It was close throughout, but Virginia just had too much for Butler down the stretch.
The top-seeded Cavaliers pulled away from No. 9 Butler for a 77-69 victory at PNC Arena in Raleigh to advance to the Sweet 16 in the Midwest Region.
The teams essentially traded possessions the entire game. How close was it? The score was within three points for most of contest and Butler's 39-34 lead with 15:59 remaining was the largest lead of the game to that point. The Cavaliers held a 29-25 advantage following an Isaiah Wilkins layup with 18:57 remaining.
The Cavaliers matched that margin on a Malcolm Brogdon layup to take a 55-51 lead with 8:57 remaining, but the Bulldogs quickly answered with a Roosevelt Jones jumper at the other end.