Da’Sean Butler and I have three of these four things in common. Both attended WVU, both love the New York Knicks, both love the Cleveland Indians and both are deadly with a spin move.

OK, OK. He’s not an Indians fan. He just wears the hat, though for good reason.

“I always root for the underdog, no matter what,” Butler said. “Any team having like a 10-102 season, I like them. I’m willing to watch them play and hopefully catch them when they’re winning.”

It’s the anti-bandwagon and this probably, in some regard, explains the style with which he’s carried the flag for WVU toward this stage. No matter the circumstances, he insists the Mountaineers are the underdogs and denied respect and attention.

And, true to form, he caught WVU during some bad moments.

He, like many others, has the painful memories of Marches past. He remembers the Elite Eight loss to Louisville in 2005. He was committed when Kenton Paulino beat WVU at the buzzer in the Sweet Sixteen in 2006. Actually, committed and devastated. He took a swing at his television and did some damage.

On campus, he was there when that whole 13-9 thing happened in December 2007 and had that “Here we go again” feeling shared by so many others.

“That was their chance,” he said. “It was a night game and it was raining, so I was worried. It sucked, especially the way it ended for the team and the state.”

He remembers them all and knows the collective pain and sorrow they’ve caused, but he does not worry about what might be next.

“Nope,” he said. “It doesn’t rain inside.”