Florida State's first half was dreadful, even coming off a week of rest and time to regroup and get healthy.

The second half? Well, it kept getting better and better — and turned out to be one of the best halves of the Seminoles' season.

Taylor Bol Bowen had 13 of his 15 points in the second half, including a clutch 3-pointer with 15 seconds to go as FSU rallied from a 16-point deficit to take a 72-70 win over Wake Forest on Wednesday in Winston-Salem, N.C.

Bol Bowen missed two games due to a concussion, shooting 4 of 8 from the floor and 3 of 6 from 3-point range as the Seminoles pulled off an improbable road upset after a sluggish first half.

"We always had that confidence in ourselves," Bol Bowen said. "We know that when we play our best basketball, we can beat anybody, anytime, anywhere."

FSU (15-9, 6-7 ACC) was all but out of it and without Jamir Watkins after he fouled out with 4:50 left in the game and the Seminoles trailing 63-54.

But FSU climbed back into the game. Malique Ewin had two critical buckets in the final 1:30 of the game, while Justin Thomas hit a pair of 3-pointers in the final 3:22 and added a late dunk for the game's final basket.

Daquan Davis fouled Wake Forest's Cameron Hildreth with .3 seconds remaining and was sent to the line for three free throws. Hildreth missed his first shot, made his second shot, and intentionally missed his third attempt. No player could rebound the ball and the clock expired.

"Our execution in the last 10 minutes of the game was a lot better than it was in the first half," FSU coach Leonard Hamilton said. "We were very fortunate to come away with a victory. It got a little scary there toward the end when we made the foul, a guy heaving a shot from halfcourt. But sometimes that’s what happens when you have 10 new players."

FSU shot 18 of 32 (56.3 percent) from the floor and 6 of 12 (50 percent) from 3-point range in the second half. The Seminoles scored 51 second-half points and needed all of them in the rally.

“To give up 51 points in the second half is just inexcusable,” Wake Forest coach Steve Forbes said.

Ewin finished with 14 points and 12 rebounds, recording his ninth double-double of the season.

The Seminoles are just 2-6 on the road in 2024-25, picking up their first league win on the road since Miami in early January. It's also considered a Quad 1 win given the Seminoles defeated a top-75 team on the road.

Watkins shot just 2 of 7 in the first half but bounced back to shoot 5 for 10 from the floor in the second half. He played for a long stretch with four fouls, but picked up a fifth foul on the offensive end with 4:50 to go. Watkins finished with 15 points, including a dreadful 1 of 6 from 3-point range.

Hildreth had 22 points on 8 of 14 shooting and Hunter Sallis added 20 points for Wake (18-7, 10-4).

FSU plays host to No. 23 Clemson on Saturday at noon.

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