Freshman steps up in win

With Boston College and St. John’s coming up in the next two weeks, it looked like Panther… With Boston College and St. John’s coming up in the next two weeks, it looked like Panther fans would be able to snooze their way through that time period. Unfortunately, it was the Pitt men’s basketball team that was sleepwalking against Boston College on Wednesday night.

Down 21-13 with 6:23 left to play in the first half, the Panthers reinserted starting point guard Carl Krauser into the lineup. Krauser had been out since the 17:19 mark of the first half when he picked up his second personal foul.

Krauser sparked a run that helped Pitt get back into the game. The 8-0 Pitt run seemed to give the Panthers all the momentum, and then it happened. While trying to make a big steal, Krauser picked up his third foul and would have to sit.

While Krauser was out, freshman guard Antonio Graves stepped in and ran the offense.

“I just wanted to be ready, and come up big for the team,” said Graves.

With Graves at the helm, the Panthers finished the half on a 16-4 run, which was capped by Graves’ running, one-handed floater that beat the first half buzzer and tied the game at 27.

The run set up the start of the second half. With Krauser still in foul trouble, Panthers head coach Jamie Dixon kept Graves in, and his gamble appears to have paid off. Graves and the Panthers opened the half on a 12-0 run, and were in control for the majority of the half.

“That run gave them their cushion. That was the ball game. We played catch-up after that. Those four minutes cost us the ball game,” Boston College head coach Al Skinner said.

Until that run, Graves was most known for his last-second miss in the Panthers loss at Connecticut. But that would change after tonight.

Graves was able to control the tempo and run the Panthers offense, which was sluggish to start the game. He finished the game with four points, five assists, one rebound, one steal, and 21 important minutes for his team.

“Antonio had a great game. He is a kid who keeps getting better and better,” Dixon said.

Boston College, however, did make a run, but the Panthers’ backcourt took control and took over the game. Guard Julius Page, who had been struggling with his outside shooting, hit two big three-pointers.

Page’s three-pointers, along with the return of Krauser, ended up closing the door on the Eagles. While Graves was able to get the done job in Krauser’s absence, it was Krauser who made the final plays. After the Eagles took a 55-54 lead with three minutes to play, Krauser showed why he was the leader of the team. Krauser did so by making the next two Panther hoops to put Pitt up for good, and added four free throws to keep the game out of reach.

“My role is to make sure we win,” Krauser said. “Antonio Graves came in and stepped up real big. He gave us great defense, great energy. He did what we expected him to do”