Third quarter lull derails FSU comeback
A third-quarter lull, seeing No. 8 Alabama go on an 8-0 spurt and outscoring No. 9 Florida State, 23-11, proved to be too much to overcome for the Seminoles.
They dropped their NCAA Tournament first-round game to Alabama, 8274, on Friday at the Moody Center in Austin, Texas in front of 7,487 fans.
Alabama will face No. 1 Texas on Sunday.
FSU has now lost four straight firstround games and ends its season at 2311.
“I just want to congratulate Alabama, who has a very good team and was able to pull this win off without their best player,” FSU head coach Brooke Wyckoff said. “We struggled in the third quarter and I think that was the difference in the game.”
“But we battled, these players never said quit, and they made it a really great game.”
Comeback comes up short
Down as many as 10 in the fourth quarter, FSU pulled within 74-72 with on a O’Mariah Gordon’s trey with 2:20 remaining.
After Alabama missed a jumper, Gordon’s trey from the left wing for the lead at the 1:57 mark rattled in and out.
Alabama’s Aaliyah Nye followed with a 3-pointer to provide the Crimson Tide with ample cushion with 1:19 left.
The Seminoles were paced by sophomore guard Ta’Niyah Latson, who scored 25 points in her first NCAA Tournament game.
Junior Makayla Timpson recorded her 18th double-double of the season with 23 points and 11 rebounds, which moves her to 18th in the nation.
“We were just doing what we know best, which is getting buckets and attacking the rim,” Timpson said.
“That’s what made us get back into the game, but we fell too short of not being able to defend them as well as we needed to.”
FSU shot 40% (30-of-75) from the field and just 38% (5-of-13) from 3-point range. The Seminoles also forced 20 Alabama turnovers.
Alabama shines without stars
Alabama’s All-SEC first-team selection, Sarah Ashlee Barker, fell into foul trouble early and was limited for the rest of the game. She fouled out in the fourth but the Crimson Tide was able to hold on.
Freshman forward Cody Essence was the X-factor for Alabama, recording 20 points and 14 rebounds.
Sophomore guard Karly Weathers started for Jessica Timmons, who was out due to an ankle injury and downed 18 points.
Nye added 18 points to round out Alabama’s offensive trio.
“We were so close,” Latson said. “We’ve had plenty of games like there where we were right there, but just couldn’t get it done. That’s where our growth comes in and I feel like that’s going to help us next season and just knowing how to close out games.”
Jack Williams covers Florida State athletics for Tallahassee Democrat. Contact him via email at jwilliams@tallahassee.com or on X @jackgwilliams.