Future is bright for Butler despite defeat

Associated Press

INDIANAPOLIS

Butler spent a whole year plotting its Hollywood ending.

The Bulldogs expected to play for a national championship. They expected to bring home the trophy that eluded them last season. And they expected to achieve all that despite their midseason stumbles.

Now, after a second straight title game loss, the Bulldogs will have to settle for being the gold standard for the so-called mid-majors.

The Bulldogs’ list of victims over the past two postseasons includes Florida of the Southeastern Conference, Kansas State of the Big 12, Wisconsin and Michigan State of the Big Ten and Syracuse of the Big East.

But for the second straight April, Butler’s players and coaches went home dejected.

The Bulldogs’ first loss in two months, ending a 14-game winning streak, puts them on the short list of back-to-back national runner-ups. The others: Ohio State with Jerry Lucas in 1961-62, Houston with Phi Slamma Jamma in 1983-84 and Michigan with the Fab Five in 1992-93.

And while Monday night’s title game will go down as one of the ugliest because of Butler’s record-low field goal percentage (18.8), the team has already won over college basketball fans by proving their run to the 2010 championship game was no fluke.

Butler will lose five seniors who took the program to unprecedented heights by teaching their teammates how to win — and represent the school — The Butler Way.

“They’re just good guys. People at Butler really like ’em, not because they’re basketball players, because they’re just good guys,” said Brad Stevens, the Bulldogs coach.

Don’t count out the Bulldogs next year, either.

If shooting guard Shelvin Mack returns, as expected, he and 6-foot-11 Andrew Smith will form a strong foundation on which to build. Point guard Ronald Nored, who started in 2009 and 2010, will likely reclaim his starting job. Three-point specialist Chase Stigall also will be back.

The Bulldogs will likely put Khyle Marshall and Chrishawn Hopkins in the rotation, too, and Stevens will have more size and more depth with 6-7 Garrett Butcher and 6-9 Erik Fromm.

Perhaps the most important return would be Stevens. He’s led the Bulldogs to four straight tourney appearances.