FSU vs Lousiana Monroe preview and game thread

Welcome to the game which FSU should not be playing. After ripping FSU's scheduling practices (and subsequent Selection Sunday disappointments) I'll give props to the program for stepping up their game in the past two seasons and actually producing schedules which help manipulate their RPI. That being said, you can't schedule a team which is an absolute lock to have an RPI of 300+. Yes, it's the one aberration off an otherwise smart schedule, but if you can't find an opponent, schedule a DII team so that it doesn't hurt your RPI. This is a team which has gone 6-44 in their past 50 games, and they play in perhaps the 20th best conference in the nation.

So what do you need to know about the Warhawks?

Nothing. Absolutely nothing.

[okay, if you insist, their coach was awarded a contract extension for taking over a dumpster fire which included a post-season ban and a loss of five scholarships, and now he has them headed in the right direction, though he did get a double technical in the last game and may not be on the sideline tonight, and they have one dude who can hit 3s and hopefully you won't need to know his name)

So what am I going to fill this space up with if I'm refusing to discuss the opponent?

Aaron Thomas. That's right.

After a rough start the freshman has settled down over the past four games, but it's been overlooked because three of those games were losses. But he's had the best efficiency margin on the team in that span, and he's primarily done it by stopping the turnovers which were a result of him playing too fast. In the first five games he turned it over 7.0 times per 40 minutes. Since then it's been 2.8/40.

This has allowed him to show off his ability as a scorer, and his scoring ability is why we were so high on him as a recruit.

And now with Ian Miller (foot), Terrance Shannon (shoulder), and Robert Gilchrist (groin) all injured, he should have plenty of chances for extended minutes. What we've seen in recent games is a guard with a gift at getting to the rim. When you can do that, it opens up a host of other possibilities for your team, all of them positive.

If you haven't been watching the past few games, here are some clips on Aaron Thomas.

The game tips at 7pm from the Tuck, and will be broadcast on ESPN3. Vegas has the Noles -25.5, while Pomeroy has FSU -27.