Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Seminoles finish 18-0 at home
Bacon scores 23 points in victory
TALLAHASSEE — Dwayne Bacon remembers the last time he faced Miami at home.
He made sure not to have the same outcome this time around.
Bacon led No. 15 Florida State with 23 points, highlighted by an explosive slam dunk late in the second half, fueling the Seminoles to a 66-57 win over No. 25 Miami in the regular season finale for both teams on Saturday afternoon at the Don- ald L. Tucker Center.
Florida State secured the No. 2 seed in the ACC Tournament, which begins Tuesday in Brooklyn, with the win. The Seminoles earned a bye through the first two rounds and will next play in the quarterfinals on Thursday.
The Seminoles also clinched their sixth undefeated record at home (18-0) and first since 1975-76.
“I’m enjoying it. I’m happy. I’m excited,” FSU coach Leonard Hamilton said of his team’s accomplishments, “but the most important thing here is let’s not be satisfied with where we are. Let’s see if we can do some other things that will give us fonder memories.”
FSU has won 21 consecutive games on its home floor, dating back to last season, and is in prime position for a No. 2 seed in its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2012.
Before the home win streak began, the Seminoles lost to the Hurricanes at the buzzer last February, in the second of five losses that essentially eliminated FSU from NCAA Tournament contention in 2016.
Bacon had a chance to win the game with a shot at the buzzer, but deferred at half court to Xavier Rathan-Mayes, who had the basketball dribble off his foot into the left corner for a desperation air-ball by former point guard Devon Bookert.
This season was a different story.
Bacon caught a lob pass from Terance Mann with 4:12 left and scored, giving the Seminoles their largest lead of the game at 11 points.
Miami narrowed the lead to four points in the final minute, but Bacon secured the win with two free throws and a driving layup with 14.8 seconds remaining. Rathan-Mayes put the icing on the victory a buzzer-beating layup with an assist from Bacon to secure the regular-season sweep for the Seminoles.
“Last year they got us two times, so this year meant a lot to us just to get our revenge and get them two times this year,” Bacon said.
Florida State used a rare zone defense and a pressure defense scheme in the second half to cool Miami, which shot 7 of 22 (31.8 percent) in the second half after a 11 of 21 clip (52.4 percent) before halftime.
Miami senior Davon Reed scored 22 points with six rebounds and six assists to lead the Hurricanes, who will open in the second round of the ACC tournament as a No. 9 seed against No. 8 Syracuse on Wednesday.
“It would’ve been a great win for us,” Miami coach Jim Larrañaga said, “but it’s an uphill climb to try and beat the Seminoles on their home court — especially this year.”
Jarquez Smith had 11 points and five rebounds, while Michael Ojo had four rebounds and a block in the final home games of their FSU careers on senior day.
The game could have also signified the final career home games for Bacon, Rathan-Mayes and standout freshman forward Jonathan Isaac, who had 2 points and three rebounds in 20 minutes.
But all three players insisted the victory was dedicated to their senior centers who doubted they would never reach the NCAA tournament during their careers.
“It’s hard to really fathom that,” Isaac, a projected top 10 pick in the upcoming NBA draft, said of the thought of playing his final home game. “We were really trying to get this for Ojo and ‘Quez, not for ourselves.”
Added Bacon, a player with first-round potential who returned for a sophomore season with hopes of boosting his draft stock: “[We’ve] still got a lot of games to play. I don’t know what I’m doing [after the season] as far as right now. I’m just worried about getting in the tournament, and doing what we have to do.”