INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Matt Howard and Ronald Nored combined for all 10 points in a decisive run that led No. 12 Butler past Wisconsin-Milwaukee 68-59 in the Horizon League tournament semifinals Saturday night.
Top-seeded Butler (27-4) extended the nation’s longest winning streak to 19 games and earned a ticket to Tuesday night’s title game against second-seeded Wright State.
Howard finished with 18 points, while Nored had 13 points and eight rebounds for the Bulldogs.
The Panthers (20-14) were led by Anthony Hill with 15 points and James Eayrs with 10.
Howard and Nored teamed up in the final seven minutes to help Butler pull away after Milwaukee closed to 50-49 with 6:22 to go. Over the next three minutes, the tandem scored all the Bulldogs’ points in a 10-6 run that gave Butler a 60-53 lead with 3:34 left. Milwaukee didn’t closer than that the rest of the way.
