“No effort without error”: Butler coach Connor McCaffrey’s brother Patrick shares inspirational message after losing 73-65 vs. Villanova 

Connor and Patrick McCaffery have experienced a lot together, currently representing the Butler Bulldogs as an assistant coach and player, respectively. For Patrick, he showcased his winning mentality following a defeat to begin 2025.

Following a 73-65 loss to the Villanova Wildcats on Wednesday, Patrick reflected on the game with an Instagram story post. With five inspiring words, he made it clear to Butler fans about what he was thinking with his mentality.

"No effort without error. Onward," Patrick wrote.

Patrick McCaffery reacts to his recent Butler performance. (Instagram)

How Patrick McCaffery, Butler played against Villanova

It was a tough night for Patrick McCaffery and the Bulldogs (7-7), losing in front of their home fans as they fell to 0-3 in Big East play.

McCaffery finished with seven points, five rebounds and two assists in 32 minutes. However, he went 3 of 12 as he missed nine of his 10 3-point attempts.

Jahmyl Telfort led the Bulldogs in scoring with 25 points and 10 rebounds, but it wasn't enough as the Wildcats (9-5, 2-1 Big East) outscored them 43-34 in the second half to pull off the win. Eric Dixon highlighted Villanova's performance with 28 points on 10-of-20 shooting overall and 5-of-10 from beyond the arc, as Wooga Poplar followed suit with a double-double of 18 points and 15 rebounds.

The loss extended Butler's losing streak to six games. They average 72.5 points on shooting splits of 44.7% from the field and 38.4% from downtown, beating opponents by a slim winning margin of 2.9 points per game. However, they have been outscored by 62 points throughout their losing streak.

Telfort leads the way with numbers of 16.1 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game. Pierre Brooks comes next with 14.6 ppg, 4.5 rpg and 1.6 apg while McCaffery puts up 12.8 ppg as he has the most 3-pointers with 35 and counting on a success rate of 42.2%.

Patrick McCaffery and the Bulldogs will look to return to the win column when they visit St. John's (11-3, 2-1) at 2 p.m. ET on Saturday.