Butler Grabs Elusive Nutter Center Victory 69-51

Photos © and Courtesy of Tim G. Zechar

February 8, 2009
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A sellout crowd of 9,735, the eight largest in Nutter Center history, had barely settled into their seats by the time that the Bulldogs (11th ranked, 21-2) had jumped out to an early 19-2 lead. They'd eventually extend that advantage to 27-6 with more than 10 minutes left before halftime.

The Bulldogs used some stellar defense and 9-of-15 first half shooting from beyond the arc to take a 39-21 lead at the intermission. Zach Hahn, Butler's 6-foot sophomore guard, averaging 5.1 points per game, inflicted much of the damage, scoring 15 first half points by hitting 5-of-5 from 3-point land.

At halftime, Wright State's 1983 NCAA Division II men's basketball national championship team was honored with an induction ceremony into the WSU Athletic Hall of Fame. Nearly every member from that team was present. With an 18 point deficit, and two key players out of the line-up due to injuries, Wright State could have used the services of a few of them, but unfortunately, none had any athletic eligibility remaining.

If Butler needed a knock out punch, they delivered it in the first two minutes of the second half. The Bulldogs opened the second stanza by hitting their first three shots to go up 47-23 with 18:12 to play. From there, Butler cruised to an impressive 69-51 victory.

Wright State forward Scott Grote assessed the outcome by saying "We had some break downs. They're a good team… the 11-th ranked team in the country. They get you to break down. Tonight, they took advantage of every single mistake. That's what a good team does." Grote also expressed thanks to the 9,735 fans that came out to see them play. He said "You dream as a little kid, to play in front of a crowd like that. It was a great turn out, but we couldn't capitalize."

Wright State sorely missed the services of junior guard John David Gardner. He was not in uniform because of a hip injury that he aggravated two weeks ago. The Green and Gold were unable to pick up his slack. Raider guards combined to shoot 0-of-22 from the field. Ten of those misses came from 3-point land. The box score for the three guards read Graham 0-of-8, Tabler 0-of-8, and Evans 0-of-6.

Commenting on the status of John David Gardner, Wright State head coach Brad Brownell said "It's going to be week to week every week, until anybody can figure out what it is. I feel real bad for John David. He deserves better. He's been through unbelievable tragedies in this sport, and he wants to play. He's the heart and soul of a lot of what we've done this year. We miss him. He's a big part of what we do."

Cory Cooperwood contributed with 12 points and 7 rebounds in 19 minutes of action, before fouling out with 9:26 to play. Scott Grote added 13 points, while pulling down 8 boards. Todd Brown scored 12 points on 5-of-17 shooting. Gavin Horne chipped in with 9 points.

Both teams pulled down 38 rebounds. Wright State led in bench scoring (26-21) and second chance points (16-9). The Raiders dished out 9 assists and committed 10 turnovers. The Green and Gold shot 26% from the field (16-of-60), 17% from beyond the arc (3-of-17), and 69% from the free throw line (16-of-23).

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