Indianapolis, IN (Sports Network) - Matt Howard shot seven-of-eight from the field and scored 20 points, as 15th-ranked Butler downed Illinois-Chicago, 73-57, at Hinkle Fieldhouse.

A.J. Graves finished with 16 points, and Mike Green had 15 points and six assists for the Bulldogs (19-2, 8-2 Horizon), who won their third straight. Julian Betko had 11 points in the win.

Josh Mayo had 19 points, and Scott VanderMeer 12 for the Flames (10-10, 4-5), who have lost two in a row.

Early in the game Butler scored 12 straight points to open up a lead. Green had a layup in the run, and capped it with a three to put the Bulldogs ahead 17-5 a little over six minutes into the contest.

The margin never fluctuated much for the rest of the half, and Betko ended the period with a pair of threes, sending Butler into intermission with a 43-30 lead.

In the second half, the Bulldogs' lead climbed to as many at 17, when Howard made a pair of free throws to put Butler ahead 61-44.

Illinois-Chicago went on a 13-4 run at that point, and with 3:39 left, Karl White made a layup to trim the Flames' deficit to 65-57. However, Green got to the foul line twice after that, and made all four free throws to keep UIC at bay.

Green's pair with 2:27 left made it a 69-57 contest, and the Bulldogs cruised from there.