Krauser helps Pitt pull out a victory

With three and a half minutes remaining and Boston College holding a one-point lead, Pitt… With three and a half minutes remaining and Boston College holding a one-point lead, Pitt looked to a player who had played less than half the game.

Carl Krauser, the Panthers’ leading scorer, had spent most of his night on the bench with three fouls. But with the Eagles holding their first lead since the first half, Pitt turned to Krauser.

The point guard responded by sinking two layups in less than two minutes to propel the Panthers (20-1 overall, 6-1 Big East) to a 68-58 victory over Boston College (13-6, 2-4). The win was Pitt’s fourth straight over the Eagles and extended the team’s home winning streak to 38, the longest in the nation.

After Pitt head coach Jamie Dixon called a timeout with 3:26 remaining, Krauser drove down the lane and scored to give the Panthers a 56-55 lead. Following another timeout, Krauser again took the ball to the hole and sank a floater to put Pitt up by three with 1:37 to go.

“My role is to make sure we win,” he said. “It was just a pick-and-roll play. They weren’t defending it real well.”

Jaron Brown led Pitt in scoring for the fourth time in the past seven games, dropping in 18 points to go along with six rebounds and three assists. Chris Taft chipped in with 14 points and seven rebounds and Krauser added 12 points. For the second game in a row, Pitt dominated inside the paint, outscoring the Eagles 36-18 and grabbing 13 offensive rebounds.

Craig Smith scored 16 points, and Uka Agbai had 17 for the Eagles — including two three-pointers, the first of his five-year career at Boston College.

“We didn’t execute as well as we wanted and that’s something we have to learn,” said Eagles’ head coach Al Skinner. “[Pitt’s] experienced, mature; they got the shots they wanted.”

Boston College started the game off hot, jumping out to a five-point lead to start the game. After the Panthers tied the game at 11 with 13 minutes to go in the first half, the Eagles went on a 10-2 run to take an eight-point lead, their largest of the game.

But Pitt came back before the half. Led by Antonio Graves, who was in after Krauser picked up his third foul with four minutes left in the half, Pitt ended the half on a 14-4 run.

Graves had two key assists during the run, finding Chevon Troutman for two of his six points and getting the ball down low to Taft. After knocking down Agbai, Taft nailed a turn-around jump shot to tie the game at 25.

Following a turnover by Boston College, the freshman then hit a layup as the half ended to tie the score at halftime.

“Antonio had a great game,” Dixon said. “He made a big shot at the end of the half. He’s fortunate to be playing with some smart players.”

“I just have to be ready and come up big,” said Graves about what he was thinking before entering the game. “I play hard and do what I know I can do.”

Graves started the second half in place of Krauser and helped Pitt continue its run. The Panthers scored the first 12 points of the half and looked well on their way to becoming the first team in the country with 20 wins.

But with 12:42 remaining in the game, the Eagles started to chip away at the lead.

Led by eight points from Agbai, Boston College put together an 11-4 run and cut Pitt’s lead down to three following two free throws from Nate Doornekamp.

Two more free throws by Jared Dudley brought the Eagles within one, and, after a tip-in by Jermaine Watson, Boston College held a one-point lead with 3:54 to go.

“We gave them a cushion,” Skinner said about the beginning of the second half. “That was the ball game. We got close and had the opportunity.”

But like they have so many times this season, the Panthers were able to pull out the victory.

“These guys are winners,” Dixon said of his team. “They believe in each other, and that’s why you don’t see one guy trying to do it all.”