Atlantic 10 semis: Butler vs. Saint Louis

Bulter Bulldogs vs. Saint Louis Billikens (-3, 124)

Saint Louis looks to continue its dominance when the No. 16-ranked and top-seeded Billikens play fifth-seeded Butler in the Atlantic 10 semifinals Saturday in Brooklyn, N.Y. Saint Louis, which has won 13 of its last 14 games, is coming off a 72-55 victory over ninth-seeded Charlotte in Friday’s semifinals. The Billikens finished 13-3 in the conference, winning their first outright regular-season title since 1957.

Butler, which has won four straight, defeated fourth-seeded La Salle 69-58in Friday’s semifinals after beating 12th-seeded Dayton 73-67 in Thursday’s first round. The Bulldogs finished third in the conference at 11-5. Butler was swept by Saint Louis in the regular season, losing 65-61 on Feb. 22 in Indianapolis and falling 75-58 on Jan. 31 in St. Louis.

TV: 1:30 p.m. ET, CBS

ABOUT BUTLER (26-7): The Bulldogs, who are in their first season in the A-10 after leaving the Horizon League, have big wins over Gonzaga, Indiana and Marquette and likely will make their fifth NCAA Tournament appearance in six seasons under head coach Brad Stevens. Stevens guided Butler to four Horizon League regular-season championships, three league tournament titles and back-to-back NCAA national runner-up finishes during the 2009-10 and 2010-11 seasons. Senior guard Rotnei Clarke, who leads Butler in scoring (16.8), led five Bulldogs in double figures with 14 points against La Salle on Friday.

ABOUT SAINT LOUIS (25-6): Junior forward Dwayne Evans scored a career-high 25 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead the Billikens past Charlotte. Evans finished 8-for-9 shooting and 9-for-9 from the foul line. Evans, who was selected to the A-10 First-Team All-Conference squad, leads the team in scoring (13.3) and rebounding (7.6). Senior forward Cody Ellis, the A-10 Sixth Man of the Year, has come off the bench in all 31 games and is second on the team in scoring (10.2). Senior guard Kwamain Mitchell (10.1) and junior guard Mike McCall Jr. (10) also average double-digit points.

TRENDS:

* Over is 5-1 in Bulldogs’ last six neutral site games.

* Billikens are 6-0 ATS in their last six Saturday games.

* Billikens are 7-0 ATS in their last seven games vs. a team with a winning percentage above .600.

TIP-INS

1. Saint Louis interim head coach Jim Crews on Tuesday was named National Coach of the Year by The Sporting News and Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year by the conference. Crews took over the program in August after it was announced that Rick Majerus would not coach this season. Majerus died during the season.

2. Evans has scored in double figures in 13 straight games.

3. Butler sophomore F Kameron Woods scored six of his 10 points and grabbed all nine of his rebounds in the second half against La Salle.

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Sports Betting Headlines »

Featured Free Play
MLB: Kansas City vs. Houston
Pick:
U (KC at HOU)
Start:
May 20, 2013 - 8:10 PM
Capper:
Bryan Power
Offered at:
5dimes @ Under 9 100
Analysis:

1* Under Royals/Astros (8:10 ET):  I went a perfect 9-0 this weekend, including 5 for 5 in MLB! One of my Saturday winners (Oakland) came at the expense of the Kansas City Royals, who would eventually get swept by the A's, scoring only five total runs in the process. They certainly seem to have a more favorable opponent to start the week, but don't be surprised to see fewer runs scored than expected in Monday's opener....

KC will send Jeremy Guthrie out to the mound tonight. He should have no problem containing an Astros lineup that was shut out yesterday in Pittsburgh, losing for the 7th time in 9 games. While Guthrie is coming off his worst showing of 2013 last time out, his overall numbers remain impressive; he's 5-1 with a 2.82 ERA over eight starts. He's also never lost to Houston in three career outings, turning in a 3.68 ERA and 1.045 WHIP.  Two of those starts came last year.

The problem with taking the Royals here though is the fact their offense is struggling mightily right now and that they average only 2.9 runs per game vs. lefties.  That should give Houston southpaw Dallas Keuchel a decent shot at a quality outing.  The Royals, like the Astros, come into this series having lost 7 of 9.  In those seven losses, the Kansas City offense has scored a grand total of 17 runs. This game could easily turn into a pitcher's duel with the two inept offenses.  1* Under KC/Houston.

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