INDIANAPOLIS -- As much as anything, a willingness to accept roles has No. 24 Butler in second place to No. 2 Villanova in the Big East Conference and solidly in the NCAA tournament field.

On Sunday, for example, three of the Bulldogs' four double-digit scorers were on the bench when the 82-66 victory against DePaul in Hinkle Fieldhouse began.

Non-starter Nate Fowler led the way with 15 points, Kelan Martin scored 14 and Tyler Lewis contributed 10 points, eight assists and no turnovers to go with starting guard Avery Woodson's 12 points.

The Bulldogs' non-starters outscored DePaul's bench, 44-17.

"That is a credit to being at this place," Butler coach Chris Holtmann said. "It is what this program has been about for many years. It's a winning culture."

DePaul coach Dave Leitao appreciates the fact Butler is an unselfish team.

"Butler just plays with great rhythm, no matter who is on the floor," Leitao said. "They don't worry about stats and self. Credit the balance that they have."

Butler (21-6, 10-5) used a 21-0 run from the first half's 4:38 mark until 17:31 remained in the second to take a 43-27 lead on DePaul (8-19, 1-13), which has lost 10 in a row.

Trailing 27-22 after two Eli Cain free throws with 4:52 remaining in the first half, Butler closed the opening 20 minutes on a 14-0 run to lead 36-27. Cain led all scorers with 24 points.

Three-point plays by Andrew Chrabascz and Fowler, 3-pointers from Woodson and Martin and a short jumper from Martin comprised the 14-0, half-ending burst.

"We focused more on the defensive end during that run," Fowler said. "We really locked down on them. It was more defensive than it was offensive."

Woodson had 12 first-half points -- all on 3-pointers -- and Martin came off the bench for eight points, five rebounds and an assist. Woodson finished with 12.

"I have been trying to regain my confidence and impact the game in a variety of ways," said Martin, who has started and played off the bench this season. "I have learned from that. The past two games have been great. I was thinking too much for a while there."

Butler won its second in a row and is 3-1 in February heading to No. 2 Villanova on Wednesday and to Xavier on Feb. 26.

"It's nice to know that we already have 21 wins," Lewis said. "But we're not taking the NCAA tournament for granted. We still have a lot to play for."

Butler shot 50 percent (14 of 28) in the first half and outrebounded the Blue Demons 15-14.

Cain had nine first-half points for DePaul, and Joe Hanel and Chris Harrison-Docks each added eight. The Blue Demons shot 44 percent in the first halt (11 of 25) but only 1 of 9 from beyond the arc.

"Playing on the road in this league is a difficult task," Leitao said. "I thought we really established ourselves in the first five or 10 minutes, but then Butler changed defenses and got us back on our heels. At that point, they took the ball right at us. We allowed them to play advantage basketball."

NOTES: In these teams' Jan. 21 meeting in Chicago, DePaul led 25-5, but Butler rallied for a 70-69 overtime victory. ... DePaul did not make a field goal during the final 13:39 of regulation in that January game. ... The Bulldogs lead this series 8-6 and have won seven in a row. ... Butler has won at least 20 games in 11 of the past 12 seasons. ... With the victory, the Bulldogs remain in second place in the Big East, three games behind Villanova. ... DePaul has not won since beating Providence 64-63 on Jan. 10 in Chicago. ... The Blue Demons were facing their fourth consecutive Top 25 opponent -- Xavier, Creighton, Villanova and now Butler. ... DePaul is 4-15 when trailing at halftime.