2015–16 Butler Bulldogs men's basketball team

2015–16 Butler Bulldogs men's basketball
NCAA tournament, Second Round
ConferenceBig East Conference
Record22–11 (10–8 Big East)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaHinkle Fieldhouse
Seasons
2015–16 Big East men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 6 Villanova 16 – 2   .889 35 – 5   .875
No. 9 Xavier 14 – 4   .778 28 – 5   .848
No. 20 Seton Hall † 12 – 6   .667 25 – 9   .735
Providence 10 – 8   .556 24 – 11   .686
Butler 10 – 8   .556 22 – 11   .667
Creighton 9 – 9   .500 20 – 15   .571
Marquette 8 – 10   .444 20 – 13   .606
Georgetown 7 – 11   .389 15 – 18   .455
DePaul 3 – 15   .167 9 – 22   .290
St. John's 1 – 17   .056 8 – 24   .250
† 2016 Big East tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll


The 2015–16 Butler Bulldogs men's basketball team represented Butler University in the 2015–16 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Their head coach was Chris Holtmann, serving his second year. The Bulldogs played their home games at Hinkle Fieldhouse, which has a capacity of approximately 9,100.[1] This was Butler's third season in the Big East Conference. They finished the season 22–11, 10–8 in Big East play to finish in a tie for fourth place. They lost in the quarterfinals of the Big East tournament to Providence. The Bulldogs received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament where they defeated Texas Tech in the first round to advance to the second round where they lost to Virginia.

Previous season

The Bulldogs finished the 2014–15 season with a record of 23–11, 12–6 in Big East play to finish in a tie for second place. Butler received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as a #6 seed and defeated Texas in the second round before losing in the Third Round to Notre Dame.

Off season

With starting point guard Alex Barlow graduating in May 2015, Butler needed to add some depth in the guard position to back up Kellen Dunham and Tyler Lewis, who will be coming off of a redshirt season in 2014–15 due to transfer rules. On March 29, 2015, Jordan Gathers, a 6'3" combo guard from St. Bonaventure in the Atlantic 10 Conference announced his commitment to Butler after sitting out a season due to a hip injury.[2] Barely a week and a half later, Butler gained another transfer from the Atlantic 10, this time in Kethan Savage from George Washington University.[3] Savage, a 6'3" guard, will have to sit out a year per NCAA transfer regulations and will be available for the 2016–17 season. Gathers completed his degree at St. Bonaventure in three and a half years and therefore is immediately eligible to play.

There were also some changes in the coaching staff in the off season. On April 27, Butler announced the hire of Ryan Pedon, former assistant to Illinois head coach (and former Butler assistant) John Groce, as an assistant coach. Emerson Kampen, who was promoted to an assistant coaching position following Chris Holtmann's appointment as interim HC, was named Butler's new basketball analyst for the 2014-15 season.[4]

Another major change occurred in August when it was announced that the playing surface in Hinkle Fieldhouse — the oldest playing surface still in use in the NCAA — was being sanded down to prepare for the new Bulldog logo at center court. The new design does not include the word "Butler" underneath the bulldog, and replaces the word "Bulldogs" on both end lines with "Butler." Also, the home sideline will have "Hinkle Fieldhouse" painted on it.

Departures

Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Notes
Jackson Aldridge 11 G 6'0" 180 Senior Lane Cove, Australia Graduated
Alex Barlow 3 G 5'11" 185 Senior Springboro, OH Graduated
Kameron Woods 31 F 6'9" 200 Senior Middletown, KY Graduated

2015 recruiting class

College recruiting information
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Nate Fowler
Center 		Cincinnati, OH Archbishop Moeller HS 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 240 lb (110 kg) May 27, 2014 
Star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 80
Sean McDermott
Shooting Guard 		Pendleton, IN Pendleton Heights HS 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 170 lb (77 kg) May 30, 2014 
Star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports: N/A    ESPN: N/A   ESPN grade: NR
Jordan Gathers
Shooting Guard (Transfer) 		Woodland Hills, CA William Howard Taft HS / St. Bonaventure 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Mar 29, 2015 
Star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports: N/A    ESPN: N/A   ESPN grade: NR
Kethan Savage
Shooting Guard (Transfer) 		Alexandria, VA Episcopal HS / George Washington 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 203 lb (92 kg) Apr 11, 2015 
Star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:2/5 stars   ESPN grade: 88
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2015 Butler Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved April 18, 2015.
  • "Butler Bulldogs Men's Basketball Recruiting 2015". Scout.com. Retrieved April 18, 2015.
  • "Butler Bulldogs Men's Basketball Recruiting 2015". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 18, 2015.
  • "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved April 18, 2015.
  • "2015 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved April 18, 2015.

Roster

2015–16 Butler Bulldogs men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 25 Steven Bennett (W) 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 196 lb (89 kg) Jr New Castle New Castle, IN
F 45 Andrew Chrabascz 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Jr Cushing Portsmouth, RI
G 24 Kellen Dunham 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Sr Pendleton Heights Pendleton, IN
G/F 21 Roosevelt Jones 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 225 lb (102 kg) RS Sr O'Fallon O'Fallon, IL
F 30 Kelan Martin 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 235 lb (107 kg) So Ballard Louisville, KY
F 4 Tyler Wideman 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 246 lb (112 kg) So Lake Central Merrillville, IN
F 13 Jackson Davis 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 233 lb (106 kg) So Lafayette Lexington, KY
F 0 Austin Etherington 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 220 lb (100 kg) RS Sr Hamilton Heights (Indiana) Cicero, IN
G 1 Tyler Lewis 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) 169 lb (77 kg) RS Jr Oak Hill Academy (VA) (N.C. State) Statesville, NC
G 10 Trey Pettus (W) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 198 lb (90 kg) Jr MICDS St. Louis, MO
C 51 Nate Fowler 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 250 lb (113 kg) Fr Archbishop Moeller Cincinnati, OH
G 22 Sean McDermott Current redshirt 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 182 lb (83 kg) Fr Pendleton Heights Pendleton, IN
G 5 Jordan Gathers 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Sr William Howard Taft (St. Bonaventure) Woodland Hills, CA
G 11 Kethan Savage Current redshirt 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 201 lb (91 kg) RS Jr Episcopal (George Washington) Alexandria, VA
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: April 28, 2015[5]

Schedule

Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
Oct 31, 2015*
2:00 pm, WISH-TV 		No. 24 Taylor W 79–44 
 14 – Tied   11 – Wideman   3 – Jones  Hinkle Fieldhouse (6,892)
Indianapolis, IN
Nov 7, 2015*
7:00 pm, WISH-TV 		No. 24 Saint Joseph's W 106–66 
 19 – Jones   11 – Davis   8 – Lewis  Hinkle Fieldhouse (8,960)
Indianapolis, IN
Non-conference regular season
Nov 14, 2015*
7:30 pm, FS2 		No. 24 The Citadel W 144–71  1–0
  24 – Dunham   11 – Jones   8 – Chrabascz  Hinkle Fieldhouse (8,440)
Indianapolis, IN
Nov 19, 2015*
1:30 pm, ESPNU 		No. 22 vs. Missouri State
Puerto Rico Tip-Off Quarterfinals 		W 93–59  2–0
  18 – Tied   10 – Jones   10 – Lewis  Roberto Clemente Coliseum (1,601)
San Juan, Puerto Rico
Nov 20, 2015*
1:00 pm, ESPN2 		No. 22 vs. Temple
Puerto Rico Tip-Off Semifinals 		W 74–69  3–0
  16 – Tied   11 – Jones   5 – Dunham  Roberto Clemente Coliseum (1,814)
San Juan, Puerto Rico
Nov 22, 2015*
7:30 pm, ESPN2 		No. 22 vs. Miami (FL)
Puerto Rico Tip-Off Championship 		L 75–85  3–1
  23 – Dunham   10 – Wideman   5 – Jones  Roberto Clemente Coliseum (5,309)
San Juan, Puerto Rico
Nov 28, 2015*
5:00 pm, FS2 		SIU Edwardsville W 89–73  4–1
  32 – Dunham   6 – Tied   11 – Jones  Hinkle Fieldhouse (7,026)
Indianapolis, IN
Dec 2, 2015*
7:00 pm, CBSSN 		at No. 17 Cincinnati W 78–76  5–1
  24 – Dunham   9 – Wideman   4 – Lewis  Fifth Third Arena (11,125)
Cincinnati, OH
Dec 5, 2015*
12:00 pm, FS1 		Indiana State W 85–71  6–1
  24 – Martin   8 – Jones   7 – Jones  Hinkle Fieldhouse (8,142)
Indianapolis, IN
Dec 7, 2015*
7:00 pm, FSN 		No. 18 VMI W 93–66  7–1
  20 – Martin   8 – Tied   5 – Lewis  Hinkle Fieldhouse (6,202)
Indianapolis, IN
Dec 12, 2015*
2:30 pm, FS1 		No. 18 Tennessee W 94–86  8–1
  25 – Martin   11 – Martin   10 – Jones  Hinkle Fieldhouse (9,100)
Indianapolis, IN
Dec 19, 2015*
5:00 pm, BTN 		No. 17 vs. No. 9 Purdue
Crossroads Classic 		W 74–68  9–1
  19 – Jones   11 – Jones   5 – Jones  Bankers Life Fieldhouse (19,156)
Indianapolis, IN
Dec 22, 2015*
8:30 pm, FS2 		No. 9 Southern Utah W 88–52  10–1
  15 – Wideman   10 – Jones   8 – Lewis  Hinkle Fieldhouse (7,128)
Indianapolis, IN
Dec 28, 2015*
7:00 pm, FS2 		No. 9 IUPUI W 92–54  11–1
  19 – Martin   6 – Tied   7 – Lewis  Hinkle Fieldhouse (8,210)
Indianapolis, IN
Big East Conference Play
Dec 31, 2015
2:30 pm, CBSSN 		No. 9 No. 12 Providence L 73–81  11–2
(0–1) 		 20 – Martin   9 – Martin   4 – Jones  Hinkle Fieldhouse (9,100)
Indianapolis, IN
Jan 2, 2016
1:00 pm, FS1 		No. 9 at No. 6 Xavier
Big East New Year's Marathon 		L 69–88  11–3
(0–2) 		 14 – Jones   7 – Martin   6 – Jones  Cintas Center (10,498)
Cincinnati, OH
Jan 5, 2016
8:00 pm, FSN 		No. 18 at DePaul W 77–72  12–3
(1–2) 		 24 – Dunham   5 – Wideman   7 – Lewis  Allstate Arena (5,427)
Rosemont, IL
Jan 10, 2015
7:30 pm, FS1 		No. 18 No. 11 Villanova L 55–60  12–4
(1–3) 		 20 – Jones   6 – Wideman   3 – Wideman  Hinkle Fieldhouse (9,144)
Indianapolis, IN
Jan 16, 2016
Noon, FS1 		No. 23 St. John's W 78–58  13–4
(2–3) 		 24 – Dunham   10 – Martin   4 – Jones  Hinkle Fieldhouse (9,144)
Indianapolis, IN
Jan 19, 2016
6:30 pm, FS1 		No. 18 at No. 16 Providence L 68–71  13–5
(2–4) 		 21 – Dunham   11 – Martin   5 – Jones  Dunkin' Donuts Center (10,918)
Providence, RI
Jan 23, 2016
7:30 pm, FS1 		No. 18 at Creighton L 64–72  13–6
(2–5) 		 22 – Martin   11 – Martin   4 – Jones  CenturyLink Center (17,677)
Omaha, NE
Jan 27, 2016
7:00 pm, CBSSN 		DePaul W 67–53  14–6
(3–5) 		 23 – Jones   9 – Wideman   4 – Jones  Hinkle Fieldhouse (7,611)
Indianapolis, IN
Jan 30, 2016
Noon, FS1 		at Marquette L 69–75  14–7
(3–6) 		 27 – Martin   8 – Wideman   6 – Jones  BMO Harris Bradley Center (15,234)
Milwaukee, WI
Feb 2, 2016
7:00 pm, FS1 		Georgetown W 87–76  15–7
(4–6) 		 35 – Martin   9 – Chrabascz   5 – Jones  Hinkle Fieldhouse (8,080)
Indianapolis, IN
Feb 6, 2016
4:30 pm, FSN 		at St. John's W 89–56  16–7
(5–6) 		 18 – Martin   14 – Jones   10 – Jones  Carnesecca Arena (5,602)
Queens, NY
Feb 10, 2016
6:30 pm, FS1 		at Seton Hall W 81–75  17–7
(6–6) 		 23 – Martin   10 – Martin   6 – Chrabascz  Prudential Center (7,476)
Newark, NJ
Feb 13, 2016
2:30 pm, FOX 		No. 5 Xavier L 57–74  17–8
(6–7) 		 15 – Martin   12 – Martin   4 – Jones  Hinkle Fieldhouse (9,344)
Indianapolis, IN
Feb 16, 2016
7:00 pm, FS1 		Creighton W 88–75  18–8
(7–7) 		 21 – Martin   8 – Martin   6 – Tied  Hinkle Fieldhouse (7,330)
Indianapolis, IN
Feb 20, 2016
2:30 pm, FOX 		at No. 1 Villanova L 67–77  18–9
(7–8) 		 19 – Martin   8 – Dunham   3 – Wideman  The Pavilion (6,500)
Villanova, PA
Feb 27, 2016
Noon, CBS 		at Georgetown W 90–87 OT 19–9
(8–8) 		 29 – Dunham   8 – Wideman   4 – Chrabascz  Verizon Center (10,142)
Washington, D.C.
Mar 2, 2016
8:30 pm, FS1 		Seton Hall W 85–78  20–9
(9–8) 		 22 – Dunham   9 – Martin   5 – Jones  Hinkle Fieldhouse (7,392)
Indianapolis, IN
Mar 5, 2016
2:30 pm, FSN 		Marquette W 95–74  21–9
(10–8) 		 18 – Etherington   9 – Martin   6 – Jones  Hinkle Fieldhouse (9,244)
Indianapolis, IN
Big East tournament
Mar 10, 2016
2:30 pm, FS1 		(5) vs. (4) Providence
Quarterfinals 		L 60–74  21–10
  17 – Dunham   10 – Martin   5 – Jones  Madison Square Garden (14,863)
New York, NY
NCAA tournament
Mar 17, 2016*
12:40 pm, truTV 		(9 MW) vs. (8 MW) Texas Tech
First Round 		W 71–61  22–10
  23 – Dunham   8 – Jones   6 – Jones  PNC Arena (19,722)
Raleigh, NC
Mar 19, 2016*
7:10 pm, TBS 		(9 MW) vs. (1 MW) No. 4 Virginia
Second Round 		L 69–77  22–11
  25 – Chrabascz   5 – Tied   2 – Tied  PNC Arena (19,433)
Raleigh, NC
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
MW=Midwest Region.
All times are in Eastern Time.

Rankings

Main article: 2015–16 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings
Ranking movement
Legend: ██ Improvement in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking. RV=Received votes.
Poll Pre Wk 1 Wk 2 Wk 3 Wk 4 Wk 5 Wk 6 Wk 7 Wk 8 Wk 9 Wk 10 Wk 11 Wk 12 Wk 13 Wk 14 Wk 15 Wk 16 Wk 17 Wk 18 Post Final
AP 24 24 22 RV RV 18 17 9 9 18 23 18 RV NR NR NR NR NR RV RV N/A
Coaches 22 22 20 RV 25 21 18 12 10 19 23 24 RV RV NR NR NR NR RV RV RV

Awards

Name Award(s)
Kellen Dunham Preseason All-Big East First Team[6]
Big East Player of the Week – Nov. 29–Dec.5[7]
All-Big East Honorable Mention[8]
Big East Sportsmanship Award[9]
Big East Scholar-Athlete of the Year[10]
Roosevelt Jones Preseason All-Big East First Team[11]
Puerto Rico Tip-Off All-Tournament Team[12]
Big East Player of the Week – Dec. 13–19[13]
CBS Sports National Player of the Week – Week 13[14]
All-Big East Second Team[15]
Kelan Martin Big East Player of the Week – Dec. 6–12[16]
Big East Player of the Week – Jan. 31–Feb. 6[17]
All-Big East Second Team[18]

References

  1. ^ Hinkle capacity
  2. ^ "St. Bonaventure guard commits to Butler". indystar.com. Indy Star. Retrieved April 18, 2015.
  3. ^ "George Washington transfer commits to Butler". nbcsports.com. NBC Sports. Retrieved April 18, 2015.
  4. ^ "Butler Announces Men's Basketball Coaching Appointments". butlersports.com. Butler University. Archived from the original on May 18, 2015. Retrieved May 11, 2015.
  5. ^ "2015-16 Butler Bulldogs". Butlersports.com. Butler University. Archived from the original on July 12, 2015. Retrieved April 28, 2015.
  6. ^ "Providence's Kris Dunn Named Preseason Player of the Year". Big East Conference. October 14, 2015. Retrieved December 7, 2015.
  7. ^ "Butler's Dunham Named MBB Player of the Week". Big East Conference. December 7, 2015. Retrieved December 7, 2015.
  8. ^ "Four Named Unanimously to MBB All-BIG EAST First Team". Big East Conference. March 6, 2015. Retrieved March 8, 2016.
  9. ^ "Providence's Dunn Named Defensive Player of the Year, Other Awards Announced". Big East Conference. March 7, 2016. Retrieved March 8, 2016.
  10. ^ "Butler's Kellen Dunham Named BIG EAST Men's Basketball Scholar-Athlete of the Year". Big East Conference. March 9, 2016. Retrieved March 9, 2016.
  11. ^ "Providence's Kris Dunn Named Preseason Player of the Year". Big East Conference. October 14, 2015. Retrieved December 7, 2015.
  12. ^ "Puerto Rico native Rodriguez Named Tourney MVP". ESPN. November 23, 2015. Archived from the original on December 6, 2015. Retrieved December 9, 2015.
  13. ^ "Butler's Jones, Xavier's Sumner Earn MBB Weekly Honors". Big East Conference. December 21, 2015. Retrieved December 21, 2015.
  14. ^ "Butler's Roosevelt Jones wins player of the week after rare triple-double". CBS Sports. February 8, 2016. Retrieved February 8, 2016.
  15. ^ "Four Named Unanimously to MBB All-BIG EAST First Team". Big East Conference. March 6, 2016. Retrieved March 8, 2016.
  16. ^ "Butler's Martin, Marquette's Ellenson Take MBB Weekly Honors". Big East Conference. December 14, 2015. Retrieved December 14, 2015.
  17. ^ "Butler's Martin, Xavier's Sumner Claim MBB Weekly Awards". Big East Conference. February 8, 2016. Retrieved February 8, 2016.
  18. ^ "Four Named Unanimously to MBB All-BIG EAST First Team". Big East Conference. March 6, 2016. Retrieved March 8, 2016.