Matt Howard a game-time decision for the final

Matt Howard is the best big man that Butler has, and is probably their only threat to get a bucket in the paint. His presence -- not just as a scorer but as a rebounder -- is going to be vital to Butler's chances against Duke.

The problem is, Howard may not play.

The big man hit the floor hard at the end of the first half last night, banging his head on the floor and possibly giving himself a concussion. He is currently a "game-day decision".

"We're just keeping him under observation today," Stevens said Sunday. "Probably won't practice today. Will be a day-of-game decision, it sounds like. ... We're hoping he's okay. He did have a good night's sleep. He's feeling a little bit better. One thing is, his health is numero uno. If he can't play, he can't play."

Howard played just 17 minutes last night, finishing with four points and two boards on 1-7 shooting from the field.

When asked if he suffered a concussion, Stevens said "I don't want to say. It's obviously enough that he's not going to practice."

Losing Howard would mean that Butler would have to rely even more on back up big men Avery Jukes and Andrew Smith. The pair has averaged just 3.2 ppg in the tournament, but have both shown flashes of being capable big men.

Butler was able to go small last night, playing three guards along side Willie Veasley and Gordon Hayward, but they won't be able to do that against Duke. As much of an advantage as they would have on the offensive end, I just don't see them being able to get a defensive rebound with that kind of size disadvantage.

In other words, Smith and Jukes will get a lot of minutes if Howard's a no-go.

We will post a video of the injury if we can find one later today.