Florida State picks up fourth straight loss

The Florida State Seminoles hosted the Boston College Eagles for a weekend matchup at the Tucker Center. Florida State was riding a three-game losing streak and desperately needed a win in ACC play. They were unable to find that victory after a monstrous first half from the Eagles, ultimately beating the Seminoles 75-69. Florida State ended the game shooting 29% from the field and 13% from three, now losing seven of their last eight games.

BOX SCORE

Player of the game: Caleb Mills scored 16 first-half points, serving as the Noles only offensive weapon. He finished the game with 27 points and seven rebounds.

First half

Head coach Leonard Hamilton kicked off the game with Jalen Warley, Caleb Mills, Darin Green Jr., Baba Miller, and Cameron Corhen. Miller has his second consecutive start, while Matthew Cleveland missed his second consecutive.

Two and a half minutes into the matchup, the Seminoles were scoreless. Florida State started the game 0-3 from the field, scoring their first field goal at the 17:48 mark. Heading into the first timeout the Noles were down 8-2. They were shooting 1-9 from the field (11%) and 0-2 from three.

A pair of freshmen, Chandler Jackson and Tom House checked into the game early for the Seminoles. Green punched in the Noles first three of the game with just over 13 minutes remaining. Jackson was doing a phenomenal job at setting up his teammates, acting as FSU’s top playmaker yet again.

Florida State was in the single-digit scoring column halfway through the first half, putting up nine points on 4-14 from the field. Boston College held a 17-9 lead with 11:07 remaining. The Noles forced three-straight turnovers but were unable to score on either possession. BC’s star center Quinten Post began the game shooting 4-4 from three-point land, helping the Eagles gain a 27-11 lead.

With 4:34 minutes left in the first half, Hamilton and the staff courted sent walk-one Sola Adebisi. He served as the Seminoles' savior in their home match against Clemson a few weeks ago. FSU was pulling any straw to get back in the game at the end of the first half.

Despite Post looking like the greatest basketball player to ever walk this planet, the Noles were chipping away at the end. The Seminoles finished the first half on a 5:20 scoring drought, but free throws kept them in the game. They headed into the locker room with a 38-27 deficit. Mills led the Noles with 16 points and four rebounds.

Second half

Warley came right out of the break with an and-one for the Noles. But, Post came right back and put two points on the board for the Eagles. Florida State needed to make sure to contain Post, but for most of the game, he was looking like prime Stephen Curry.

FSU had the game within single digits with 16 minutes left in the second half, down 42-34 heading into a timeout. They were able to successfully pressure the Eagles on the defensive end, but their constant struggles on offense were highlighted.

Boston College broke their dry period on offense with Jaeden Zachary’s first score of the game the under-15 mark. The Seminoles were able to force timely turnovers, but they had an immense struggle at converting on those opportunities. BC had 16 turnovers with 12 minutes left in the contest, but FSU had just eight points to show for it.

Mills and Miller put the Seminoles on their back to continue pushing against the deficit. Boston College head coach Earl Grant had seen enough when the Noles cut the lead to 46-42 and elected to call a timeout. With 10:19 remaining, the Seminoles were on a 6-0 scoring streak.

With just under six minutes left on the board, the Noles were in the double bonus. Boston College still had a comfortable lead, up 53-48. Florida State hadn’t had a lead the entire game, scoring their first field goal in six minutes at the four-minute mark. Post was in heavy foul trouble for most of the second half, but it was nearly impossible for him to pick up the fifth.

The Eagles had Post and Chas Kelley both with four fouls, but the whistle seemed to be broken late in the game. That wasn’t the case for Miller, as he went to the sideline with his fifth and final foul late in the game. Right off the commercial break, the referees may have heard complaints and sent Post out of the game with a quick foul to end his break.

Warley had an incredible chance to get the Noles within a leading distance, but a missed layup was a major head-scratcher. The Eagles were taking advantage of their own double bonus, knocking down the necessary free throws with under two minutes remaining. Green sunk the Seminoles' first three-pointer of the second half and the second of the entire game with under one minute remaining, but Boston College was able to eat up the clock and finish the game with a narrow win.

Florida State continued to push with a couple of quick scores in the final minute, but the lead was too large to come back from.

Next game: Florida State heads down to Coral Gables to play in-state rival Miami Hurricanes on Feb. 25. The game will be featured on ESPN2 at 4:00 ET. According to DraftKings, the Seminoles stand as the No. 11 team in the ACC, with a +10000 chance to make the NCAA tournament.