# 2017–18 Butler Bulldogs men's basketball team

The 2017–18 Butler Bulldogs men's basketball team represented Butler University in the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They were coached by LaVall Jordan, in his first year as head coach of his alma mater. The Bulldogs played their home games at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana as members of the Big East Conference. They finished the season 21–14, 9–9 in Big East play to finish a tie for sixth place. As the No. 6 seed in the Big East tournament, they defeated Seton Hall before losing to Villanova in the semifinals. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 10 seed in the Midwest region. There they defeated Arkansas in the first round before losing to Purdue in the second round.

## Previous season

The Bulldogs finished the 2016–17 season 25–9, 12–6 in Big East play to finish in second place. They lost to Xavier in the quarterfinals of the Big East tournament. The team received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as a No. 4 seed in the South Region. They defeated No. 13 Winthrop and No. 12 Middle Tennessee to advance to the Sweet 16. In the Sweet 16, they lost to eventual National Champion North Carolina.
On June 9, 2017, head coach Chris Holtmann left the school to become the head coach at Ohio State. On June 12, the school hired Milwaukee head coach and Butler alum LaVall Jordan as head coach.

## Off season
### Departures

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Notes |
| Steven Bennett | 25 | G | 6'3" | 190 | Senior | New Castle, IN | Graduated |
| Andrew Chrabascz | 45 | F | 6'7" | 230 | Senior | Portsmouth, RI | Graduated |
| Tyler Lewis | 1 | G | 5'11" | 170 | RS Senior | Statesville, NC | Graduated |
| Trey Pettus | 10 | G | 6'4" | 200 | Senior | St. Louis, MO | Graduated |
| Kethan Savage | 11 | G | 6'3" | 205 | RS Senior | Alexandria, VA | Graduated |
| Avery Woodson | 0 | G | 6'2" | 190 | Senior | Waynesboro, MS | Graduated |

### 2017 recruiting class

Butler originally signed five recruits in its 2017 class which was hailed as the best recruiting class in Butler history. Following Chris Holtmann's departure, however, top-rated recruited Kyle Young was released from his letter of intent and followed Holtmann to Ohio State. On October 8, 2017, Cooper Neese announced he would be transferring to Indiana State before the season began.
US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Jerald Gillens-Butler Point Guard | Fort Lauderdale, FL | Calvary Christian Academy | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 210 lb (95 kg) | Dec 8, 2015 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 80 ||||||
| Christian David Shooting guard | Milton, ON | Vermont Academy | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | Sep 24, 2016 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 83 ||||||
| Aaron Thompson Point Guard | Glenn Dale, MD | Paul VI Catholic High School | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 175 lb (79 kg) | May 2, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 81 ||||||
| 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: "2017 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved July 10, 2017. ||||||

## Preseason

In a poll of Big East coaches at the conference's media day, the Bulldogs were picked to finish in eight place in the Big East. Senior forward Kelan Martin was named to the preseason All-Big East First Team.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Spain Exhibition Trip |||||||||
| Aug 4, 2017* 2:00 p.m. | | Madrid Generals | W 84–80 | – | 26 – Martin | 9 – Martin | 7 – Baldwin | Pabellon Polideportivo "Javier Limones" Torrejón de Ardoz, Madrid, Spain |
| Aug 6, 2017* 6:00 a.m. | | Albacete Basket | W 85–51 | – | 20 – Jorgensen | 9 – Martin | 5 – Baldwin | Pabellón del Parque Albacete, Spain |
| Aug 8, 2017* 1:00 p.m. | | Valencia All-Stars | W 81–68 | – | 15 – Baldwin | 7 – Martin | 5 – Tied | Pabellon Municipal de Godella València, Spain |
| Aug 10, 2017* 1:30 p.m. | | Union Dax-Gamarde | W 80–74 | – | 15 – Baldwin | 5 – Martin | 5 – Baldwin | Pavello Esportiu Municipal Sant Julià de Vilatorta, Catalonia, Spain |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| Oct 28, 2017* 2:00 p.m. | | Hanover | W 68–36 | – | 14 – McDermott | 6 – Martin | 4 – McDermott | Hinkle Fieldhouse (7,571) Indianapolis, IN |
| Nov 4, 2017* 7:00 p.m. | | Lincoln Memorial | W 86–79 | – | 19 – Martin | 7 – Martin | 4 – Baldwin | Hinkle Fieldhouse (7,685) Indianapolis, IN |
| Non-conference regular season |||||||||
| Nov 10, 2017* 7:00 p.m., FCS | | Kennesaw State | W 82–64 | 1–0 | 20 – Martin | 9 – Martin | 5 – Thompson | Hinkle Fieldhouse (9,138) Indianapolis, IN |
| Nov 12, 2017* 6:00 p.m, CBSSN | | Princeton | W 85–75 | 2–0 | 20 – Martin | 13 – Martin | 3 – Martin | Hinkle Fieldhouse (8,470) Indianapolis, IN |
| Nov 15, 2017* 8:30 p.m, FS1 | | at Maryland Gavitt Tipoff Games | L 65–79 | 2–1 | 17 – McDermott | 6 – Martin | 6 – Thompson | Xfinity Center (16,317) College Park, MD |
| Nov 18, 2017* 2:00 p.m., FS2 | | Furman | W 82–65 | 3–1 | 19 – Wideman | 7 – Wideman | 4 – Tied | Hinkle Fieldhouse (7,827) Indianapolis, IN |
| Nov 23, 2017* 7:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | vs. Texas PK80 Motion Bracket quarterfinals | L 48–61 | 3–2 | 15 – Baldwin | 6 – Baldwin | 3 – Thompson | Veterans Memorial Coliseum (6,955) Portland, OR |
| Nov 24, 2017* 3:00 p.m., ESPNU | | vs. Portland State PK80 Motion Bracket consolation 2nd round | W 71–69 | 4–2 | 18 – Wideman | 8 – Wideman | 5 – Jorgensen | Moda Center Portland, OR |
| Nov 26, 2017* 3:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | vs. Ohio State PK80 Motion Bracket 5th place game | W 67–66 $^{OT}$ | 5–2 | 24 – Martin | 8 – Wideman | 4 – Baldwin | Veterans Memorial Coliseum (5,910) Portland, OR |
| Dec 2, 2017* 2:00 p.m., FS1 | | Saint Louis | W 75–45 | 6–2 | 20 – Martin | 12 – Martin | 5 – Thompson | Hinkle Fieldhouse (8,963) Indianapolis, IN |
| Dec 5, 2017* 9:00 p.m., FS1 | | Utah | W 81–69 | 7–2 | 29 – Martin | 11 – Martin | 5 – Baldwin | Hinkle Fieldhouse (7,638) Indianapolis, IN |
| Dec 9, 2017* 12:00 p.m., FSN | | Youngstown State | W 95–67 | 8–2 | 19 – Baldwin | 7 – Brunk | 6 – Thompson | Hinkle Fieldhouse (8,022) Indianapolis, IN |
| Dec 16, 2017* 12:00 p.m., FOX | | vs. No. 17 Purdue Crossroads Classic | L 67–82 | 8–3 | 17 – Martin | 8 – Jorgensen | 4 – Thompson | Bankers Life Fieldhouse Indianapolis, IN |
| Dec 19, 2017* 8:30 p.m., FS1 | | Morehead State | W 85–69 | 9–3 | 20 – Martin | 10 – Martin | 5 – Thompson | Hinkle Fieldhouse (7,122) Indianapolis, IN |
| Dec 21, 2017* 7:00 p.m., FSN | | Western Illinois | W 107–46 | 10–3 | 20 – Tied | 12 – Fowler | 7 – Martin | Hinkle Fieldhouse (7,779) Indianapolis, IN |
| Big East regular season |||||||||
| Dec 27, 2017 6:30 p.m., FS1 | | at Georgetown | W 91–89 $^{2OT}$ | 11–3 (1–0) | 31 – Baldwin | 12 – McDermott | 3 – Tied | Capital One Arena (9,257) Washington, D.C. |
| Dec 30, 2017 4:00 p.m., CBS | | No. 1 Villanova | W 101–93 | 12–3 (2–0) | 24 – Martin | 9 – Baldwin | 7 – Baldwin | Hinkle Fieldhouse (9,244) Indianapolis, IN |
| Jan 2, 2018 7:00 p.m., FS1 | | at No. 5 Xavier | L 79–86 | 12–4 (2–1) | 28 – Baldwin | 11 – McDermott | 3 – Jorgensen | Cintas Center (10,609) Cincinnati, OH |
| Jan 6, 2018 2:30 p.m., FS1 | | No. 21 Seton Hall | L 87–90 | 12–5 (2–2) | 27 – Martin | 6 – Baldwin | 5 – Baldwin | Hinkle Fieldhouse (8,855) Indianapolis, IN |
| Jan 9, 2018 8:30 p.m., FS1 | | at No. 25 Creighton | L 74–85 | 12–6 (2–3) | 18 – Jorgensen | 11 – Martin | 3 – 3 tied | CenturyLink Center Omaha (17,229) Omaha, NE |
| Jan 12, 2017 6:30 p.m., FS1 | | Marquette | W 94–83 | 13–6 (3–3) | 37 – Martin | 7 – Martin | 6 – Jorgensen | Hinkle Fieldhouse (8,911) Indianapolis, IN |
| Jan 15, 2018 4:30 p.m., FS1 | | at Providence | L 60–70 | 13–7 (3–4) | 25 – Baldwin | 7 – Tied | 7 – Jorgensen | Dunkin' Donuts Center (12,407) Providence, Rhode Island |
| Jan 20, 2018 2:00 p.m., FS1 | | at DePaul | W 79–67 | 14–7 (4–4) | 24 – Martin | 9 – Baldwin | 8 – Thompson | Wintrust Arena (6,802) Chicago, IL |
| Jan 27, 2018 2:30 p.m., FS1 | | St. John's | W 70–45 | 15–7 (5–4) | 19 – Martin | 11 – Wideman | 5 – Baldwin | Hinkle Fieldhouse (9,129) Indianapolis, IN |
| Jan 31, 2018 9:00 p.m., FS1 | | at Marquette | W 92–72 | 16–7 (6–4) | 23 – Wideman | 9 – Wideman | 5 – Baldwin | BMO Harris Bradley Center (12,779) Milwaukee, WI |
| Feb 3, 2018 12:00 p.m., FS1 | | DePaul | W 80–57 | 17–7 (7–4) | 26 – Martin | 6 – Martin | 6 – Martin | Hinkle Fieldhouse (8,879) Indianapolis, IN |
| Feb 6, 2018 6:30 p.m., FS1 | | No. 5 Xavier | L 93–98 $^{OT}$ | 17–8 (7–5) | 34 – Martin | 7 – Tied | 5 – Jorgensen | Hinkle Fieldhouse (9,100) Indianapolis, IN |
| Feb 10, 2018 12:00 p.m., FOX | | at No. 1 Villanova | L 75–86 | 17–9 (7–6) | 30 – Martin | 6 – Jorgensen | 7 – Jorgensen | Wells Fargo Center (20,603) Philadelphia, PA |
| Feb 13, 2018 6:30 p.m., CBSSN | | Georgetown | L 83–87 | 17–10 (7–7) | 22 – Martin | 8 – Martin | 7 – Baldwin | Hinkle Fieldhouse (8,539) Indianapolis, IN |
| Feb 17, 2018 12:00 p.m., FOX | | Providence | W 69–54 | 18–10 (8–7) | 19 – Martin | 8 – Thompson | 2 – 3 tied | Hinkle Fieldhouse (9,184) Indianapolis, IN |
| Feb 20, 2018 7:00 p.m., FS1 | | Creighton | W 93–70 | 19–10 (9–7) | 26 – Martin | 7 – Martin | 4 – Baldwin | Hinkle Fieldhouse (8,630) Indianapolis, IN |
| Feb 28, 2018 9:00 p.m., CBSSN | | at St. John's | L 68–75 $^{2OT}$ | 19–11 (9–8) | 17 – Tied | 7 – McDermott | 7 – Thompson | Carnesecca Arena (5,602) Queens, NY |
| Mar 3, 2018 8:00 p.m., CBSSN | | at Seton Hall | L 70–77 | 19–12 (9–9) | 35 – Martin | 7 – Martin | 2 – Tied | Prudential Center (9,743) Newark, NJ |
| Big East tournament |||||||||
| Mar 8, 2018 9:30 p.m., FS1 | (6) | vs. (3) Seton Hall Quarterfinals | W 75–74 | 20–12 | 32 – Baldwin | 7 – McDermott | 3 – Baldwin | Madison Square Garden (19,812) New York, NY |
| Mar 9, 2018 9:00 p.m., FS1 | (6) | vs. (2) No. 7 Villanova Semifinals | L 68–87 | 20–13 | 13 – Martin | 5 – Tied | 4 – Tied | Madison Square Garden (19,812) New York, NY |
| NCAA tournament |||||||||
| Mar 16, 2018* 3:10 p.m., truTV | (10 E) | vs. (7 E) Arkansas First Round | W 79–62 | 21–13 | 27 – Martin | 9 – 3 tied | 7 – Thompson | Little Caesars Arena (20,163) Detroit, MI |
| Mar 18, 2018* 12:20 p.m., CBS | (10 E) | vs. (2 E) No. 11 Purdue Second Round | L 73–76 | 21–14 | 29 – Martin | 5 – Martin | 4 – Thompson | Little Caesars Arena (20,360) Detroit, MI |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. E=East Region. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking — = Not ranked RV = Received votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | Final |
| AP | RV | RV | — | — | — | — | — | — | RV | — | — | — | — | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | — | Not released |
| Coaches | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | — | — | — | RV | — | — | — | — | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV |
*AP does not release post-NCAA tournament rankings

## Awards

| Name | Award(s) |
| Kelan Martin | Preseason All-Big East First Team Big East Player of the Week – Nov. 13 Big East Player of the Week – Jan. 2 Lute Olsen National Player of the Week – Jan. 2 Big East Player of the Week – Jan. 15 All-Big East First Team |
| Tyler Wideman | Big East Sportsmanship Award |