Simple words from UDM head coach Ray McCallum to his team and relayed to the media following a 65-61 Detroit win at Butler in front of a sellout crowd of 10,000 Saturday afternoon in Horizon League play.  While it referred to the season in general, it could have easily summed up the gritty win at Hinkle Fieldhouse that gave Detroit the season series sweep over BU for the first time since 1997-98.

Butler (13-12, 7-6) knocked down two quick triples and led 6-0 in the opening 1:33 that looked nothing like the rest of the game.  Following that start, these two longtime HL rivals went at each other with the intensity of a heavyweight bout.

Although no punches were thrown, both teams withstood each other's best shot and the Hinkle floor was muddied with sweat and blood from a defensive effort-- especially in the first half-- that closer resembled a tournament game than an early February matinee.  In fact, BU senior guard Ronald Nored left the contest briefly without part of one of his front teeth after a battle for the ball that ended with his face striking the floor.

After the Butler start, Detroit tightened the screws defensively as BU managed just four field goals the rest of the half and Detroit took a slim 28-27 advantage in the halftime locker room. The stat sheet was nearly as ugly as you'd expect from a physical battle with the Titans making 36 percent of their shots while Butler connected on just 26 percent from the floor in the first 20 minutes.  The teams combined for 19 fouls in the first 20 minutes and each team dealt with foul troubles, LaMarcus Lowe and Chrishawn Hopkins had three apiece at the break.

It was a back-and-forth battle in the first stanza with six ties and nine lead changes.  Neither team led by more than six points.  With the score 16-10 Butler, freshman P.J. Boutte led a fastbreak and fed a streaking McCallum with a behind-the-back pass that sparked a 7-0 Detroit run and the Titans were up a point at the intermission following a gritty, defensive battle.

The second half would take on a different tone, however.  After an Andrew Smith dunk on the first possession, sophomore Ray McCallum hit a triple from the top of the key to give the lead back to the Titans.  It wound up being be the final lead change, but the game remained in doubt until the final seconds.

McCallum's jumper with seven minutes to play gave Detroit its largest cushion at 56-47, but it would be short-lived.  Butler scored the next six points and got the crowd back in full throat. That's when a key moment happened that proved Detroit's resiliency.

Chase Simon was fouled on a three, but uncharacteristically missed all three free throws.  Detroit battled for the offensive rebound, however, and McCallum later knocked down a pair to slow the momentum shift.  An Eli Holman layup staked the Titans to a seven-point lead with three minutes to go.

The Bulldogs again trimmed it to three and had an opportunity to tie with an extended trip that had two offensive rebounds.  But Nored eventually turned it over-- one of 18 BU miscues on the afternoon-- and he was forced to foul.  Doug Anderson missed the front end of a one-and-one keeping hope alive for the home team but two missed three pointers and a free throw make by McCallum sealed the deal.

McCallum had four rebounds and four assists to go along with his game-high point total.  Holman led a Detroit bench attack that outscored BU's reserves, 23-6.  Holman put in 13 points and had seven rebounds, three blocks and three steals.  Simon contributed 11 points and four assists in the win.

Smith was Butler's top point-getter with 18.  Roosevelt Jones recorded a double-double with 16 points and 12 rebounds.

The Titans return to the Motor City for a pair of games next weekend, hosting Milwaukee Friday (7:00 p.m.) on ESPN3 and Green Bay Sunday (1:00 p.m.) on Fox Sports Detroit.

Notes:  It was McCallum's seventh 20-point game of the season to lead all Detroit players ... The last Detroit win at Hinkle Fieldhouse came in the 1998-99 season, snapping a 12-game skid for UDM at Butler ... UDM had 13 steals in the contest, a new season high.