Virginia conceded the rebounds but drilled the 3-pointers.
Andrew Rhode made four of Virginia's 11 3-pointers, scoring 18 points, as the Cavaliers held off Florida State 60-57 on Tuesday night. FSU dropped its fourth straight game to fall to 16-14, 7-12 ACC.
Jamir Watkins scored 18 points on 7 of 18 shooting, including a dunk with 11.8 seconds left. Justin Thomas grabbed a steal and tossed the ball down the court to Thomas, who cut the deficit to 58-57.
That set up a wild last few possessions. FSU fouled with 6.1 seconds left, but Dai Dai Ames made the free throws to extend the lead.
After Virginia had a foul to give, FSU set up for a final shot. But on the inbounds play, Jerry Deng shoved his defender and was called for an offensive foul.
FSU won the battle on the boards with ease, grabbing 16 offensive boards. But the rebounds resulted in just 17 second-chance points.
Watkins shot just 2 of 7 from 3-point range, a few times settling for shots well beyond the arc. He had scored 20 or more points in three straight games, just missing out on a fourth on Tuesday. Watkins also led FSU with eight rebounds, while Taylor Bol Bowen added six rebounds.
While FSU ended up with 30 points in the lane, the Seminoles struggled to drive against Virginia's 2-3 zone.
FSU leaned on freshmen again, especially with Malique Ewin missing another game (he was on the bench in street clothes).
Alier Maluk had eight points and four rebounds, while Christian Nitu had eight points and three boards. Both struggled on the defensive end but had their moments.
Daquan Davis had six points on 2 of 11 shooting but he had four blocks and three assists.
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Up next
FSU plays host to SMU in the final home game of the regular season on Saturday at 4 p.m.
Leonard Hamilton has 199 regular-season ACC wins. This will be his last shot at 200, and it comes against SMU coach Andy Enfield — who was once an FSU assistant coach.
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