FanPost

FSU Women Down Tulane 78-72

Junior "point" guard - Brittany Brown - Rob Kinnan-USA TODAY Sports

Game Recap

This one was about survival. FSU was without its starting point guard Leticia Romero due to a high ankle sprain she sustained on Monday against Florida. Backup point guard Emiah Bingley also missed the game due to symptoms from a concussion. Therefore the Noles were without their two primary ball handlers. If that wasn't enough, freshman point guard Rachel Antoniadou returned the day of the game from Australia where she was spending time with her family mourning her grandfather's passing. However FSU was still able to handle a pesky Tulane Green Wave team winning 78-72.

Even counting Antoniadou, FSU only dressed eight players. Junior shooting guard Brittany Brown was forced to run the point for the first time in her career as a Seminole. Brown should be commended for her efforts. She played the entire 40 minutes at an unfamiliar position. Brown didn't shoot well (2 for 10 from the field) but she had a positive assist to turnover ratio (5 to 4) and pulled down 10 boards. There were plenty of times that the offense looked a bit disjointed and the Noles did commit 21 turnovers but considering the circumstances FSU will take this performance.

Shakayla Thomas scored a career high 26 points while Kai James had her best game as a Nole. The junior center scored a career high 14 points and tied her career high with 9 rebounds. She also had a couple of moves in the post that showcased her improving footwork. If this is a sign of things to come this could be a big development for FSU. In order for the Noles to meet their goals this year they will need someone other than Ivey Slaughter and Adut Bulgak to help in the post. James could be that player if she continues her improvement.

It is dangerous to take much out of this game with both point guards missing but at some point FSU will have to start shooting better if they want to continue their status as an elite team. The Noles were 3 for 11 from 3 and 62.8% from the line - although they did get to the line 43 times which is beyond outstanding.

FSU continued its great rebounding winning that battle 51-32 over the Green Wave. Even though we expected it, it's good to see that the rebounding advantage we observed last year remains.

Tulane was a Tournament team last year. They are no pushover and FSU found a way to win while significantly shorthanded. This was an important win. No team with Final Four aspirations wants to lose its first two games. Fortunately for the Noles, the schedule is relatively light until Rutgers visits Tallahassee on December 3 for the ACC/Big10 Challenge. They can probably get by without Romero and Bingley until then (although Brown may not last playing 40 minutes a game) but they will definitely need both guards to beat the Scarlet Knights.

The Seminoles take the court again on November 22 in the TLCCC against UAB at 5pm (ESPN3).

Recruiting Update

Florida State officially has a top 5 class. ESPN now rates FSU's class as #4 in the nation after the Noles signed 5* F/C Jasmine Walker in the early signing period. As we have previously discussed, it is classes like this that can turn an elite team into an elite program.

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