College Basketball's Hoosiers

The college basketball season began in November with 347 potential national champions, but following the conclusion of March Madness only one team will be left standing.

That team might just be the Butler Bulldogs.

The No. 12 Bulldogs are winners of 19 straight, the longest active winning streak in the nation.

The Bulldogs have a recent history of success in the NCAA Tournament. In 2003 and 2007 Butler advanced to the Sweet 16, knocking off the likes of Mississippi State, Maryland and Louisville.

Butler is no stranger to college basketball’s biggest stage, having appeared in the tournament five times in the last nine years. It will be making its fourth consecutive appearance this year.

Butler has become an elite program. In the last 10 years Butler has had eight seasons with at least 20 wins, has been ranked every year since the 2006-07 season and has been nearly unbeatable at Hinkle Fieldhouse posting a 71-6 record in its last 77 games.

No other team in the nation has been as consistent and successful as Butler in the last four years. The Bulldogs have gone 112-21 during that period.

Winning is the only thing current Butler players know how to do.

Butler does not play in a power conference, but it can no longer be considered a ‘Cinderella’ nor a mid-major.

This season the Bulldogs have quality wins over Ohio State and Xavier. Butler was also the only team in the nation to go unbeaten in conference play.

Sophomore forward Gordon Hayward leads Butler in three statistical categories; points per game with 15, average rebounds per game at eight and in blocks at 0.8 a game.

He is 6’9” and 207 pounds but he handles the ball like a point guard, has the range of a shooting guard and understands the fundamentals of basketball.

Hayward defies the laws of physics on the basketball court; rarely do you come across a player like him.

Experts are recognizing the talent that the Horizon League Player of the Year possesses.

Former Coach Bob Knight, the record holder for career wins, mentions in his TV broadcasts, that Hayward utilizes the pump fake to shoot over defenders, a move that few players use.

Purdue and Indiana both passed on the young prospect, a move both Big Ten powers undoubtedly regret.

Another Bulldog, sophomore guard Shelvin Mack, joined Hayward last summer on the USA Men’s U19 World Championship team.

Mack is second on the team in points, steals and assists.

These two players have the chemistry, leadership and experience to lead Butler to its first-ever Final Four appearance.

Many ESPN analysts in the preseason said Butler was a legit Final Four candidate, which goes to show how talented this team is and how high the bar has been set for the program.

It will be considered a disappointment for Butler if it doesn’t at least advance to the Sweet 16.

The small school with an enrollment of 4,200 located in Indianapolis, the site of the national championship, has the potential to hoist the trophy at the end of another long college basketball season.