Classical gas: FSU, UF roll to victory
Seminoles capture 6th straight; Gators go long distance to rout FGCU
Florida State’s Terance Mann is all alone for a dunk during the second half of the Seminoles’ victory against Saint Louis.
SUNRISE — The South Florida contingent of Seminoles and Gators fans showed up at the BB&T Center to watch their teams earn convincing victories in what the Orange Bowl calls “the only Division-I basketball in Broward County.”
No. 11 Florida State kept on rolling, downing Saint Louis, 81-59, in the 25th annual Orange Bowl Basketball Classic on Saturday. The Seminoles (11-1) won their sixth straight, and improved to 8-2 all time in the Classic.
Florida topped Florida Gulf Coast, 77-56, on the back end of the doubleheader. The Gators (7-4) improved to 17-3 in their 20 Orange Bowl Classic appearances.
David Nichols led FSU with 19 points and fellow senior guard Terance Mann scored 13 of his 17 points in the first half as FSU wore its turquoise uniforms that celebrate Native American heritage.
The FSU defense smothered the Billikens (8-4), who shot 30.2 percent from the field and turned it over 18 times.
Seminoles coach Leonard Hamilton was pleased with the effort, especially ahead of a weekand-a-half-long hiatus with FSU’s next game on Jan. 1.
“The guys are playing their last game before they go home for Christmas, they’re going through finals and they’re looking forward to a break. Sometimes, their minds can kind of wander,” Hamilton said. “I’m proud of the guys because I thought they locked in to our game plan, the effort that we had to give against what we Dolphins running back Kalen Ballage runs up field during a 75-yard touchdown run against the Vikings.
call a really good basketball team.”
Nichols, an Albany transfer, sent the Seminoles up, 40-25, at halftime with a 3-pointer at the first half ’s buzzer.
“It gives us a good boost. Momentum is everything,” said Nichols, who made 4-of-7 threes. “Just going out there, taking the right shot. My teammates did a great job of setting me up.”
FSU was 10 for 18 from deep, and shot a seasonhigh 55.4 percent from the floor.
FSU started on a 16-4 run. Mann had 11 during the stretch, starting things off with a 3-pointer in front of the Saint Louis bench and a look back at the Billiken reserves.
Junior guard Trent Forrest added 10 points, five rebounds and five assists for the Seminoles. Redshirt freshman guard Anthony Polite, a St. Andrew’s grad, had just two points — which came on an impressive reverse layup as the shot clock expired on a first-half possession — but added four steals with his length and athleticism defensively.
For Saint Louis, senior guard Javon Bess had 16 points and freshman forward Carte’Are Gordon added 14. Sophomore guard Jordan Goodwin scored eight.
Florida took down FGCU (5-9) with a similar formula of threes and defense, specifically its defense coming out of halftime.
“The first 15 minutes of the second half, I thought we were pretty sharp,” UF coach Mike White said. “For whatever reason, we came out salivating early in the second half.”
Freshman guard Noah Locke scored 15 points — all on 3-pointers, sinking five of his nine attempts from long range. Senior guard Jalen Hudson knocked down 4 of 9 from beyond the arc to finish with 14. He added six rebounds.
It was a bounce-back effort for Hudson, who hadn’t scored in double figures in his last seven games and was shooting 28.6 percent on the year.
“I just tried to step up and shoot it with confidence,” Hudson said.
Said White: “I’m happy for the team, but I’m very happy for him as well. This has been a little difficult for him. Happy to go in for him.”
FGCU was held to 39-percent shooting, a number that mostly improved in the final minutes with the result well decided, and made just 2 of 14 from three.
“It was almost like that first half we were like ‘Oh, it’s Florida,’” FGCU coach Michael Fly said. “I feel we were a little tentative.”
Florida senior center Kevarrious Hayes had 12 points on 5-of-5 shooting and seven rebounds, while blocking three shots. Sophomore guard Deaundrae Ballard scored 11 points.
Eagles redshirt sophomore forward Troy Baxter Jr. and fifth-year senior guard Schadrac Casimir were their only players in double figures, finishing with 13 and 10, respectively. Freshman FGCU guard Zach Scott made a Broward County homecoming, but the two-time state champion at Westminster Academy was held to nine points on 2-of-9 shooting.
FSU hosts Winthrop at 2 p.m. on Jan. 1, while UF plays Butler on Dec. 29. see the ball