Jan. 20, 2001

MILWAUKEE - Butler outscored the UWM men's basketball team 19-10 over the final 7:39 of the game to claim a 60-51 come-from-behind victory at the Klotsche Center Saturday night.

The Panthers (10-8, 2-3 MCC) led 41-40 following a Clay Tucker three-point basket, but Butler ran off 13 of the next 18 points to build a 53-45 lead with 1:00 remaining. From there, the Bulldogs made five-of-six free throws in the final minute to clinch the victory.

UWM led by as many as 10 in the second half, building a 28-18 advantage following a Dan Weisse basket and foul with 18:44 to play. But Butler slowly moved back into the game, scoring nine straight to pull within 28-27. Then, after UWM rebuilt a 35-29 advantage, the Bulldogs used an 11-3 run to claim a 40-38 advantage.

"I thought it was just a great effort by our guys," Panther coach Bo Ryan said. "You've got to give Butler credit because they found that crease when they needed to."

Sophomore Justin Lettenberger made his first career start for the Panthers in place of the injured James Wright. In a career-high 29 minutes, the Manitowoc native scored 11 points and grabbed six rebounds.

"He just wants to play, and he does it everyday," Ryan said. "He just plays hard."

UWM held Butler scoreless for the first five minutes of the game, and after the Bulldogs came back to claim an 12-6 advantage, the Panthers scored nine straight for a 17-12 lead, and UWM led 25-18 at the half.

"I think that the difference in the second half was getting to the boards and feeding off our defense," Butler coach Thad Matta said. "We fed off our defense tonight, no question."

Tucker scored 16 points and Weisse added 15 to lead the Panthers, who fell for just the second time at home this season. Rylan Hainje led three Bulldogs in double figures with 15 points.

UWM returns to action Thursday night at Detroit. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. CST.

Box Score in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader