Butler vs. Texas: Score and Twitter Reaction from March Madness 2015

The No. 6 Butler Bulldogs took care of business Thursday against the No. 11 Texas Longhorns in a defensive-minded 56-48 outcome in the 2015 NCAA tournament's second round.

While Butler predictably lost the battle on the glass 41-28 against a bigger lineup, the Bulldogs took advantage of 15 Longhorns turnovers to pull away late.             

Kellen Dunham, Butler's leading scorer on the season, led the way for the Bulldogs, posting a game-high 20 points and helping the team to weather a defensive storm in the second half.

As ESPN Stats & Info notes, Butler's win keeps the program in prestigious company:

Texas senior forward Jonathan Holmes took things into his own hands, scoring 15 points in a last-ditch effort to save the season. Isaiah Taylor added 14 of his own, most in a late surge, while star freshman Myles Turner posted just two on five attempts.

Both teams used the first half to get a feel for one another. The Bulldogs entered the tunnel with a 26-24 advantage, but both shot about 40 percent from the field.

Texas seemed to be in its own way, though, winning the battle on the glass 18-12 but committing eight turnovers to Butler's three. The saving grace? Butler went scoreless over the course of the last four minutes.

Also of note is how Texas coach Rick Barnes spoke of tempo at the half, as captured by Dustin McComas of Orangebloods.com:

The gloves came off in the second half.

Texas came out of the break even faster up and down the court, with Holmes helping the Longhorns to take the lead early. As Ricky Doyle of Time Warner Cable News noted before the half, Holmes was playing up to expectations:

Not only did Butler's iffy sudden form continue into the second half, but the team also lost junior Roosevelt Jones to an injury. Considering he tallied four of the team's eight assists to that point, the last thing the Bulldogs needed was to lose their best facilitator.

Sports Illustrated's Seth Davis offered his thoughts on the development:

Despite the Longhorns' attempt to push the tempo, the flow continued to favor the Bulldogs in a gritty, defensive-minded affair.

CBS Sports' Doug Gottlieb offered a warning centered on Texas' inability to capitalize on the Butler dry spell:

Gottlieb proved prophetic in his analysis.

Jones returned around the eight-minute mark with his team still in the lead thanks to the efforts of Dunham.

His impact upon return was indisputable considering his first chance with the ball he drove to the hoop and scored on the 6'9" Cameron Ridley.

Jerry Carino of Gannett New Jersey newspapers offered a bit of praise for Jones' grit:

"

#Texas not putting space between themselves and Butler when BU goes w/o a bucket for 10min is going to haunt them

— Doug Gottlieb (@GottliebShow) March 19, 2015"

Texas had an answer, though, in Taylor, who scored 10 of the team's 12 points down the stretch.

The turning point proved to be a double-dribble call with just over two minutes left in regulation, as The Big Lead's Jason McIntyre illustrates:

Neither Taylor nor Holmes could salvage the contest then, as two misses at the charity stripe led to a deep conversion by Dunham to ice the contest.

Davis put it best concerning the dagger:

Jeff Faraudo of the Bay Area News Group breaks down what turned out to be a worst-case scenario for Texas and the Big 12 Thursday:

For Texas, a season-long battle with expectations centered on the arrival of Turner comes to an end. He spoke about those expectations for the team before Thursday's contest, per The Associated Press (via ESPN.com):

"

The only thing we have to prove is to prove to ourselves that we're a great team like we said we are. Everybody has their opinions. Yeah we haven't had the most productive season. But we know what kind of team we're capable of being.

"

Up next for Butler? An all-Indiana clash of contrasting styles.

Butler next encounters third-seeded Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish tout a potent offense that just shot 57.4 percent from the floor to take down Northeastern, so Dunham and Jones will need to be sharp on short notice.           

While Dunham and the Bulldogs proved Thursday they can survive a slow-paced affair with a physical team, the Fighting Irish present a different challenge that creates a battle of contrasting styles perfect for bracket play.       

Stats and info are courtesy of ESPN.com unless otherwise specified.