LaVall Jordan needs Butler to bounce back in 2019-2020 – and they will.
Coaches, fans, and players know what they are going to get in the Big East – a true home and road challenge in the deepest conference in college basketball.
This morning, we get our first look at the full non-conference portion of Butler’s schedule for the 2019-2020 season:
2019-20 @ButlerMBB Non-Conference Schedule
Sat., Oct. 26 – IU-Kokomo (Exhibition // Homecoming Weekend at Butler)
Fri., Nov. 1 – University of Indianapolis (Exhibition)
Wed., Nov. 6 – IUPUI
Sat., Nov. 9 – New Orleans (Family Weekend at Butler)
Tues., Nov. 12 – Minnesota (Gavitt Tipoff Games)
Sat., Nov. 16 – Wofford (Hall of Fame Classic – on-campus game)
Fri., Nov. 22 – Morehead State (Hall of Fame Classic – on-campus game)
Mon., Nov. 25 – vs. TBA – Hall of Fame Classic; Kansas City, Mo.
Tues., Nov. 26 – vs. TBA – Hall of Fame Classic; Kansas City, Mo. (Oklahoma, Missouri, and Stanford are the other participants in the event)
Tues., Dec. 3 – at Ole Miss
Sat., Dec. 7 – Florida
Tues., Dec. 10 – at Baylor (BIG EAST-Big 12 Series)
Sat., Dec. 14 – Southern
Sat., Dec. 21 – vs. Purdue (Crossroads Classic; Bankers Life Fieldhouse; Indianapolis, Ind.)
Sat., Dec. 28 – Louisiana-Monroe
This is how a non-conference schedule should be assembled. There are enough quality opponents to test Butler and boost their strength of schedule, and enough lesser opponents to not exhaust the Bulldogs prior to the beginning of the very rugged Big East where there is no rest for the weary.
Butler should improve this season with the return of Kamar Baldwin, Jordan Tucker, Henry Baddley, Aaron Thompson, Bryce Golden, and Sean McDermott. LaVall Jordan’s third Butler team adds Khalif Battle and John-Michael Mulloy.as freshmen, and Derrik Smits as a grad eligible transfer to replace Joey Brunk who left for IU..
No one was pleased with a Big East tie for last with DePaul and Providence, but the Bulldogs finished just two games out of a tie for third. Those two wins needed to get to third could have been had by hitting one more free throw in their two overtime losses.
This is a big third year for Jordan, who has yet to have that GREAT year that establishes his Butler era as a continuation of the Collier, Matta, Lickliter, Stevens, Holtmann lineage.