Butler thrives on 3-ball dousing Flames, 80-61

February 14, 2009 at 12:00a.m.

Associated Press

INDIANAPOLIS — Matt Howard had 19 points and eight rebounds, Gordon Hayward finished with 18 points and No. 15 Butler hit 13 3-pointers in an 80-61 victory over Illinois-Chicago on Friday.

Butler (22-2, 13-1 Horizon League) won its sixth straight in the series and its 16th in a row at home.

The Flames (11-14, 4-11) were led by Josh Mayo with 19 points, but lost for the sixth time in seven games. They fell into a 25-8 hole midway through the first half and never got closer than seven.

Illinois-Chicago played without coach Jimmy Collins, who was in Syracuse, N.Y., attending the funeral of his mother, Lorraine Collins Trapp. Assistant coach Mark Coomes replaced Collins on the sideline.

Butler also played with a heavy heart less than 24 hours after the girlfriend of Kevin Kuwik, the team’s coordinator of basketball operations, died in a plane crash in suburban Buffalo, N.Y. Kuwik was in Buffalo attending his brother’s wedding.

Fans, players and coaches observed a moment of silence before the game to honor Collins’ mother and Kuwik’s girlfriend, Lorin Maurer, and the Bulldogs wore a black stripe on their jerseys.

But then it was all Butler, with Hayward and Howard dominating the first half.

Valparaiso 71, Loyola of Chicago 47

VALPARAISO, Ind. — Howard Little scored 17 points and Valparaiso coach Homer Drew got his 600th career win.

Valparaiso (7-18, 4-10) scored the first five points and never trailed. The Crusaders led by as many as 25 with 1:07 left in the second half.

Michael Rogers scored 12 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for Valpo, which led 33-19 at the break. The Crusaders shot 51 percent from the field, while the Ramblers managed just 32 percent.

Jordan Hicks scored 11 and Darrin Williams 10 for Loyola (12-15, 4-11), which lost the rebound battle 37-30.