The Wright State men's basketball team couldn't overcome a 19-2 run to open the game against #11 Butler on Saturday in front of a capacity crowd at the Ervin J. Nutter Center, falling 69-51. The Green and Gold shot only 27-percent in the meeting, while Butler connected on 45-percent from the field, including 50-percent from behind the arch.

The Bulldogs got the opening two baskets before Todd Brown would knock down a jumper to make the contest 4-2 with 17:58 remaining in the half. Butler would use a 15-0 run over the next five minutes to extend their lead to 17 points, before Scott Grote connected on the second field goal of the game for WSU.

Butler built a 21 point lead midway through the first half, but WSU would chip away and trim that margin to only 12 with 3:47 left in the opening frame. The nationally-ranked Bulldogs would close the half on an 11-5 run to head to the locker room with a 39-21 lead.

In the second half, WSU couldn't close the gap -managing to cut the deficit to 14 points with 2:39 left on a Gavin Horne three pointer - and Butler improved to 21-2 overall and 21-1 in Horizon League play.

In the contest, Grote would lead the Raiders with 13 points and he grabbed a game-high eight rebounds to go along with a pair of assists and no turnovers. Brown and Cory Cooperwood each netted 12 points for WSU, while Horne chipped in nine off the bench.

The Bulldogs shot 45-percent from the field - connecting on 57-pecent in the opening frame - while making 12 three pointers to only three for WSU. WSU turned the ball over only ten times in the contest, forcing 14 Bulldogs missteps, and each team grabbed 38 rebounds in the contest.

In the arena, 9,735 people filled the stands to account for the eighth largest crowd in Nutter Center history.

The Raiders will return to the court on Tuesday, February 10 as they travel to Chicago to face the Loyola Ramblers at 8:00 Dayton time. That game will be broadcast on Channel 23, 708 and 7.2 in the Dayton area.