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- Lance Terry, out of Newnan Georgia, had scored more than 10 points in a game twice in his career. He scored 23 vs FSU. Without him, the rest of the team was 4-15 (27%) on 2s and 6-24 (25%) on 3s.
- I noted in the preview how stagnant FSU’s offense vs UCF became when Balsa Koprivica was in the game. It was no fault of his own, and blame can be laid on the staff. Against UCF the four perimeter players swung the ball around for 25 seconds waiting to force a post entry, and the Seminoles were outscored 34-16 when he was on the floor. An effective post offense requires the weak side players to be threats - not just standing and waiting to get the ball back. Florida State did a much better job vs. Gardner Webb by getting Balsa involved in more pick and rolls, which, if executed, can make all five offensive players a threat either through rolls and cuts, or by collapsing the defense to free shooters. With this increased execution, FSU outscored GW 48-32 when Balsa was on the floor. He was one point shy (14) of his career high, and he matched his career high (for the 3rd time this season) with eight rebounds.
- Anthony Polite set career highs in both points (15) and rebounds (9). He could have had a double-double in the games final minutes but took some friendly fire from RaiQuan Gray while trying to secure his 10th board. For the season he’s made 55% of his 2s and 52% of his 3s. He’s 6th in the ACC in eFG%, and for players who have made 10 or more 3s, he’s 2nd in the ACC in 3-pt%.
- It was a terrible shooting night for Florida State. Had they just been subpar it would have been a blowout. FSU entered the game making more than 40% of their 3s, but are now down to 35% after a 6-33 (18%) night. You have to go back to the Sweet 16 loss to Gonzaga to find a game where FSU shot this poorly while attempting 20 or more 3s. FSU’s next opponent (Clemson) has allowed just 27.8% shooting from deep.
- Florida State won 72-59 in a 74 possession game. It was just the 2nd time in the last 13 games that FSU failed to score at least a point per possession. FSU is now rated 28th in the nation on offense, and 27th on defense. If you want to look wayyyyyyyyy too far ahead, 70% of Final Four teams are top-10 on at least one side of the ball entering the NCAA Tournament.