Yahoo Finance Baldwin drills step-back buzzer-beater to lead No. 19 Butler past No. 10 Villanova
Thanks to a clutch shot at the buzzer, No. 19 Butler secured a huge conference win against No. 10 Villanova on Wednesday night at Hinkle Fieldhouse.
After climbing out of a 10-point hole in the second half, Villanova’s Saddiq Bey hit a 3-pointer to tie the game up with just 30 seconds left.
So with one chance left, Kamar Baldwin started dribbling out the clock for one last shot. Then, as time expired, Baldwin faked a drive and perfectly executed a step-back to drill the 3-pointer over Collin Gillespie from the wing, giving the Bulldogs the 79-76 win.
“He gave me space, so I took it,” said Baldwin, who had missed 13-straight 3-pointers heading into Wednesday night, via the Associated Press. “When I drove it, he kind of backed up so I just went to my step-back.”
Sean McDermott led the Bulldogs with 21 points and eight rebounds, shooting 7-of-8 from the field. Bryce Golden finished with 18 points, Baldwin added 17 points, and went 3-of-6 from behind the arc. The win marked Butler’s third in its last four games, and avenged a 76-61 loss to Villanova last month.
Bey led Villanova with 29 points while shooting 11-of-20 from the field and 5-of-8 from the 3-point line. Gillespie added 28 points and six assists. They were the only two Wildcats to score in double figures.
The game got off to a slow start, too, and was delayed for 15 minutes in the first half after the roof at Hinkle Fieldhouse started leaking water onto the court.
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