The Musketeers are entering the teeth of Big East Conference play and there's no time for them to be contented with their successes to date.
All fine ways to to start calendar year 2018, but it won't matter much in March where the team was on Jan. 1 if they don't keep winning.
Bulldogs first-year head coach LaVall Jordan hinted the effort against Villanova was an outlier from Butler's body of work thus far, though, saying after the win, "I'm proud of these guys for maintaining their togetherness and having a focus about them that we hadn't seen up until this point."
Xavier fans will hope that the DePaul win was the first and only lesson on the importance of starting games well that the Musketeers will need the rest of this winter.
• Xavier's ongoing nine-game winning streak is tied for the longest in the Chris Mack era (nine seasons).
- Butler at Xavier: 2017-18 college basketball preview, TV, predictionBusting Brackets
- College Basketball Power Rankings: There is a new No. 1 as the last of the ...NBCSports.com
- Canterbury grad, Xavier junior Fincher named to BIG EAST Honor RollWANE
- Butler upsets No.1 Villanova 101-93 with 3-point spreeBrinkwire (press release)
- Xavier basketball ties program-best with No. 5 ranking in AP pollCincinnati.com
- Team of the Week: Butler BulldogsYahoo Sports
- No. 1 Villanova lacks depth, not just defense, in first loss of seasonPhilly.com
- Butler gets quick turnaround to face No. 5 Xavier (Jan 02, 2018)FOXSports.com
- Congrats, Butler on beating No. 1. Next up, No. 5 Xavier.Indianapolis Star
