Latrobe welcomes newest Butler brother to basketball limelight

By: HSSN Staff
Monday, December 25, 2017 | 11:00 PM

If a tree falls in the forest …

If Bryce Butler beats Austin Butler at one-on-one …

Wait, there was a witness: dad.

“It was three out of four times, actually,” Eric Butler said. “Bryce kept backing him down. Austin pulled me aside and kind of whispered, ‘He has gotten a lot better.' ”

He sure has.

There is another Butler on the Latrobe basketball scene — and two more coming up the ranks, by the way — which is bad news for opponents who quietly rejoiced when Austin Butler graduated. The owner of back-to-back WPIAL scoring titles (30 ppg last year) and Latrobe's all-time leading scorer is now playing at Holy Cross.

But Bryce Butler, a 6-foot-4 junior guard, is picking up where his brother left off.

“It's a passing of the torch,” said Eric Butler, an assistant coach for the Wildcats (5-2, 2-1 Section 3-6A).

Austin, who claims he took the best-of-seven driveway series, 4-3, against his brother, sees immense talent in Bryce.

“He's a tough player with a bunch of different ways to score. He's gonna be very, very good,” Austin said. “Even better than I think he realizes.”

A starter last season who knew his role in a lineup that also included standout guard Jake Biss and current junior Reed Fenton, Bryce Butler has emerged as a threat to score from anywhere on the court. Sound familiar?

“He doesn't look like a guy who scores like that … He's different than Austin,” Penn-Trafford senior guard Sean Kelly said. “But he can light it up for them.”

Butler and Fenton have formed a torrid combo with both averaging more than 23 points. With Fenton, it seemed more expected. He has Division I interest from Princeton, Lafayette, American and Holy Cross.

He recently visited LSU.

But guess what? Some of those same schools also like Butler, who plays on the same PK Flash AAU team as Fenton. Include Army in the conversation, too.

“I feel like I can score from wherever,” Bryce said. “I can shoot from the outside or post up. I like to move around, set screens and get other guys moving.”

In a 92-91 win over Gateway in double overtime, Butler went for 40 points and Fenton 36.

“Everyone thought (Butler) was a forward last year, a big guy,” Fenton said. “But he has really become an all-around player, and he has really become difficult to defend. We have been playing together since fourth grade. We're a 1-2 punch.”

Butler also has games of 21, 20, 22 and 28 points.

“And he sat for the OTs against Gateway,” Latrobe coach Brad Wetzel said of Bryce. “He has great body control, and he is young. He is 16. He should be a sophomore. He has great shooting touch, and that is where good high school players make their hay.”

The comparisons between Bryce and Austin Butler might be limited to point totals.

“They are such different players,” said Eric Butler, who played at Robert Morris and Eastern Kentucky. “Austin was ready to pull up from the volleyball line. Bryce has more of an inside game. Austin was in attack mode every time he touched the ball. Bryce is always thinking ahead. He may have a better basketball IQ.”

And the slender but strong Bryce still could be growing. Eric Butler is 6-7.

“When his body catches up with his brain, watch out,” Wetzel said.

Despite lineup changes and a tweaks in strategy so subtle they might only be visible to the coaches, Latrobe remains the fast-paced team it was the last few years.

“There's more in the tank,” Wetzel said. “We're a young team with chemistry. They know when to hit run-outs and when to play offense.”

And this team has size and speed.

“Everyone talks about our run being over,” Bryce said. “But we have a new legacy, a new identity.

“I am not trying to be Austin. We're all playing our own game.”

After Latrobe games, you usually can find at least two youngsters firing up shots: Landon Butler, a seventh grader who plays on the eighth grade team, and fifth grader Max Butler. The next wave getting ready for their driveway battles and their chance to carry that proud family torch.

Bill Beckner Jr. is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at bbeckner@tribweb.com or via Twiter @BillBeckner.

Tags: Latrobe