Kamar BaldwinNati Harnik/Associated Press
Record: 19-9, 7-8 in Big East
Projected tournament seed: 7
Quadrant 1 key wins: Creighton, Villanova, Marquette
Quadrant 2 key wins: Florida, Xavier, Minnesota
Q1: 8-7, Q2: 5-2, Q3: 1-0, Q4: 5-0
Anyone putting money down on the Bulldogs right now must be concerned more with cleanliness than prosperity. Because they have run aground with no tugboats in sight.
They are probably the longest shot on this list to miss the tournament given what they’ve accomplished on the season, but no Bulldog should be resting on his laurels or dog bed or whatnot.
Butler is 2-5 in February and has dropped three straight, most recently a gross 81-59 loss at Creighton that was also its largest margin of defeat this season. Creighton guard Marcus Zegarowskithe team’s second-leading scorershredded the Bulldogs, hitting all seven of his three-point attempts. Think maybe you want to guard that guy?
The team’s KenPom.com offensive and defense rankings27th and 56th, respectivelytell the tale. Butler has a hard time getting a stop when it needs one, particularly in big games, creating a death by 1,000 cuts. The Bulldogs defense has been very good at points during the 2019-20 campaign, but it’s falling apart at the wrong time. On the season, they’ve allowed a stingy 62.8 points per gamegood for 25th nationally. On their current losing streak, they’re giving up an average of 76.
Oh, and leading scorer Kamar Baldwin aggravated an ankle injury during the Creighton game. They think he’ll be back for the next game, but it’s not the kind of issue you want to deal with this time of year.
The regular season closes out with DePaul, Saint John’s and Xavier. So there is still hope. Their 15 Quadrant 1 games (and their winning record in those games) will stand out regardless. But if they keep trending this way, a spectacular crash-and-burn is a distinct possibility.
