INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- A. J. Graves scored 14 of Butler's final 16 points, including all eight of his free throws, and the Bulldogs held off a Ball State comeback for a 74-68 victory Wednesday.
Butler (5-3) led 37-22 at halftime and kept a double-digit lead through most of the second half, with a layup by Graves, who finished with 29 points, making the score 64-52 with 3:45 remaining.
Ball State (5-3) then scored seven straight points on a 3-pointer by Peyton Stovall and baskets by Julien Mills and Terrance Chapman to narrow the gap to 64-59 with 2:08 remaining.
The Cardinals resorted to fouling Butler, but the Bulldogs hit all 10 of their remaining free throws, including eight by Graves, and Ball State never got closer than four points.
Butler made 18 of 22 free throws for the game to Ball State's 9-of-17.
Chapman led Ball State with 23 points and a game-high nine rebounds, Stovall finished with 15 points and Mills had 14.
Avery Sheets scored 14 points for Butler.
Ball State's last lead of the game came with 10:07 remaining in the first half when Chapman's free throw made the score 12-11. Butler then scored nine straight points, including five by Graves, to take a 20-12 lead with seven minutes left in the period. Ball State came no closer than six points the rest of the half.
