Butler's strong start gave it just enough cushion to overcome a sputtering second half and hold on for a 72-66 win over Xavier on senior night at Hinkle Fieldhouse.

Jahmyl Telfort led Butler with 18 points and six rebounds. Posh Alexander scored 16 points. Pierre Brooks II added 14 points.

Here are three observations from the regular-season finale win.

Insider: Senior night. Hated Xavier in town. A fond farewell. Hinkle was at its best.

Butler comes out on fire

The opening five minutes of Wednesday's game against the Musketeers showed all the reasons why Butler deserves a shot at the NCAA tournament. The Bulldogs played intense defense, and moved the ball well on offense, leading to highly efficient shots and a 20-4 lead.

The Bulldogs made eight of their first 10 shots, swiped two steals and did not commit a turnover during the early scoring spree. Telfort attacked the basket with propose, and Brooks sank his first two 3-point attempts. Jalen Thomas provided rim protection inside, and the entire team crashed the boards on defense.

With the help of an engaged home crowd, Butler had Xavier rattled. The Dawgs led by 12 before Sean Miller mercifully called a timeout. The Musketeers regrouped after the timeout, and all of Butler's warts re-appeared.

Butler falls flat to start second half

In the second half, Butler looked like a completely different team. The Bulldogs went scoreless for the first eight minutes of the half, allowing Xavier to shrink its 13-point halftime deficit to five.

The Bulldogs offense stopped moving the ball, relying too much on contested jump shots. The offense generated open looks, but they did not fall. Alexander used his defense to spark Butler's offense, turning a steal into a layup and draining a 3-pointer on the following possession, putting Butler up 10 with 8:22 left.

Butler led by as many 14 in the second half.

On senior night, the future is bright

On senior night, centers Jalen Thomas and John-Michael Mulloy were honored before the game. Thomas came to Butler from Georgia State and worked into a role as a starting center. Mulloy is local from Carmel. He was recruited to Butler by former coach LaVall Jordan. Mulloy's on-court role has diminished during his career with the Dawgs, but he's accepted a role as a veteran leader on the team.

With only two players graduating, Butler could return 12 of 14 players, while adding freshman Evan Haywood (Brebeuf Jesuit) to the roster. Returning a majority of the roster would be a complete turnaround from the massive makeover coach Thad Matta conducted in Year 2 at back the helm. Bringing back a majority of the team would give the program continuity and added stability. Two things that could spell trouble for the rest of the Big East.

Butler 72, Xavier 66

XAVIER (15-15) -- Ousmane 3-9 0-0 6, Nzeh 1-2 0-0 2, Claude 5-14 6-6 17, McKnight 6-14 1-1 13, Olivari 5-15 2-2 13, Djokovic 2-3 2-2 7, Green 1-5 0-0 3, Nemeiksa 1-4 1-1 3, Colbert 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 25-67 12-12 66.

BUTLER (18-13) -- Telfort 6-16 5-6 18, Thomas 2-9 2-2 6, Alexander 6-10 2-2 16, Davis 4-11 2-2 11, Brooks 6-10 0-0 14, Bizjack 2-6 1-1 5, Moore 0-1 0-0 0, Screen 1-3 0-0 2, Cassia 0-0 0-0 0, Mulloy 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 27-66 12-13 72.

Halftime—Butler 37-24. 3-Point Goals_Xavier 4-13 (Djokovic 1-1, Green 1-3, Claude 1-4, Olivari 1-4, McKnight 0-1), Butler 6-24 (Alexander 2-4, Brooks 2-4, Davis 1-5, Telfort 1-7, Thomas 0-1, Bizjack 0-3). Rebounds_Xavier 38 (Ousmane 10), Butler 31 (Thomas 10). Assists_Xavier 5 (Nzeh 2), Butler 13 (Telfort, Alexander 4). Total Fouls_Xavier 15, Butler 15.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Butler basketball: How Bulldogs beat Xavier to finish regular season