LIVE UPDATES: No. 8 FSU basketball at N.C. State
LIVE UPDATES: FSU basketball at N.C. State
It's the quintessential good-news, bad-news scenario.
Thanks to the N.C. State men's basketball team knocking off Duke earlier this week, the Florida State Seminoles have a very realistic path to winning their first regular-season ACC championship.
FSU, Louisville and Duke are now tied atop the ACC standings with three losses apiece -- the Cardinals technically hold a half-game lead because they possess one additional victory -- but the Seminoles can secure the league's best record by winning their remaining five games and seeing Duke lose at least once.
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Of course, for any of that to happen, eighth-ranked FSU first will have to do what Duke couldn't -- come out of N.C. State's PNC Arena with a victory.
The Wolfpack are 12-3 at home this season, including an 88-66 thumping of the No. 6 Blue Devils on Wednesday.
“We’re getting ready to go into the lion’s den – the Wolfpack Den,” Florida State coach Leonard Hamilton said before the Seminoles departed for Raleigh, N.C., on Friday. “This is going to be one of those games that I’m sure they’re really, really looking forward to.”
FSU currently is 22-4 overall and 12-3 in the conference, while Duke sports the exact same record. Louisville is 22-5 with a 13-3 mark in the ACC.
If Florida State notches a win today at N.C. State (4 p.m. ET, ACC Network), that would set up a huge showdown with No. 11 Louisville on Monday in the Tucker Center. The Seminoles won the first matchup on the road, so a series sweep would give FSU the edge against the Cardinals.
Duke has the advantage in a potential tie with FSU thanks to a five-point home win earlier this month, and the Blue Devils don't have to face the Seminoles or Louisville again this season. But Duke does have a very challenging road trip to Virginia looming, as well as the always tricky regular-season finale against rival North Carolina.
Not surprisingly, Hamilton bristled Friday at the idea of considering any of those scenarios.
For FSU to even be in the mix for a regular-season conference title, the 'Noles first will have to get past the Wolfpack, who absolutely torched Duke just three days ago.
Three N.C. State players scored more than 20 points in that game, and the 'Pack were the better team in just about every statistical category.
"They obviously have shown that they are an extremely explosive team,” Hamilton said. “I’ve had very few players in my life that are what I call, ‘Tough-shot takers and tough-shot makers.' If you guys remember Tim Pickett, when he was here (2002-'04), Tim could take shots that you normally don't let other players take, and he was accurate taking tough shots.
"Well, they have at least three guys on the floor of that caliber. And, as you saw in the Duke game, they were making those tough shots.”
Senior guard Markell Johnson led the way in the Duke win with 28 points, and he was followed closely by junior guard Devon Daniels with 25 and junior forward D.J. Funderburk with 21. Between the three, they connected 7 of 9 3-pointers, and they made 26 of the team's 32 field goals.
It's anyone's guess whether the Wolfpack (17-9, 8-7) can replicate that effort today.
Their season has been a bit of a roller coaster, with impressive road wins at Virginia and Syracuse to go with an embarrassing blowout loss at home to Louisville and losses to several teams in the bottom half of the ACC standings -- Georgia Tech (twice), North Carolina, Virginia Tech and Boston College.
But Hamilton and his players know they have no choice but to expect the Wolfpack's best effort today, especially coming off the Duke win.
“We have to match their intensity coming in, especially going on the road,” redshirt sophomore forward RaiQuan Gray said. “Coming off a big win like that, it’s definitely going to up their energy, their intensity.”
Said Hamilton: “There’s no doubt that now as we go down the stretch and people are seeing what they’re playing for and the opportunities that are available, you see people now playing with a different focus. We’ve been in that same position before. … You have everybody’s attention. Everybody’s on the same page. And I think that’s what we’re facing now as we prepare for our North Carolina State game.”