Butler Shocks #5 North Carolina 74-66

The Butler Bulldogs pulled off a huge 74-66 upset over the #5 ranked North Carolina Tar Heels in the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament.

Paradise Island, Bahamas – The Butler Bulldogs came into this afternoon’s game against the North Carolina Tar Heels as major underdogs, as they were unranked and the Tar Heels were ranked as the fifth best team in the country. Despite the expectations, the Bulldogs came out and knocked off the Tar Heels by a final score of 74-66.

Needless to say, Chris Holtmann and company played a nearly perfect game and got the job done. It was a very close game down the stretch as North Carolina made a very spirited run at a comeback, but they were unable to make it all the way back. Butler looks like a team to be reckoned with, and they are now 4-0 following this win and are demanding attention from the national media.

Alex Barlow was a great floor leader for Butler all game long, and finished the game with 17 points, five rebounds, three assists, and three steals. Freshman Kelan Martin came through with yet another big game for the Bulldogs, scoring 17 points off the bench on 5-11 shooting including 3-6 from behind the three-point arc. At 6’6″ with his shooting ability, Martin is a threat against any team that he plays.

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Roosevelt Jones stepped up once again with a big game for the Bulldogs, scoring 12 points to go along with a stat stuffing eight rebounds and six assists. He also made four free-throws in a row down the stretch of the game despite that being an area of struggle for him. Kellen Dunham was the other double digit scorer on the afternoon for Butler with 11 points, including some big foul shots late in the game.

North Carolina was led by Marcus Paige, who scored 18 points in the game. He was able to get his numbers, but Butler slowed him down and forced him to shoot just 5-17 from the floor and 3-10 from behind the three-point arc. Brice Johnson scored 11 points in the loss, while Isaiah Hicks was the other double figure scorer for the Tar Heels with 10 points off the bench.

Butler was looking to make a statement and they did just that. They are once again forcing attention from the media to take a look at them, and they have a very talented roster with a great balance of youth and experience. Holtmann has proven that he is a very good head coach, and it wouldn’t be too surprising to see Butler make him their permanent head coach rather than just the interim coach while Brandon Miller figures out his situation.

Next up for the Bulldogs will be a game tomorrow against either the Oklahoma Sooners or UCLA Bruins. Either way, they’ll have another chance to come up with a huge game and further prove themselves to the college basketball nation.