UConn vs Butler First Half Reaction

NCAA Tournament Final Halftime Score: Butler 22 - UConn 19 (The lowest scoring first half in a championship game since 1946 between Oklahoma A&M and North Carolina)

• Both teams showed early game jitters in the first few minutes. Kemba Walker was 0 for 5 from the field for the first 7 minutes of the game and Shelvin Mack began the game 0 for 4. Butler began the game 0 of 6 on two point shots and was 2 of 16 from the field. Their third field goal came with 10:18 remaining in the half.
• Jeremy Lamb's length bothered Butler's star guard Shelvin Mack. He was 0 for 4 from the field including 0 of 2 from three through 16 minutes.
• Butler did a great job of hedging and double-teaming Kemba Walker off screens. Walker was 3 of 11 from the field and only scored 7 points. 
• UConn's freshman including Jeremy Lamb, Roscoe Smith, Tyler Olander, and Shabazz Napier had a total of 2 points in the first half.
• Matt Howard struggled with the size of the UConn frontline. He was 1 of 6 from the field and only had 5 points in the first half. He had more success when he stepped out on the perimeter and made the UConn big men guard him outside the paint.
• UConn had 26 rebounds including 10 on the offensive end. They had 9 field goals in the first half and 8 of them were in the paint. UConn outscored Butler 16 to 0 in points in the paint.
• UConn was hampered by foul trouble, as Butler was in the bonus with 9:02 remaining in the half. Jeremy Lamb, Alex Oriakhi, Kemba Walker, and Roscoe Smith all picked up two fouls. 
• Mack began to score in the second half when Lamb went to the bench. He hit two threes and finished the half with 7 points after Lamb left the game with two fouls.
• Both teams struggled to score on the offensive end of the court and went on long periods of droughts. Butler didn't have a field goal form the 4:17 mark until Shelvin Mack hit a three at the buzzer. Butler had 6 field goals the entire half and shot under 20 percent from the floor. They were 5 of 14 from three in the half. UConn didn't score from the 18:23 mark until 14:54 remaining in the first half. They also went from 12:34 to 7:51 without scoring.