Murray St vs. Butler –4.5

Murray St vs. Butler –4.5

2010-03-20

Like every year, March Madness is living up to its name. It’s been an exciting first round with quite a few upsets and some heart pounding overtime games. I can’t wait to see what’s in store next. In the second round, the No. 13 seeded Murray State is scheduled to play the No. 5 seeded Butler.

Murray State shocked world on Thursday when they defeated the Vanderbilt Commodores 66-65 on a buzzer beater by Danero Thomas and advanced the Racers to their first tourney win since 1988. The Racers battled toe-to-toe with the Commodores all game long and stole it away when Vanderbilt gave them one final chance to win it. They did a great job of containing A.J. Ogilvy and Jermaine Beal, holding them to 12 points apiece. They did miss eight free throws, but it didn't come back to hurt them since Vanderbilt missed 12 themselves. B.J. Jenkins and Isaiah Canaan made big 3-pointers in the last couple minutes of the game which allowed Murray State to gain the lead after being down by 7. The Racers look real good at the moment coming off a big win, but the real question is, will they be able to do it again? And more specifically, will they be able to do it against Butler?

In their first game of the tournament, Butler faced off against UTEP. Butler expertly spaced the floor and made patient passes with usual disciplined style, leaving even the talented Miners unable to keep up. After trailing by six at the half against UTEP the Butler Bulldogs showed how explosive they can be, using a 22-4 second half run to take a 77-59 victory. That run was sparked by sophomore, Shelvin Mack, who went off for seven three-pointers in the game. As a team the Bulldogs made 13 from beyond the arc. Gordon Hayward didn't have a great shooting day from the field, but rather than continuing to shoot he forced his way to the free throw line 11 times. Serving as the unsung hero was Matt Howard as his defense against Derrick Caracter played a major factor in the outcome of this contest. They have a significant talent advantage over the Murray State Racers but they can't take them lightly or they could end up back home just like the Vanderbilt Commodores.

The lines at www.sportsbook.com show that the public is 4.5 in favor of Butler. Against Butler, the Racers are going to need a repeated defensive effort against Gordon Hayward and Shelvin Mack. Against Murray State, the Bulldogs will need to come out with a lot of intensity since right now the Racers have a whole lot of confidence. So will the Murray State’s Cinderella story fully materialize? I have a strong feeling it won’t and it’ll end when they play Butler. The Bulldogs couldn't have played better in the second half against UTEP and I expect it to continue as they roll past Murray State. Take the Butler Bulldogs -4.5.

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