Florida State’s lengthy home win streak was halted by UCF last weekend, and the Seminoles further limped into the holiday break with a grinding 72-59 win over Gardner-Webb on Monday. And ready or not, ACC play is here in full effect.

In this Holiday edition of Ham-alytics, powered by the experts at Synergy Sports, it’s time to take a look at some early data on No. 21 Florida State’s 5-1 start to the season.

Through the games of Dec. 23, here is where Florida State ranks in Division I across a slew of categories:

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Overall: 158th -- 504 possessions, .899 points/possession

Half-court vs. Man-to-Man: 160th -- 362 possessions, .862 points/possession

Half-court vs. Zone: 64th -- 51 possessions, 1.078 points/possession

Transition Offense: 238th -- 91 possessions, .945 points/possession

Against Press: 43rd -- 34 possessions, 1.000 points/possession

Adjusted Tempo: 170th* -- 70.4 possessions/40 minutes *per Kenpom.com

OBSERVATIONS

It's interesting to see that Florida State’s transition efficiency currently sits in the bottom 30 percent of the country while the offense is in the bottom half of tempo as well.

On the positive side, other than a slow start against the press in their matchup with Florida, the Seminoles have beaten pressure up the court with ease through six games. The ‘Noles also have been adept at breaking the zone, sitting inside the top quarter of Synergy’s rankings.

Overall: 163rd -- 474 possessions, .842 points/possession

Half-court, Man-to-Man: 139th -- 362 possessions, .804 points/possession

Half-court, Zone: 183rd -- 19 possessions, 1.158 points/possession

Transition Defense: 133rd -- 93 possessions, .925 points/possession

Press Defense: 130th -- 162 possessions, .802 points/possession

Observations

The metrics say Florida State is wholly average on defense to start 2020-21. The Seminoles have run zone defense in just 19 possessions and -- per Synergy’s research -- have not been effective while doing so. Within the scope of different types of offensive plays, Florida State struggles mightily against guards in the pick-and-roll (bottom 12 percent of Division I) and are in the dead middle of the rankings against spot-up looks.

If you recall our “Key Returners” edition of Ham-alytics, we discussed guard Anthony Polite’s streaky perimeter shooting last season. According to Synergy, Polite was a tick above the NCAA average in spot-up shots (51st percentile) in 2019-20. This season, the shots have been falling just a little bit more often. Let the Synergy heat map speak for itself. (The gray boxes represent the NCAA average.)

Look at all that garnet.

According to Synergy’s data, in 61 offensive possessions that ran through Polite, he is in the top 15 percent of Division I in productivity. More specifically, in his 21 spot-up possessions, Polite is in the top 2 percent across the country. Heady company, indeed.

There is no doubt some measure of regression is coming for the junior, as Polite is currently shooting an unconscious 52.2 percent from the perimeter through six games. But is it fair to assume Polite will fall all the way back to last year’s version of himself? Time will tell.

Over the weekend, Ham-alytics will spotlight a few more players through the first six games, including RaiQuan Gray and M.J. Walker.

Next week, an early scout on Clemson and Duke. Happy Holidays everyone!

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