The Sports Xchange
Dec 5, 2017
Kelan Martin scored 29 points to propel the Butler Bulldogs to an 81-69 victory over Utah on Tuesday night in Indianapolis.
Martin sank 12 of 19 shots and grabbed a team-high 11 rebounds for the Bulldogs, who won their fourth consecutive game. Butler (7-2) has won 40 consecutive nonconference home games.
Butler forward Tyler Wideman added 18 points, hitting 6 of 7 shots from the field and 6 of 8 free throws. Paul Jorgensen added 16 points, hitting 4 of 6 3-point attempts.
Donnie Tillman was high for the Utes (6-2) with 20 points on 8-of-14 shooting. Sedrick Barefield added 14 on 5-of-16 shooting for the visitors from the Pac-12.
With the score tied at 39-all, the Bulldogs began a 14-0 run. Martin's layup put Butler ahead for good at 41-39 with 16:58 to go. Jorgensen capped the sequence with a 3-pointer.
Tillman closed the deficit to 72-66 with a 3-pointer with 2:39 to go. After two free throws by Aaron Thompson, Tillman sank another 3-pointer to close the gap to 74-69. The Bulldogs answered by scoring the final seven points, five by Martin.
Butler sank 18 of 29 shots (62.1 percent) in the second half to finish at 54.5 percent. Utah was 13 of 30 (43.3 percent) in the second half, 42.4 percent overall.
Martin scored 14 points in the first half to lead Butler to a 34-31 advantage.
Butler led 13-6 before Utah went on an 11-0 spurt to take a 17-13 edge. The Utes' largest first-half lead was 25-17 with 9:16 to go.