How Butler stunned Oklahoma: Dawgs show fight behind Chuck Harris, freshmen heroics

Butler changed defenses and maybe its season.

The Bulldogs, trailing by 13 points midway through the second half, went on a late 11-0 run to force overtime and closed OT on an 8-0 run to beat Oklahoma 66-62 in college basketball Tuesday night at Norman, Okla.

With the Bulldogs trailing 41-28 and under 13 minutes left in regulation, their win probability was 4%, according to KenPom.com analytics.

Insider:In OT road win, LaVall Jordan and young Dawgs show Butler hasn't lost its way

On a team featuring so many seniors, underclassmen Chuck Harris, Simas Lukosius and DJ Hughes allowed Butler (6-3) to end a five-game road losing streak dating to last season.

Harris scored 26 points, featuring 4-of-7 on 3-pointers. His floater pushed Butler ahead 52-49 with 22 seconds left in regulation, and his 3-pointer gave Butler the lead for good 63-62 with 35 seconds left in OT.

Lukosius, a freshman, had seven points and six rebounds in 21 minutes. Hughes, also a freshman, had six points and six rebounds and was plus-11 in his 23 minutes.

Butler, an 11-point underdog, made seven consecutive shots in the second half. That, plus a switch in defense, allowed the Bulldogs to win.

Elijah Harkless’ 3-pointer with two seconds left tied the score at 54 and forced OT.

Harkless finished with 16 points for Oklahoma (7-2).

Man-to-man has always been the staple at Butler, but LaVall Jordan has shown willingness to switch to zones in an attempt to slow down opponents.

The 1-2-2 introduced by the coach confounded the Sooners, whose points suddenly came grudgingly. They endured a late 2-of-14 stretch of shooting, unable to post Tanner Groves inside or hit 3s from the arc.

Groves, coming off a 20-point game in a win over  scored 10 points in the first half and zero thereafter.

Oklahoma (61%) ranks second in the nation in two-point percentage but took more than half of its attempts from the arc. The Sooners were 16-of-25 on 2s and 9-of-31 on 3s.

Contact IndyStar reporter David Woods at david.woods@indystar.com. Follow him on Twitter: @DavidWoods007.