FORT WORTH — With 30 seconds left in Saturday’s Sweet 16 game against Kentucky, Texas guard Sarah Graves gave the pro-Longhorns crowd at Dickies Arena two more things to cheer about.
After Kentucky had been assessed a flagrant foul, Graves made both free throws. Those served as the final two points in the Longhorns’ 76-54 win, which advanced Texas (34-3) into Monday’s Elite Eight game against Michigan (28-6).
Because Kentucky’s Teonni Key had been found guilty of committing a flagrant foul, Texas didn’t have to send the victim of that infraction — center Kyla Oldacre and her 68.0 free-throw percentage — to the line. The Longhorns were allowed to pick who they wanted to shoot those shots.
After the game, Texas coach Vic Schaefer shared with reporters that he “actually asked another player to shoot the free throws, and she pointed to Sarah.” During the ABC broadcast, it was reported that freshman Aaliyah Crump was that unnamed player.
Crump shared her side of the story Sunday. She said she ceded those free throws because Graves, a senior and former walk-on who grew up in the Fort Worth area, deserved that moment in the spotlight.
“She’s just a great person. She deserves it,” Crump said. “Obviously, Fort Worth is her hometown, and so just hearing all the fans cheer for her, I think it just really meant a lot. That was her moment. She deserved that, and so it was only right for me to do that.”
Graves has become a cult hero for the Longhorns during their NCAA Tournament run, and the reserve guard’s appearances near the end of blowout wins over Missouri State, Oregon and Kentucky have drawn loud cheers from the Texas fans at Moody Center and Dickies Arena. Graves starred at Keller High, which sits less than 25 miles away from Dickies Arena, and had nearly 200 family members and friends at Saturday’s Sweet 16 showdown (Graves’ younger sister, Rebekah, played for Louisville in the game against Michigan that preceded the Texas-Kentucky contest).
Graves said that in addition to Crump, Texas starting point guard Rori Harmon deserved credit for getting her to the free-throw line. As referees reviewed whether Key had committed a flagrant foul, Harmon started encouraging fans to chant for Graves to shoot the free throws.
“It means a lot to me to see them pour into me,” Graves said. “(The team) standing up while I’m shooting free throws like I just won the national championship was really funny.”
Graves has played 85 minutes over her 19 appearances this season, and that has led to a mere 28 points. Graves, though, believes her last two points were about more than just the finishing touches on a 22-point win over Kentucky.
“It says everything about our team culture,” Graves said. “It’s nothing about me, in my opinion. Coach Schaefer always says play for the name on the front, and everything else takes care of itself. So to have somebody stay for four years knowing they’re not going to play and knowing that they’re going to have a diminished role and still wanting to support their teammates is getting a little bit more rare.
“So the chants aren’t for me and my teammates’ support (isn’t) necessarily for Sarah Graves, but it’s more so the idea of college sports that there’s more to life than your own personal success and pouring into your teammates has good results.”