Butler edges Cleveland State, wins Horizon League title

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

02/28/2009 - Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Willie Veasley scored 16 points and grabbed seven rebounds, and the 24th-ranked Butler Bulldogs secured their third consecutive regular season Horizon League title with a 58-56 victory over the Cleveland State Vikings.

Matt Howard added 12 points for the Bulldogs (25-4, 15-3 HL), who have secured the top seed in the Horizon League tournament, meaning Butler will advance to the semifinals next Saturday and will have home-court advantage throughout. Ronald Nored contributed 11 points in the victory.

Norris Cole tallied a game-high 17 points for the Vikings (21-10, 12-6), who had won eight straight conference games. J'Nathan Bullock provided 13 points and eight rebounds, while Cedric Jackson had 11 points in the loss.

Down by six at halftime, Cleveland State made it a four-point contest several times in the early portion of the second half, but six straight points from Butler made it 48-38 with 11:44 to play.

The Vikings went almost six minutes without a field goal before three consecutive three-pointers -- two from Jackson and one from Bullock -- brought the visitors to within 50-49 with 7 1/2 minutes left.

After Veasley missed a pair of free throws and a three-point attempt, Cleveland State took its first lead of the second half on Trevon Harmon's layup two minutes later.

Jackson capped the 12-0 run with a free throw, but Gordon Hayward's dunk for Butler promptly tied the game at 52.

George Tandy hit a layup with just over two minutes left to put the Vikings ahead by a pair, and Hayward connected on only 1-of-2 from the line with 1:40 left for Butler, making it a 56-55 game.

After a Bulldogs steal on the ensuing possession, Veasley missed a three-point attempt, but Nored was right there for an offensive rebound and layup, giving the hosts a 57-56 edge with 53 seconds to go.

Bullock was off on a baseline jumper at the other end, and Nored made only 1- of-2 from the line with 16.7 seconds left to give Butler a two-point lead.

Cole tried to win the game for the Vikings, but his three-point attempt drew only air, and Butler held on in the final seconds for the regular season conference championship.

Butler scored the first five points of the contest, but a 9-0 Cleveland State run put the Vikings ahead, 17-12, six minutes into the game. Jackson led the burst with four points.

The Bulldogs answered with a 13-2 spurt, with Veasley contributing four points. Howard's layup with almost 10 minutes left put the hosts ahead by five. Butler extended its lead to 11, 36-25, on the heels of a 9-0 run and held a 38-32 advantage at halftime.

Game Notes

Butler is an impressive 14-1 at home, with its only loss coming to Loyola- Illinois on February 15...Cleveland State is 7-8 on the road...The Bulldogs swept the season series, 2-0 and leads the all-time series with the Vikings, 25-6...Butler shot 56.1 percent from the field, while Cleveland State shot 40.4 percent...Hayward finished with nine points and six rebounds, while Shelvin Mack had eight points and eight rebounds for Butler.

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