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DUKE - BUTLER
NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
4/5/10
The NCAA Tournament began with 65 teams. After weeks full of epic battles on the
court two teams have emerged from the fog. Those two teams are the Butler
Bulldogs of the Horizon League and the Duke Blue Devils from the Atlantic Coast
Conference. One will exit the court as the 2010 National Champion on Monday
night. This game will be something of a “David vs Goliath”. Duke has won the
National Championship and made many Final Four appearances. This year marks the
first time that Butler has made the Final Four of the National Championship
game. It could be their first win in that game if they play their cards right.
The Butler Bulldogs own the longest win streak in the NCAA at 25 games. They
were undefeated in conference play this year. Granted they played in a week
conference, that is still a great accomplishment. The Bulldogs enter this game
after a narrow victory over the Michigan State Spartans and Tom Izzo. Star F
Matt Howard endured a mild concussion in that game and will be a game time
decision. Needless to say, Butler’s chances will go way down if he can’t play.
The Bulldogs also defeated Syracuse, and Kansas State in this year’s Big Dance.
They can run with anyone and sure as hell won’t be intimidated by the big name
of the Duke Blue Devils.
Swingman Gordon Hayward steadied the Bulldogs in the absence of Howard. The
sophomore racked up 19 points and 9 rebounds against the Spartans. Shelvin Mack
was also tough with 14 points, 2 assists, and a steal. Willie Veasley didn’t do
much scoring, but he had 5 rebounds and 4 steals. Hayward, Mack, and Veasley are
all very good players. Hayward is almost guaranteed to go in the first round of
the NBA Draft if he declares this year. However, if Howard doesn’t play they
might themselves in a gun with only a knife. It appears that he will make it,
but he is a game time decision at this point.
Love them or hate them, one thing is certain about the Duke Blue Devils; they
are VERY good. They are stocked so deep with talent that one of their best
players can have a bad night and they will still win because another guy stepped
up to the plate. Senior Nolan Smith went nuts against West Virginia. He drained
multiple three pointers and ended the night with 19 points. Fellow senior Jon
Scheyer did even better picking up 23 points and 6 assists. Junior Kyle Singler
played well after an 0-10 shooting performance against Baylor. This time he had
21 points on 8 of 16 shooting. Bryan Zoubek picked up 10 rebounds for the Blue
Devils.
The Duke Blue Devils find themselves in the National Championship game after
dismissing Purdue, Baylor, and West Virginia. The Butler Bulldogs will be a
better challenge for them than any of those three teams. With multiple scoring
threats and strong defense the Blue Devils are likely up to the task. Coach
Krzyzewski has been in this position before and came out on the good side of
things. He will have to use his knowledge and prior experience to guide his
talented team.
Las Vegas currently favors the Duke Blue Devils as a seven point favorite.
Wagering on this game will be contingent on the health of Butler F Matt Howard.
The game will be completely different without him. Be sure to monitor his status
before making a wager. If he does play then Butler will give the Blue Devils a
game. If not then they could be like a cow headed to slaughter. For the sake of
excitement we hope it’s the former rather than the latter that occurs. But Duke
has beaten better teams than Butler all year by double digits. Duke likely pulls
away late in this one but look for Butler to give one heck of a battle for most
of the game.