Commentary: In tonight’s NCAA title, root for Butler

Houston — Richmond and Cleveland State were the 1980s pioneers, charming and obscure underdogs who crashed the NCAA Tournament’s Sweet 16.

Loyola Marymount, Rhode Island and Gonzaga went a step beyond during the ’90s, reaching the Elite Eight. But bankrolled by television and their Div. I-A football programs, the power-conference alpha pups ruled the Final Four like the Castro family does Cuba.

Until George Mason in 2006. Until Butler in 2010. Until VCU and Butler this year.

Yet one thing is missing: a national championship.

Butler attempts to fill that void tonight when it faces Connecticut in the title game at Reliant Stadium, and here’s hoping coach Brad Stevens and Co., close the deal.

For themselves, a year after their agonizing loss to Duke in the tournament final.

For the so-called mid-majors, the programs with undersized budgets and oversized dreams.

And for college basketball, which could do without a national champion that violated NCAA recruiting standards.

The NCAA in late February restricted UConn’s scholarships and suspended coach Jim Calhoun for three games next season. The Huskies’ sin: Prospect Nate Miles received $6,000 in improper benefits from an agent who was also a UConn booster.

Calhoun insisted he was unaware of the payments, but the NCAA cited him for failing to promote an atmosphere of compliance. Last week, however, Miles told the New York Times that Calhoun was aware.

Handing the championship bling to Calhoun would be the NCAA’s most awkward trophy presentation since UNLV and Jerry Tarkanian squashed Duke in 1990.

But even if you ignore the Dudley Do-Right versus Snidely Whiplash morality play, Butler’s quest merits embracing.

Same would have applied were VCU in the final.

“College basketball’s evolved over the past two, three decades,” Rams coach Shaka Smart said after Saturday’s 70-62 loss to Butler. “And ... with the rise of grass-roots (summer) basketball, these guys have played against all the good players ... from all the major conferences and ... so they’re not afraid.”

No one fit the mold like Butler. The Bulldogs returned six of their top nine players, and that seasoning showed in tournament victories over BCS programs Pittsburgh, Wisconsin and Florida.

“I’m not surprised,” Smart said of Butler’s return to the title game.

Stevens is 34, half Calhoun’s age, and appreciates his Bulldogs’ little-man appeal.

“I’m a fan of teams like Butler in other sports,” he said. “The next thing I’m moving on to is the Masters, and I’m hoping I find somebody who I don’t know anything about who wins at the end so I can root for them. It’s the fun thing about sports, and it’s fun to be the team that everybody is talking about in that light.”

But for decades, convention has held that the Butlers and Masons and VCUs face too many roadblocks, that they can’t win it all.

“Certainly there are a lot of reasons to say you can’t,” Stevens said. “But it’s a lot more fun to say you can, and it’s a lot more fun to believe.”

Late tonight, all of college basketball may have to believe as well.

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79ictjhawk 2 years, 2 months ago

I don't think Butler will win, but I'll be rooting for 'em!

Jacobpaul81 2 years, 2 months ago

Stop it. I live in Indiana. Don't want to hear about the Kansas loss and how Butler won it all - all next year. I'd rather watch UConn take another title.

FreddyinLA 2 years, 2 months ago

After watching games on Saturday, I cannot think of a weaker Final 4 group of teams top to bottom.

Best tourney in the world though. At some point, your warts, buckteeth, bad breath, and hairy back will be exposed. For us, we will not be able to win a tough weekend game without developing your bench throughout the year and then being fearless and using it.

Jacobpaul81 2 years, 2 months ago

Truth be told, there hasn't been a "good" set of 2-4 teams in the Final Four since 2008 and prior to that, you gotta go back to 2003-2005 for a quality top 2-4 teams. It's been mostly average basketball.

100 2 years, 2 months ago

Agree. That 2008 final 4 was loaded.

Kubie 2 years, 2 months ago

Anyone got a good Butler chant? For one night I can switch sides and root for someone other than a Jayhawk although it will be painful.

As always the championship game brings an end to anything worth while on TV. Time to get out the golf clubs and fishing gear until hoops season begins again.

See you at late night!

RCJH

713KUFAN 2 years, 2 months ago

I started pulling for Butler the second we lost and Im not stopping now. Aside from the the fact that Calhoun is a cheater and its fun to root for a mid-major, I dont want UConn to get its 3rd NCAA Championship before we get our 4th. Plus, Brad Stevens is one hell of a coach.

But with regards to our tourney struggles, I just think we had weak guard play this year and it got exposed. That, and CS needs to coach less sometimes and let his athletes go play. I thought we looked almost over prepared for Richmond and not ready to play the exact opposite team two days later. We just need to focus on playing our game

Scatterhawk 2 years, 2 months ago

No. Screw them. I rooted against them last year, and I'll root against them this year.

No Butlers, no VCUs, no UNIs, no Bradleys, no Bucknells, no effing mid-majors winning it all.

I hope Kemba goes for 60.

Code_2008 2 years, 2 months ago

If Kemba goes for 60 and UConn still loses, Butler was meant to win it all.

JHawk252 2 years, 2 months ago

Rock Chalk .... Bulldogs? Well, OK, for one night maybe. ...

rockchalk1990 2 years, 2 months ago

As I read this, all I could think about was how lucky we are to have Bill Self! I heard someone on the radio call the Kentucky-UConn game the "Elliott Ness Bracket" and I couldn't agree more. One coach who gets his every stop put on probation and another who just keeps getting caught with his hand in the cookie jar. Maybe we didn't win a game we should have in the tourney, but I have met coach, and he fills so many of the demands of a coach at a school like KU and fills them so well. We are lucky to have him!!!

Rodney Stice 2 years, 2 months ago

Go Butler. I'll be cheering for almost as much as I'll be cheering against UConn.

100 2 years, 2 months ago

Did anyone else hear that Calipari's team lost?

I know we're all in light shock, still, after losing to VCU....

But does anyone else who loves college basketball, Missouri Tiger, Kansas Jayhawk, Texas A&M Aggie or Oklahoma Sooner, really understand what Calipari's staff has been accused of?

I saw KU shaw responding to my post a couple days ago & I'm left wondering if we all understand what UK has done. Forget that UK hired Calipari during an investigation into the test Rose took in Detroit, home of Worldwide Wes.

Does anyone on this site really understand (or care) that a high profile program like Kentucky fired an assistant coach for rebounding? That's how UK reported the secondary violation. From the reading I've done online, UK fans are sweating bullets over this. A few of them are pretending to "tweet" that UK reported the tons of improper phone calls to recruits this guy did for Calipari. That couldn't be further from the truth. They want this story to go away. The fact is they didn't report the phone calls. Not a single one. Why? Well that is an interesting question isn't it?

And I think that's where the misunderstanding is with college basketball fans like KU shaw. UK fans say "we reported it & it was a secondary violation."

Here's what the NCAA should be asking Calipari...

Reported "what"?

And "what was a secondary violation?" (rebounding)

Does anyone really understand what is going on here? UK reported the equivalent of flushing the toilet during practice. What really happened was while the toilet was being flushed the keys to the bank were stolen.

In the college basketball community I am floored at the misunderstanding of what Calipari & his staff were doing. Again, this is not only Cousins. This is more than likely multiple players who signed with Calipari at Memphis & UK because of this assistant coach (who never had to document minutes or visits either, so he can practically move in with a high school kid) they fired. Multiple.

Three have been quoted so far as having extensive conversation & texts with this ex Kentucky coach, including the best point guard in the 2012 class, Rose. Self & Calipari are both after him.

I'm sorry guys, but I love college basketball too much to let this one slide. Part of the article is right here below. And regardless of what you hear a couple UK fans post, they only reported the minor violation of rebounding.

Nothing was reported about any of the other players that signed to play for Calipari because of this guy. If Calipari & his current program gets away with this, it's the college basketball community's fault. Fox Sports has done their job:

http://basketball.realgm.com/wiretap/212772/Report_Former_Calipari_Assistant_Made_Illegal_Calls_At_Kentucky

chuckberry32 2 years, 2 months ago

after the kansas loss i warned the jerk kentucky fans i know, which is many, that karma would be a biatch after all the crap they gave me.

now Cal is linked to going to the NBA (PTI)... can anyone say only coach in history to vacate 3 final four appearances and do it at 3 different schools... he knows if this goes down he's done.

chuckberry32 2 years, 2 months ago

not sure why i would listen to you (or anyone) telling me who to root for.

BCRavenJHawkfan 2 years, 2 months ago

Watching the championship game now. It's painful. Offensive prowess showing in a 22 - 19 first half! Geeze, what could have been.

Strikewso 2 years, 2 months ago

Why would I root for Butler? Every team I root for misses their three-pointers and free throws. It's like there is a lid on the basket when I start rooting for a team.

ku_tailg8 2 years, 2 months ago

I don't care who you root for but practice is what makes 3 and free throws. This team got too full of themselves. I blame the media and the idiot brains in these kids heads. This was a cake walk to the final four and we screwed it up as usual.

ku_tailg8 2 years, 2 months ago

I hope these guys see this game and realize they would've torn both teams apart. Unfortunately, Self won't watch these games. But it was great to see Morningstar behind home plate at the Royals game on Sunday after bricking most of his 3's in the 3 point shoot out.

ku_tailg8 2 years, 2 months ago

if you can set your feet then there is no reason to jump 3 feet in the air. I just don't it. HCBS please find people who can hit an open shot. Apparently the guys we had could not. I appreciate what they did all season long but they couldn't knock down the big ones when it counted. Please find that clutch player.

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2011 NCAA Tournament