Butler and Purdue Headed to Sweet 16

No. 4 seed Butler vs. No. 12 seed Middle Tennessee State

Milwaukee’s opening second-round game was a battle between two teams with the same goal: a Sweet 16 berth. In the first half, Butler shot 67% from beyond the three-point arc and 50% from the field, scoring 36 points in a very slow-paced first half. Middle Tennessee State struggled from deep, shooting just 21% from three-point range. The Blue Raiders starting guards were 0 for 13 from the field, but JaCorey Williams and Antwain Johnson stepped up, with Williams scoring 20 points and Johnson scoring 19, a career high. The Butler Bulldogs had a strong and deep overall performance, though, and were too consistent to be caught.

No. 4 seed Purdue vs. No. 5 seed Iowa State

The Saturday night game in Milwaukee was a thriller. Purdue led by 19 points early in the second half, but Iowa State did not give up. The Cyclones went on a 34–13 run that included a 7–0 run, a 12–0 run, and a 6–0 run to take the lead 73–71 with three minutes remaining. The Boilermakers responded with a 7–0 run of their own that took more than two minutes for the Cyclones to end. Both teams fought very hard, and everyone on the court was exhausted in the final minutes. Vincent Edwards (21 points) and Caleb Swanigan (20 points) each had a double double for the Boilermakers. Purdue scored half of its points in the paint and had 27 assists on 31 field goals. This was an exciting battle between two teams with Final Four potential.

Photographs by (from top): Robin Alam/Icon Sportswire/Getty Images; Jonthan Daniel/Getty Images