Graves comes off the bench to spark Pitt’s 21st victory

Another day, another Pitt player coming off the bench and causing nightmares for his opponent…. Another day, another Pitt player coming off the bench and causing nightmares for his opponent.

In just 24 minutes of action, guard Antonio Graves scored 18 points – one shy of his career high set earlier this year – to lead Pitt to their 81-68 win over Providence.

He hit six of his 10 attempts from the field, including two of three shots from beyond the arc. He also shot a perfect 4-for-4 from the line, all of them coming down the stretch as Providence fouled to try and stay in the game.

“I’m just always waiting for an opportunity to step up,” Graves said.

Carl Krauser added that having players with Graves’ capability on the bench was crucial for the Panthers.

“He’s a great player, our most legitimate shooting guard out there,” Krauser said. “Having a guy out there coming off the bench with experience like him is great.”

Graves led yet another bench onslaught for the Panthers. Pitt more than doubled Providence’s output, 35-17. The junior attributed that figure to a combination of Pitt’s success in the starting lineup and talent reserves.

“They can’t double-team us all, and we’re pretty deep this year,” he said.

Graves was a big part of the Panthers’ 14-3 run late in the first half. With Pitt leading 28-19, Graves hit a jumper from just beyond the right elbow. Next time down the floor, he found Gray for a layup to push the lead to 32-19. And he capped the sequence by hitting a 3-pointer from nearly the same spot as his jumper a minute before.

Pitt head coach Jamie Dixon explained the play of Graves was exactly what he expected.

“Antonio’s been doing a great job in practice and it’s carrying over into games as well,” he said.

Graves also played a critical role in the biggest sequence of the night. With 10:16 to play, Sharaud Curry hit a jumper from the left side to cap a 10-2 Providence run that brought the Friars within six points. On the ensuing Pitt possession, Graves sent a smooth feed to Gray for a layup to stop the run. But Providence looked to answer when Levon Kendall fouled Randall Hanke.

The Petersen Events Center fell nearly silent during the media timeout following the foul, and Hanke stepped to the line with a chance to keep up the Providence momentum.

But he missed both free throws and Gray and Graves answered again. This time it was the big man finding Graves, who took a back-door pass along the right baseline and put in a layup with 9:25 to play, reviving the crowd and bumping the lead back to double-digits at 59-49.

As successful as Graves was shooting the ball, his coach made sure to point out how good he was giving it up to teammates.

“He had three assists, and did very well penetrating and finding guys,” Dixon said.

Gray – who had three assists of his own – agreed.

“Antonio definitely made great passes.”

On the defensive side of the ball, Graves caused more problems for the Friars. He was assigned to guard Donnie McGrath for much of the game, a player who entered the contest averaging 15.6 points per game. McGrath had scored 28 against the Panthers in Providence just 10 days before, shooting 6-for-10 from beyond the arc.

In this matchup, McGrath managed just seven points on 3 of 9 shooting. Graves was more pleased about this than any other part of his game.

“That’s what I take pride in, coming into the game and guarding the other team’s best player,” he said.

Graves also added four rebounds and a steal against no turnovers in the effort.