We talked about this three weeks ago and a lot has happened since then.

Butler wants to win and doesn’t mind what it takes to get there. Go back through the past few years. Is there someone else you’d want with the ball late? Along the lines, who’s been more dangerous when he got on a roll? True, there’s another side of that streaky personality, but that’s part of the ride.

OK, so what’s happened? He’s made three game-winning shots since that day and on Sunday added a putback of a missed Cam Thoroughman free throw to the list of clutch shots.

That basket gave WVU a seven-point lead with 78 seconds to go instead of a duty prevent the margin from shrinking to two or three points — and face it, with the Mountaineers, you know Mizzou was going to hit a 3 to make things really interesting.

Butler put that basket atop his list of favorite shots this season … and if you watch it, it’s a pretty strong effort to start from the right side of the lane,  roll left around two defenders, tip the ball out to yourself and, almost in the same motion, gather it and lunge toward the basket.

But none of that was a surprise. If you’ve watched from any distance this season, you could see that game unfolding the way it did. I got a text from a friend in the middle of the second half:

Friend: They look awful.
Me: They do awful.

Not “They do look awful.” No, they do awful. This is a team that can play a pretty style of basketball, but be just as comfortable, and probably more effective, in a choppy, ugly game.

Had you sat down before the game and scribbled a few notes predicting what’d transpire, it might have read: “Close game … WVU builds lead, can’t run away … Missouri stays close with some big shots … tight late … Butler makes big play … final margin under 10 points.”

And I don’t think anyone was more aware of this than were the Mountaineers, who seem buoyed by a bizarre confidence. They have late-game experience. They have Butler. They’ll take their chances against the opponent’s.

Butler is one enormous shot or one 30-point game away from becoming the name in this event. I’d say no one is having more fun, but that’s not true. The entire team is enjoying this at a level that might be alarming — see hotel room videos — but is instead intriguing and not at all disruptive.

People may say this WVU team has taken on Bob Huggins’ personality, but those people might be wrong. 

Certainly the Mountaineers, now bound for the Sweet Sixteen in Syracuse, N.Y., and Thursday’s 7:27 p.m. CBS game against No. 11 seed Washington (26-9), play with their coach’s aggression and determination. They’ve embraced rebounding and defense and look a little like some of those old Cincinnati teams.

Suddenly, though, the Mountaineers have swagger as their sixth man and it’s born out of Butler’s behavior.

Honestly, who right now is more confident than this guy?

If WVU is playing as well as anyone still alive in the NCAA Tournament, it’s because Butler has as much fun and confidence as anyone in the bracket.

“I think that’s the atmosphere you should try to create,” Huggins said.

“You only get to spend four years in college. If you’re lucky, maybe five. It’s the best time of your life and you ought to enjoy it and look back on it and have fond memories. You ought to be able to enjoy the experience. Certainly you want them to know the difference between having fun and when it’s time to go to work, but they’ve been really good about that.”