Martin scores 26 as Butler routs DePaul
Butler senior forward Kelan Martin scored 26 points to guide the Bulldogs to an 80-57 rout of DePaul on Saturday in Indianapolis.
Martin, who sank 7 of 13 shots and 10 of 11 free throws, led Butler with six rebounds and six assists. Paul Jorgensen contributed 13 points, hitting 3 of 7 3-point shots, for the Bulldogs (17-7, 7-4 Big East), who won their fourth consecutive game. Kamar Baldwin and Sean McDermott each scored 10 for Butler.
Blue Demons center Marin Maric led the way for DePaul (9-13, 2-8) with 15 points. Tre‘Darius McCallum added nine points and a team-high seven rebounds.
DePaul was hampered by 23 turnovers, 11 more than Butler. The Bulldogs had a 27-8 edge in points off turnovers.
Butler shot 43.5 percent while DePaul hit 38.5 percent. DePaul made 3 of 12 3-pointers while Butler was 10 of 26.
The Bulldogs opened the second half with a 7-1 advantage to take a 47-31 edge. DePaul closed the gap to 53-42 before Butler went on a 15-4 spurt to grab a 22-point lead. Jorgensen scored eight points in the run, including two 3-pointers.
Martin had nearly half of the Bulldogs’ points in the first half, scoring 19 as Butler led 40-30. The Bulldogs shot 46.2 percent in the opening half while the Blue Demons shot 40.9 percent. Both teams were near perfect from the free throw line, Butler was 14 of 15 and DePaul 9 of 10.
Trailing 11-5, the Bulldogs used a 20-1 run to take a 25-12 lead. DePaul followed with a 7-0 spurt to slice the deficit to 25-19. The Bulldogs held a 15-11 advantage the rest of the half. DePaul committed 12 first-half turnovers, four more than Butler.
The Bulldogs, who are 12-1 at home this season, are 10-6 all-time against the Blue Demons, 9-1 since joining the Big East in the 2013-14 season. Butler won the previous meeting 79-67 Jan. 20 in Chicago.
--Field Level Media