bulldogs in the second half of the first meeting, outscoring Butler 55-34 after the break. The entire starting five scored in double-figures that afternoon, with Devin Askew nearly making the cut with eight points. Malachi Palmer and Braden Pierce’s roles have grown immensely since that game, where the two only combined for three points in 16 minutes played.
