Seminoles rebound from first loss
Florida State uses 21-4 run in second half to put away Buccaneers.
TALLAHASSEE — Phil Cofer scored 19 points and pulled down six rebounds, and No. 24 Florida State bounced back from its first loss of the season with a 69-58 win over Charleston Southern on Monday.
Terance Mann added 17 points and seven assists for the Seminoles (10-1), who lost to Oklahoma State on Saturday at the BB&T Center in Sunrise and struggled during the first half against the Buccaneers, trailing by as many as four (18-14) with 8:21 remaining.
“We got the ball moving. At halftime we talked about driving the ball because they were much smaller than us,” Mann said.
Charleston Southern trailed 28-26 at halftime. It got within one (30-29) on a 3-pointer by Christian Keeling before the Seminoles went on a 21-4 run to put it away. Florida State made 11 of 12 from the field during the run and got six points each from Cofer and Mann. Success came from a staunch zone defense and getting to the rim on offense in that 8-minute stretch.
“In the first half we weren’t moving well with the ball. We came out in the second half and were moving a lot better,” Cofer said.
After shooting 11 of 28 from the field in the first half (39.3 percent), the Seminoles made 16 of 24 shots in the final 20 minutes. Florida State extended its home winning streak to 25, which is the third-longest in the nation behind Cincinnati (31) and SMU (25).
“The zone for 7-8 minutes in the second half just shook us,” Charleston Southern coach Barclay Radebaugh said. “We were patient and got some great looks in the first half but there was those 7-8 minutes in the second half where we couldn’t attack their defense.”
Keeling led Charleston Southern (4-6), which has dropped four straight, with 21 points, and Travis McConico added 17 points and nine rebounds. The Buccaneers outrebounded FSU by 13 but shot just 21 of 58 from the field.
Big picture
Charleston Southern: The Buccaneers have lost 11 straight to teams from Power Five conferences, with four of those coming against Florida State. The average margin of defeat during the losing streak is 22 points.
Florida State: The Seminoles came into the game second in the Atlantic Coast Conference in steals, averaging 8.9 per game. They had nine on Monday, marking their third straight game and sixth this season with nine or more.
“I think it is a little more evident that we are still a work in progress. We’re still trying to find that level of consistency,” Florida State coach Leonard Hamilton said. “We’re showing we’re vulnerable in a couple areas but have areas where we are growing.”
Streaking along
Florida State has won 11 straight against Charleston Southern, which is tied for the fourth-longest unbeaten streak against any opponent in school history.