Men’s Basketball Set for Trip to Hutchinson In Region 6 Quarterfinal Matchup

The Teams: 5-Seed Butler Grizzlies (21-10, 15-9 KJCCC) at 4-Seed Hutchinson Blue Dragons (19-11, 15-9 KJCCC)

When: Tuesday, March 11th, 7:30 p.m.

What: NJCAA Region 6 Tournament Quarterfinals

Venue: Sports Arena, Hutchinson

Tickets: Must purchase at Sports Arena

Streaming: ButlerGrizzlies.com/WatchLive or the BCTV+ mobile app

Audio: 1330 AM KNSS or ButlerGrizzlies.com/WatchLive audio only stream, Dennis Higgins on the call for both

Live Stats: https://butlergrizzlies.com/sports/mbkb/2024-25/boxscores/20250311_cf1k.xml

The fifth-seeded Butler men's basketball team is set for battle with the four-seed Hutchinson Blue Dragons.

Butler picked up a 95-78 opening round win over Pratt on Saturday at the Power Plant to set up the quarterfinal matchup at Hutchinson on Tuesday.

The winner of Tuesday's game moves on to play in the Region 6 Final Four at Fort Hays State's Gross Memorial Coliseum on Friday. The semifinal mhttps://butlergrizzlies.com/sports/mbkb/2024-25/releases/202502244fv9knatchup for the Grizzlies or Blue Dragons is the winner of one-seed Cowley and nine-seed Dodge City and will be played at 3 p.m. in Hays. The championship game is slated for 5 p.m. on Saturday in Hays.

THE BRACKET

Click here to view the full bracket and tournament information

THE MATCHUP

Butler and Hutchinson have met twice this season with the Blue Dragons owning wins in both. Hutchinson won both games by a combined four points. Butler lost 73-70 in El Dorado and 64-63 in Hutchinson.

In the first meeting on Jan. 8th, Butler had a down shooting performance, connecting on just 31.2% of their field goals (24-77) and 21.2% of three-point shots (7-22). The Grizzlies put up 28 more shots (77-49) than the Blue Dragons in the game. Butler forced 20 Hutch turnovers compared to just 10 of their own while the rebounding battle was split evenly, 37-37. Russell Branch led Butler with 18 points shooting 6-19 from the field, adding six rebounds. Two reserves off the bench also scored double figures in Devin Kerr who had 13 points and nine rebounds and Kirkwood who finished with 10 points. Ketraleus "Bo" Aldridge led Hutch with 22 points and 11 rebounds. Full recap here.

In the second meeting on Feb. 22nd in Hutch, the Blue Dragons' DJ Dudley tipped in a missed layup on Hutch's final possession with 1.5 seconds to play as the Grizzlies suffered a heartbreaking 64-63 loss. Emeka Opurum led Butler with a 19-point, 14-rebound double-double. Branch added 12 points and four assists while Devonte Reed and Devin Kerr each chipped in seven points. The Grizzlies shot 24-63 (38.1%) from the field and 4-23 (17.4%) from three. They outrebounded Hutchinson 41-37 and outscored them in the paint 38-28. Hutchinson was led by Bo Aldridge's 21 points and 10 rebounds on 8-22 shooting. Aldridge notched his third double-double of the season with two of them coming vs. the Grizzlies. Bobby Cannon finished with 14 points and eight rebounds to go with three blocks. The game saw four ties and five lead changes. Butler led by as many as 14 at multiple points. Full recap here.

LOOKING AT BUTLER

• Butler is 8-6 on the road this season.
• The Grizzlies have won two straight including a 72-69 win over fifth ranked Cowley on Wednesday, March 5th. Butler is 5-5 in its last-10 games.
• Grizzly freshman forward Emeka Opurum ended the regular season leading the Jayhawk Conference in field goal percentage (66.8%) as well as blocks per game (2.6).
• Opurum's presence helps Butler lead the league in blocks per game with 5.2.
• The Grizzlies lead the league in total rebounds per game (41.5) and offensive rebounds per game (14.5) and their +4.5 rebounding margin is third best in the conference.
• Butler averages 79.0 points per game, sixth best in the 13-team league.
• Butler averages 15.2 assists per game, third best in the league.
• Defensively, the Grizzlies hold teams to just 39.8% shooting from the field, the best in the Jayhawk. Their 73.3 points per game allowed is fourth fewest.
• The Grizzlies 40.6% shooting from the field is 12th best out of 13 in the conference.
• Butler forces 14.7 turnovers per game, tied with Barton for second most in the conference behind Cowley's 19.0.
• The Grizzlies made 293 threes as a team this season, second best in the conference behind Garden City. Butler's 937 attempts led the league.
• Two Butler players average double-digit points per game in sophomore guards Bubba Leavell (11.7) and Russell Branch (11.3). Emeka Opurum averages 9.6 points and 7.6 rebounds per game and freshman forward Devin Kerr puts up 8.8 points per game.

LAST TIME OUT

Five-seed Butler took down 12-seed Pratt 95-78 in the first round of the Region 6 Tournament at the Power Plant on Saturday afternoon. Butler beat Pratt for a third time this season. The first two wins over the Beavers came by a combined six points but the Grizzly offense was clicking on Saturday as they shot 53.8% (35-65) from the field in the 17-point victory. Emeka Opurum continued the impressive play following his heroic 18-point, 19-rebound effort in the win over fifth ranked Cowley on Wednesday as the freshman from Nigeria led Butler with 20 points to go with seven rebounds and four blocks versus the Beavers.Bubba Leavell finished with 14 points while Devin Kerr added 12 points, Josiah Kirkwood had 10 points and dished out five assists and Rashad McCormick finished with 11 points, five rebounds and five assists. The Grizzlies had 47 bench points in the game. Both teams had 16 turnovers and Butler outrebounded the Beavers 37-32. Butler was 13-28 from distance with Pratt shooting 8-28 from three. Free throw shooting was fairly similar with the Grizzlies finishing 12-14 (85.7%) and Pratt 16-19 (84.2%). The Grizzlies 85.7% from the free throw line was their second-best percentage of the season. Full recap here.

LOOKING AT HUTCH

• Hutch is 10-6 in home games this season.
• The Blue Dragons enter the quarterfinal matchup on a one game losing streak falling to Dodge City 76-66 at home in the regular season finale Wednesday.
• They are 6-4 in the last 10 played.
• Hutch averages 78.3 points per game, 10th best in the league.
• Hutch guard Ketraleus 'Bo' Aldridge was the game's leading scorer in both Blue Dragon wins over Butler this season scoring 22 in El Dorado and 21 at home.
• The Dragons have three players averaging double figure points in Aldridge (14.3), Dudley (14.2) and Bobby Cannon (10.9). Cannon also pulls down 6.6 rebounds per game and blocks 2.2 shots per game.
• Hutchinson averages the fewest steals per game (5.8) in the conference.

PLAYOFF HISTORY

• Hutchinson is 13-4 all-time vs. Butler in the Region 6 Tournament.
• The last meeting between the two in the Region 6 Tournament was on March 4th, 2022, when Hutchinson won 92-85 in the Region 6 Semifinals at Tony's Pizza Event Center. That game saw current Butler head coach Eric Nitsche as an assistant for Hutchinson, defeating current Blue Dragon and former Grizzly head coach Kyle Fisher.
• Butler has advanced to the Region 6 Final Four in three consecutive seasons, last winning a Region 6 title in 2023.
• The Grizzlies have won six Region 6 Championships in program history (1990, 1992, 1993, 1996, 2010, 2023).

THOUGHTS FROM COACH NITSCHE

Talk about the Prep so Far…

"We practiced Sunday and we usually wouldn't but with the quick turnaround we needed to. With some guys logging a lot of minutes here lately, a lot of wear and tear, yesterday (Sunday) was more of a mental day with some mental adjustments that we're trying to get in. Monday we got after it and went live and just fine-tuned some things."

You guys played really well at home to close out the regular season, how do you bottle some of that up for the upcoming road contest?

"Yeah, I think it's been a fluctuation of a year on that. I mean, we've had some really bright moments on the road this year also. I thought our carryover from Cowley, which was a big win, to the next two days of practice, carried over into the Pratt game. That was a big tell for me because really since Christmas break, we hadn't been able to do that. We would have a good moment, then we'd back it up with a not so good moment."

How have you approached the mental side of the postseason with your players? Do you mention it's win or go home or do you treat it like any other game?

"I think they're very aware after the other day, the Pratt game. I mean, we were watching film yesterday talking on the chalkboard. They're very aware of what happened over there (at Hutch) a couple of Saturdays ago. And that was, you know, a lot of that by our own doing. We felt like we were in a good spot for a good portion of that game. But at the end of the day whatever the score is when the clock strikes zero is all that matters. Our guys are well aware of the stakes and want to go out and execute the gameplan."

The two matchups between Butler and Hutchinson this season have been decided by four points… Talk about that and what challenges they present.

"Yeah, I think it's two very different teams stylistically and even personnel-wise. I think in a nutshell, I mean, they won both of them. We're 0-2 against them. I thought they kind of controlled things over here. And I thought we did for the most part over there, but they're 2-0. So I think we're evenly matched teams, obviously, but very different teams. They've got some big, long, versatile guards that can get downhill at any time, raise up and shoot it over the top of you. Not many traditional bigs over there and we have some size that we need to utilize in spots. So it's for sure contrasting styles from a personnel standpoint."

There should be a good sized crowd on Tuesday, are your players ready to play in that environment?

"There's been a maturation process with that. I think back to the first part of the season whether we won or lost it took us some time to use the crowds whether they're for you or against you or whatever to really channel your emotions and use every bit of energy in you to when that's a live ball. I thought there have been times this season where if that crowd gets you in your head and it gets you a little sidetracked when it's a live ball, then that's not good. I mean, there's plenty of time after the game and after the whistle to gather yourself or whatever you need to do, but I hope we've taken some steps here and can live and learn from that. That's being a little nitpicky, but there was moments where we just need to check ourselves and be about the right things that will help you survive and advance this time of year."