Starry Eyed Butler Seems Just Glad to be Here

Indianapolis, IN Lucas Oil Stadium  The Spartans come into this Final Four in Indianapolis on a mission. They understand the distractions of being the

Indianapolis, IN

Lucas Oil Stadium

 

The Spartans come into this Final Four in Indianapolis on a mission. They understand the distractions of being the home team from last year’s run to Detroit. Butler who has never been to a Final Four, let alone in Indianapolis doesn’t have the proven system that Izzo has and more importantly the experience of the players.

 

That is why as the Butler team began to speak you could sense the starry eyed deer in the headlights look. Sophomore guard Ronald Nored described being here like this; “I actually came to Lucas Oil Stadium for a concert in November. It was a country concert, if you want to know. I remember sending somebody a text saying, 'if we play here, this will be special.' The feeling is awesome. This is something you dream about.”

 

Nored wasn’t the only one wide eyed. His teammates joined in with him. “It's a great feeling. It's like playing outside. There's not really any background so it reminds me of the old days playing outside while growing up,” was how sophomore guard Shelvin Mack described it. 

 

Sophomore forward Gordon Hayward really put the attention in a perspective that showed the distractions this Bulldog team faces, “I've gotten too many phone calls and text messages about tickets and all that stuff. I think, for us, we've had too many texts and phone calls for all of our games, so for us it is really just another normal week. I've had people asking for tickets for the very first game of the year, and the same people are asking for tickets for this game... It's been an awesome feeling. Being able to play in front of your fans and be at home is really special. We got back from Salt Lake City around 3:00 a.m. last week and fans are at Hinkle [Fieldhouse] going crazy. It's like we're rock stars, just wanting to touch us. For us, we think we are normal people, so we thought those people were insane... It's just awesome for us to have these fans that we really appreciate, and to play in front of them is going to be a really special opportunity."

 

Junior forward Matt Howard maybe wasn’t as fazed, but admitted the coaches have had to spend time calming the team down. “Coach Stevens and the coaching staff have done a good job of taking all the distractions with ticket requests, hotels, and all that for family and friends.”

 

Senior forward Willie Veasley talked about all of the issues including fans, family and playing in a bigger venue, “We kind of compared it to playing outside because the court is right in the middle and there is so much space around it… From all the messages I’ve gotten, and the way it’s been around campus, I think there’s going to be a huge turnout for us. I think the crowd is just going to be into it from the beginning.”

 

Certainly the Bulldogs are a good basketball team. All four teams left are. What can make a major difference is the intangibles. This isn’t like last year where everyone is playing for the right to be UNC’s victim. All four of these teams could cut down the nets on Monday night. You just have to wonder if the Bulldogs can overcome more distractions than others? 

 

MSU did it last year, but they did it with a wealth of experience to draw on. Something Butler doesn’t have. Head coach Brad Stevens addressed it when he said, “I don’t live at the dorms, and I haven’t been over to the cafeteria on campus, so I don’t know what it’s been like. I do know we’ve had a normal week. Media availability was Tuesday, and there was a little bit more media than usual…but I do think our guys have done a good job managing it all. A lot of guys have grown up in Indiana and dreamed about playing in the Final Four, and we’re going to enjoy our experience here.”

 

I have no doubts that this is a good Butler team. I also have no doubts that handing the weight of carrying a city on their shoulders can be an enormous task for a team not used to dealing with enormous tasks. 

 

Win or lose this will be an exciting time. For this Final Four national semi final game has one team glad to be here in Butler and one on a mission in Michigan State.