March 1, 2003

Box Score

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. - Avery Sheets hit a three-point basket as time expired to give Butler a 76-74 victory over the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Saturday afternoon in front of a sellout crowd of 11,043 at Hinkle Fieldhouse.

The win gives Butler the outright Horizon League regular-season championship and the top seed in next week's League Men's Basketball Championship, the bulk of which will be played at the U.S. Cellular Arena in Milwaukee.

The Panthers (22-7, 13-3 Horizon League), seeking their first-ever league title in men's basketball, took a 74-73 lead on two Justin Lettenberger free throws with 4.2 seconds remaining.

But, following a UWM timeout, the Bulldogs (24-4, 14-2) rushed the ball upcourt and got the ball in the hands of Sheets, who swished it through from just left of the top of the key as time expired.

In defeat, UWM overcame deficits of 15 points in the first half and 16 points in the second half before falling at the buzzer for the second time in three games.

"What in the world can I say to you?" UWM head coach Bruce Pearl said. "You saw it all out there. What I feel worst about is I can't take the pain away from my players. It just doesn't get any tougher in sport."

Ronnie Jones scored 19 points, Clay Tucker added 18 points and Lettenberger pitched-in with 14 points and nine rebounds for the Panthers.

Darnell Archey scored 15 points and Joel Cornette pitched-in 13 to lead five Bulldog players in double figures.

Butler led 57-41 with 14:03 remaining following the second of consecutive three-point baskets by Archey. The Panthers then embarked on a 24-7 run over the next nine-plus minutes, taking a 65-64 lead when Jones hit a pair of free throws with 4:31 remaining.

The Bulldogs regained a four-point lead at 69-65 with 3:54 remaining and still led, 73-70, following a Cornette hoop with 2:05 left.

But, a Lettenberger follow-up basket brought the Panthers within 73-72 with 1:31 remaining and UWM posted a pair of defensive stops to get the ball back with 10 seconds remaining. Off a missed shot, the Panthers rushed the ball up the floor and Lettenberger was fouled inside with 4.2 seconds remaining. He made both free throws, setting up the final possession.

"Rarely do you know what an opponent is going to do on a last-second shot," Pearl said. "We just lost one of them and he got open. I think we fell down and weren't able to recover. I felt really good about it. Everything went down the way we wanted it to. Butler did a great job of going to the second option on the play."

UWM will next play in the Horizon League Championship semifinals Saturday night, facing the winner of a second-round contest at 7:30 p.m. CST.