Fifth-ranked Xavier limited Butler to 33 percent shooting and rolled to a surprisingly easy 74-57 victory in Big East basketball Saturday before a sellout crowd of 9,344 at Hinkle Fieldhouse.
The Musketeers led by as many as 18 points in improving to 22-3 overall and 10-3 in the Big East. Butler (17-8, 6-7) had its three-game winning streak stopped and its NCAA tournament hopes damaged.
Butler is 3-3 in conference home games and 11-13 since joining the re-configured Big East.
The Bulldogs’ big three had a dismal afternoon of shooting: Kelan Martin, 6-of-20; Kellen Dunham, 3-of-8, and Roosevelt Jones, 2-of-11.