It just wouldn’t be a Butler NCAA Tournament game unless it came down to the wire, would it? The Florida Gators had the ball last, but Erving Walker’s three-pointer just missed at the buzzer, sending UF and the Butler Bulldogs to overtime in their Southeast Regional Final tied at 60.
Butler rallied from an 11-point deficit in the middle of the second half, cranking up the defensive intensity and getting timely baskets. Shelvin Mack has 22 points for the Bulldogs, while Vernon Macklin has a career-high 24 for Florida on 11-for-14 shooting. Macklin also has four fouls, though, and one more would eliminate Butler’s biggest problem on the defensive end.