They made it interesting for awhile, but the Florida State Seminoles were more short-handed than they've been all season, and it showed in the second half Saturday evening at No. 9 Duke.
Playing without five former starters, FSU trailed the host Blue Devils by just two points late in the first half. But Duke closed the half with a 12-2 run, and Mike Krzyzewski's team cruised from there, rolling to an 88-70 victory.
The win avenges Florida State's upset victory in Tallahassee last month, and it pushes the Blue Devils' record to 23-4 overall and 11-3 in the ACC. FSU falls to 14-12 and 7-9.
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Box Score: No. 9 Duke 88, FSU 70
FSU has been without three injured starters -- senior forward Malik Osborne (ankle), senior guard Anthony Polite (wrist) and junior center Naheem McLeod (hand) -- for weeks, and they played Saturday without leading scorer Caleb Mills (ankle) and senior point guard RayQuan Evans (knee).
That left the Seminoles with three freshmen in the starting lineup, but that group played surprisingly well in the first half. Freshman guard Matthew Cleveland scored 11 points in the first period and senior center Tanor Ngom added nine. The Seminoles also got eight points apiece from freshman Jalen Warley and senior Wyatt Wilkes.
"I thought they showed a lot of confidence in each other and in themselves," FSU coach Leonard Hamilton said. "I thought that they showed no fear. They weren't nervous. ... I was extremely proud of their focus and their effort. We just got beat by a better team today -- a team that played better than us. But it wasn't for lack of effort. I thought the effort was excellent."
With FSU's starting point guard and top two wings out of the lineup, Duke tried to pressure the Seminoles' ballhandlers aggressively and look for steals. But Warley, Cleveland and company continually beat the Blue Devils off the dribble and either scored inside or got to the free-throw line.
In the second half, Krzyzewski's guards played more conservatively, and the Seminoles often ended up shooting from the perimeter or forcing up contested shots.
FSU shot nearly 60 percent in the first half and 40.7 percent in the second. After scoring 28 points in the paint before halftime, the 'Noles only scored 16 inside in the final period.
The Blue Devils, who led by as many 24 points in the second period, also pummeled FSU on the boards, 41-23.
Florida State was led offensively by Cleveland with 16 points and Warley with 15. Cam'Ron Fletcher added 12 points, and Ngom scored 11.
Hamilton seemed particularly pleased with the performance of Warley, who not only scored a career-high 15 points but also directed the Seminoles' offense with Evans sidelined.
"Jalen is growing up. I thought that this was a tremendous opportunity for him," Hamilton said. "To let everybody know that our point guard position is in good hands as we move toward the future. I thought that he was aggressive. I thought his defense was solid. ... I think he showed that he's growing up."
Six Blue Devils scored in double-figures, led by Pablo Banchero with 17 points and Wendell Moore Jr. with 16.
FSU returns to action Monday night at Boston College. Hamilton said he doubts Mills will be available for that game, but he is hopeful Evans will be back by then.
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