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Graves' seven 3-pointers help Butler sink Florida St.

Dec 16, 2007 - 4:29 AM INDIANAPOLIS (Ticker) -- Unfortunately for Florida State, A.J. Graves re-discovered his touch from deep.

Graves set a season high with seven 3-pointers and scored 25 points as No. 19 Butler captured a 79-68 victory over Florida State in the John Wooden Tradition on Saturday.

Mike Green scored 20 points for the Bulldogs (9-1), who connected on 11-of-26 3-pointers (42 percent) in rebounding from their first loss of the season.

In a 43-42 setback to Horizon League rival Wright State last Saturday, Graves was held to just six points - his second consecutive game below double digits. The senior guard was 0-of-6 from the arc and had missed 11 straight 3-pointers coming into the matchup with the Seminoles.

That slump reached 12 in the opening moments vs. Florida State before Graves had four 3-pointers in the first half to carry Butler to a 38-30 lead at the break.

Midway through the second half, the Seminoles cut that deficit to 51-48 after Isaiah Swann's layup capped a 14-5 run.

However, Graves answered back with a basket from the arc. He added another slighty more than three minutes later, making it 58-50 with 6:19 remaining.

Graves knocked down his final 3-pointer with 2:38 remaining and Green had 11 points inside the final two minutes for the Bulldogs, who overcame the Seminoles' 40-24 advantage in points in the paint.

An early candidate for the Wooden Award, Graves finished 8-of-18 from the field, including 7-of-16 from the arc. It was the most field goals that he had in a game since a 60-47 win at Evansville on November 17 - a span of seven games.

Matt Howard had 11 points and Julian Betko added eight for Butler, which used its long-range shooting to overcome its on-going rebounding issues.

The Bulldogs finished with a 35-25 deficit on the glass, including 12-4 on the offensive end. However, the Seminoles could only come up with nine second-chance points.

Butler, on the season, is averaging a rebound less than its opponent.

Jason Rich had 17 points and Ralph Mims 16 and seven rebounds for Florida State (9-3), which had a six-game winning streak stopped.

Uche Echefu added seven points and 12 boards for the Seminoles, who shot 47 percent (27-of-58).