For a moment on Monday night in the Power Plant, it looked as if Northern Oklahoma-Tonkawa was about to use some of its familiar come-from-behind magic as they battled the Butler men's basketball team.
The Mavericks had come from 15 down to beat Butler in Tonkawa back in December and just the other day had been down 19 against Independence before winning. Then on Monday, Butler had led by 25 in the first half before Northern mounted a comeback, getting within nine points early in the second half.
Instead of allowing the comeback, Butler responded, scoring nine straight points of its own to build the lead back to 18 points. Eventually, the Grizzlies held on for a 76-59 win.
Butler had four players in double figures, led by Shomari Triggs with 15 points. Larry Fitzgerald and Sean Goodwin had 13 points apiece while Dominique O'Connor had 10. Bakari Triggs had eight points and nine rebounds.
The win is the fourth in a row for Butler, which is now 14-3 on the season with one non-conference game left, that coming Wednesday at Pratt.
