Butler 2010 Preview & Predictions

Butler Bulldogs Basketball 2010-2011 Preview, Predictions, Picks & Odds

With the College Basketball 2010-2011 Season just around the corner, we are providing season previews & predictions for all NCAA basketball teams to give you the betting edge this year. Follow the best College Basketball Handicappers as they analyze their teams in this 2010-2011 basketball season preview. Be sure to bookmark SportsbookBuzz.com your source for Sportsbook Reviews. Use our comprehensive and insider info to bet successfully on the College Basketball in our recommend online sportsbooks.View the rest of our 2010-2011 NCAA Basketball Season Previews here.

2010-2011 Butler Preview Picks, & Odds.

Butler 2009-2010 Record: 33-5 overall; 18-0 Horizon (1st)

Butler Coach: Brad Stevens – At Butler and overall: 89-15, 3 years

Butler Players to Watch: Junior guard Shelvin Mack deserves league Player of the Year consideration. Senior forward Man Howard will be all-league because he always is.

Butler Key Losses: Gordon Hayward, G/F, 6-9, 207 (15.5 ppg, 8.2 rpg); Willie Veasley, G, 6-3, 206 (9.8 ppg, 4.3 rpg)

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2010-2011 Butler Season Preview

I t came as no surprise that Butler dominated the Horizon League last year. What did open the eyeballs wider was the way the Bulldogs did it – perfectly. Unlike many leagues, the Horizon plays a full homeand- home schedule, then teams may play a third time in the conference tournament. That familiarity gives players plenty of opportunity to study tendencies, and still the Bulldogs went 18-0 during the regular league season, then won their two tournament games rather easily. That isn’t even counting several big victories in the non-league part of the schedule, and the run to the NCAA championship game, where the Bulldogs fell to Duke. Replicating a 33-5 season might not be the easiest assignment in the basketball world, especially with the loss of two starters (Gordon Hayward to the pros and Willie Veasley to graduation), but the Bulldogs are prohibitive Horizon favorites again. The latest in a long line of successful Butler coaches – beginning with current BU athletics director Barry Collier – Brad Stevens elected to sign a 12-year contract that could keep him at the Indianapolis school through the 2021-22 season. Stevens, who looks even younger than his 33 years, is 89-15 (.856) in three seasons as head coach and has won more games in his first three seasons than any coach in Division I history.

2010-2011 Butler Backcourt

Well, obviously the biggest of the threeguard attack is gone as Hayward couldn’t pass up a first-round bid (he went NO.9 overall) to the NBA. But the 6-9 Hayward leaves behind plenty of competent players, including two starters, Shelvin Mack and Ronald Nored. Both are already well-decorated as Mack made first-team all-league and is a candidate for this season’s Player of the Year, while Nored was named the league’s co-Defensive Player of the Year. Those two are only juniors and while Mack, like Hayward, was an under-18 national team player, he has shown he can playa team •game, the same as Nored. Sure to gain more playing time are seniors Zach Hahn and Shawn Vanzant. And don’t overlook Chrishawn Hopkins, a highly recruited guard out of Indianapolis who played a couple years in Las Vegas before returning to his hometown.

2010-2011 Butler Frontcourt

Senior Matt Howard is a 6-8 forward who can bang with the biggest players in the league at 230 pounds, and already has been league Player of the Year once as a sophomore, and first-team all-league the past two seasons. Howard was outrebounded only by Hayward, but will need help this year. It’s going to have to come from someone who hasn’t played much, such as 6-11 sophomore Andrew Smith, 6-9 redshirt sophomore Emerson Kampen or 6-9 freshman Erik Fromm.

2010-2011 Butler Predictions

It’s difficult to bet against the Bulldogs, who have played in the Horizon Tournament title game five consecutive years. Although a record five Horizon League teams won at least 20 games last season, Butler won 30 or more for the second time in three seasons and could make it three of four in 2010-11. Another Final Four might be a reach, but it wouldn’t be a shock. Butler Finish in the Horizon League: 1st

Butler Betting Odds

Butler Odds to Win 2010-2011 Mens NCAA Basketball Tournament: +5000

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Butler Basketball Handicapping Picks

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