2018-19 Season
A second team all-Big Sky Conference selection, and a Big Sky all-tournament choice…one of two Hornets to start all 31 games, and served as a team captain…averaged a team-high 17.0 points per game to go along with 4.7 rebounds, 5.4 assists and 2.0 steals in 34.7 minutes…scored in double figures in all but two games, including each of the final 17 games of the season…was named all-Big Sky Tournament after averaging 28.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 3.0 steals per game while shooting 60% (21-35) from the field and 69% (11-16) from the 3-point line over two games…that included 27 points in a first-round win vs. Northern Arizona, and a career-high 30 points vs. Montana in the quarterfinals…among Big Sky leaders, he ranked first in both assists and steals, fourth in minutes and assist-to-turnover ratio (+1.7), and fifth in scoring…making his year even more impressive is he missed the entire 2017-18 season after undergoing back surgery…started the last 93 games in which he has appeared, or every game during his sophomore, junior and senior seasons…posted the program’s first-ever triple-double against Simpson (12 pts, 10 reb, 11 ast), and nearly had another in a road win at Eastern Washington (19 pts, 10 reb, 9 ast)…also had five double-doubles…drew 14 charges…shot 89% (24-of-27) from the free throw line in the last five minutes of single digit games…led the team in scoring 20 times, led in assists 26 times, and led in steals on 18 occasions…in conference play, he ranked first in the league in assists (5.5 per game) and steals (1.9 per game), third in assist-to-turnover ratio (+2.1) and fifth in scoring (16.8 ppg)…became the 16th player in program history (1948-pres.), and 10th during the Div. I era (1991-pres.) to score 1,000 career points…finished with 1,354 points, the eighth most in program history, and fifth most in the Div. I era…scored just 16 points as a freshman, and combined for 1,338 over his final three active seasons…also in program history, Graves finished second in total minutes (3,300) and starts (93), third in assists (472), fourth in free throws attempted (417), sixth in free throws made (307), and seventh in steals (141), assists per game (4.5), field goals made (478) and field goals attempted (1,130)…was selected to play in the 3X3U National Championship, April 5-7, 2019, in Minnesota.
2017-18 Season
Did not play after undergoing back surgery prior to the season…that snapped a streak of 62 consecutive starts.
2016-17 Season
One of three Hornets to start all 31 games…averaged 13.9 points, 3.7 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 0.9 steals per game while shooting .438 (163-372) from the field and .739 (99-134) from the free throw line…scored in double figures 24 times, including a season-best 13-game streak with at least 10 points from Jan. 12-Feb. 25…among Big Sky leaders, he finished second in assists, third in assist-to-turnover ratio (+2.0), fifth in minutes (35.1 mpg) and 15th in scoring…the assists were the 34th best mark in the nation…in conference play, he raised his averages to 14.2 points, 3.8 rebounds and 5.8 assists per game…the 5.8 assists average was the best mark in the Big Sky…over the last 17 games of the season, Graves averaged a team-high tying 16.3 points per game…had 18 points in the Big Sky Tournament first round win vs. Idaho State and followed that up with a season-high 29 points in the quarterfinal round against Eastern Washington…had three double-doubles, including 15 points and 10 assists vs. Southern Utah, 18 points and 13 assists vs. Montana, and 12 points and 10 assists vs. UC Merced…in that Southern Utah game, he finished four rebounds shy of a triple-double…during the final five minutes of games, Graves shot .791 (34-for-43) from the free throw line…his 13 assists vs. Montana were tied for the third best single-game mark in Sacramento State’s Div. I era (1991-pres.).
2015-16 Season
The only Hornet to start all 31 games…played at both point guard and shooting guard…finished the season averaging 12.2 points, 3.9 rebounds, 4.4 assists, 1.6 steals and 34.4 minutes per game…also had a +2.1 assist-to-turnover ratio…shot .416 (127-for-305) from the field and .681 (94-of-138) from the free throw line…led the Hornets in starts, minutes, free throws made and attempted, assists and steals…among Big Sky leaders, he ranked second in assist-to-turnover ratio, fifth in assists and minutes, and seventh in steals…named Big Sky Player of the Week on Nov. 17 after scoring 20 points in a win at Arizona State and a season-high 24 points in a win at Seattle…also named the Sacramento State Student-Athlete of the Week for those performances…had five games with at least 20 points…scored in double figures on 20 occasions…led the team in scoring seven times…played 40 minutes on two occasions during the year…had a career-high eight steals in a win against Pacific, tied for the second best single-game mark in the program’s Div. I era (1991-pres.)…had nine points, seven rebounds, five assists and no turnovers in 34 minutes in the Hornets’ 79-75 win at Montana State in the first round of the Big Sky Tournament…shot .776 (45-for-58) from the free throw line during the final five minutes of games.
2014-15 Season
Appeared in 13 games during his true freshman season, averaging 1.2 points, 0.3 rebounds, 0.3 assists and 5.3 minutes per game…of his six made field goals during the season, four came from beyond the 3-point line…posted season highs in points (8), rebounds (2), steals (2), 3-pointers made (2) and minutes (16) in the season opener at Gonzaga…also had five points and two assists in a win over Bristol…had three points at UC Irvine, and played nine minutes at Seattle.
High School
A 2014 graduate of Westview High School in San Diego…played his senior season at Westview after playing two years at North Carolina’s Independence High School…was the starting point guard at Westview where he was a first team all-section and first team all-Palomar League choice after helping lead the team to an 18-11 record and a quarterfinal appearance at the CIF Div. I San Diego Section quarterfinals…during that senior season, he played all 29 games, averaging 17.6 points, 5.4 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game while shooting .479 from the field and .368 from the 3-point line…notched the school’s first-ever triple-double when he had 10 points, 10 rebounds and a school single-game record 11 assists in a win against Scripps Ranch High School…his 509 points and 132 assists were the second best single-season marks in Westview history…named to the North County San Diego All-Star roster, and proceeded to score 25 points in the All-Star game while being named the North MVP…prior to Westview, Graves played two years of varsity basketball at Independence High School in Charlotte, N.C…as a junior in 2012-13, he helped the squad to a 24-6 overall record, a third round appearance in the state championship, and 4A Southwestern Conference regular season and tournament titles…that season, he was a first team all-league choice and team MVP after averaging 12.4 points, 4.8 assists, 3.2 rebounds and 2.3 steals per game…named to the Dream Team at Independence HS in 2012-13, a reward given to top athletes, citizens and scholars.
Personal
Parents are Fred and Michele Graves…a communication studies major who will graduate in the spring of 2019…father, Fred, coached wide receivers in the National Football League, and boasted over 40 years coaching the wide receiver position both professionally and on the collegiate level…Marcus' mother, Michele, was an All-American softball pitcher for the University of Utah, and was inducted into the school’s Hall of Fame.
