America And Butler, Sittin' In A Tree...

Tuesday, March 29, 2011 Posted by Kyle Mountain
Screw the Cowboys - America has a new team. Of course, I can't speak for everyone, but if you ask me I'd say the Butler Bulldogs epitomize what it is people love about a sports team. Once again they've been able to state their presence as one of the best college basketball teams in the country despite a deceiving and perhaps unfair rank in the NCAA tournament. This time around though, I don't think it has surprised us like it did last year. This year, it was almost instictual for fans to think that if a lower seeded team were to make it to the Final Four, Butler would probably be that team. It's clear why people want this team to win, and if you're not one of those people you better take a closer look.

People love this team because they're a team. It was fun to see BYU make a run this year because they're not one of the usual heavyweights we're so used to seeing, but we all knew that the reason they won was because it was the Jimmer show, and when they lost it was because the Jimmer didn't show. Butler is a team with a star in Matt Howard, but even with such a star they're still a team. They get contribution across the board instead of one player constantly accounting for half of the offense every night. Plus, they've got a coach in Brad Stevens - who looks like he got lost on his way to his 9th grade math class - that, though diminuitive in size and stature, is an unbelievable leader, and if you don't believe that, just look at how this team plays. They play smart, they buy into a system, they're unselfish, they're poised, calm - nothing seems to rattle them. They sacrifice their bodies. They come from behind and win. They believe in each other. Play like this doesn't just spontaneously appear from nothing - it comes from a leader, and their leader happens to be their 34 year old coach who has shocked the college basketball world with what he has been able to produce over the past couple years, and together, Butler has become the most lovable team we've seen in a while. They're not a heavyweight team that's been a powerhouse since the dawn of time. They're a team that discreetly approached us from a state of utter anonymity, and now they're all we can talk about.

The beauty of this team is that they just win. It's not always pretty, it's not always conventional, but honestly, who cares? At the end of the day they don't ask how. Every one of their games in the NCAA tourney has been a nail-biter decided in the final moments, but that's how they do it. Their players thrive in pressure situations. They hit their free throws, they play smart, they stick to the system. They wear teams out. They're an American team! They work, they sweat, they're gritty, they keep their mouths shut and they want to win. All they want to do is win. They don't care about points, stats, highlights or anything that many players and teams stress about. They care about winning. And yes, they killed my bracket. They took it, put it in the middle of the street and ran it over with a bus, but I don't care at all because I love watching this team play and win basketball games. I'm cheering for them the rest of the way and I know that doesn't surprise anyone because I'm in the majority when I say that.

This years Final Four is divided between "heavyweights" and "mid-majors" as ESPN "experts" like to call them. The national championship is going to be a game between a traditional powerhouse versus a Cinderella in the eyes of many, but I am not reluctant to call Butler a heavyweight. They play harder than any team I've seen this year, and they play smarter than any team I've seen. If that doesn't make them a heavyweight I don't know what does.

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Tuesday, March 29, 2011

America And Butler, Sittin' In A Tree...

Screw the Cowboys - America has a new team. Of course, I can't speak for everyone, but if you ask me I'd say the Butler Bulldogs epitomize what it is people love about a sports team. Once again they've been able to state their presence as one of the best college basketball teams in the country despite a deceiving and perhaps unfair rank in the NCAA tournament. This time around though, I don't think it has surprised us like it did last year. This year, it was almost instictual for fans to think that if a lower seeded team were to make it to the Final Four, Butler would probably be that team. It's clear why people want this team to win, and if you're not one of those people you better take a closer look.

People love this team because they're a team. It was fun to see BYU make a run this year because they're not one of the usual heavyweights we're so used to seeing, but we all knew that the reason they won was because it was the Jimmer show, and when they lost it was because the Jimmer didn't show. Butler is a team with a star in Matt Howard, but even with such a star they're still a team. They get contribution across the board instead of one player constantly accounting for half of the offense every night. Plus, they've got a coach in Brad Stevens - who looks like he got lost on his way to his 9th grade math class - that, though diminuitive in size and stature, is an unbelievable leader, and if you don't believe that, just look at how this team plays. They play smart, they buy into a system, they're unselfish, they're poised, calm - nothing seems to rattle them. They sacrifice their bodies. They come from behind and win. They believe in each other. Play like this doesn't just spontaneously appear from nothing - it comes from a leader, and their leader happens to be their 34 year old coach who has shocked the college basketball world with what he has been able to produce over the past couple years, and together, Butler has become the most lovable team we've seen in a while. They're not a heavyweight team that's been a powerhouse since the dawn of time. They're a team that discreetly approached us from a state of utter anonymity, and now they're all we can talk about.

The beauty of this team is that they just win. It's not always pretty, it's not always conventional, but honestly, who cares? At the end of the day they don't ask how. Every one of their games in the NCAA tourney has been a nail-biter decided in the final moments, but that's how they do it. Their players thrive in pressure situations. They hit their free throws, they play smart, they stick to the system. They wear teams out. They're an American team! They work, they sweat, they're gritty, they keep their mouths shut and they want to win. All they want to do is win. They don't care about points, stats, highlights or anything that many players and teams stress about. They care about winning. And yes, they killed my bracket. They took it, put it in the middle of the street and ran it over with a bus, but I don't care at all because I love watching this team play and win basketball games. I'm cheering for them the rest of the way and I know that doesn't surprise anyone because I'm in the majority when I say that.

This years Final Four is divided between "heavyweights" and "mid-majors" as ESPN "experts" like to call them. The national championship is going to be a game between a traditional powerhouse versus a Cinderella in the eyes of many, but I am not reluctant to call Butler a heavyweight. They play harder than any team I've seen this year, and they play smarter than any team I've seen. If that doesn't make them a heavyweight I don't know what does.

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Posted by Kyle Mountain at 7:32 PM
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