It was a top-10 showdown that definitely lived up to the hype, but nonetheless still ended in disappointment for the No. 8 Florida State men's basketball team.
After giving the No. 7 Blue Devils everything they wanted inside Cameron Indoor Stadium, the Seminoles came up short down the stretch and dropped a 70-65 decision.
The two teams came into the game with identical records, but Duke improves to 21-3 and 11-2 in the ACC while Florida State falls to 20-4 and 10-3.
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Box Score: No. 8 FSU 65, No. 7 Duke 70
Despite the disappointing result for the Seminoles, Leonard Hamilton's club definitely proved it was worthy of its top-10 ranking. FSU led for part of the second half and had several chances to tie it in the final minute but came up empty.
The Seminoles lost despite a monster performance from senior point guard Trent Forrest. The senior captain scored 18 points, recorded eight steals, grabbed nine rebounds and delivered four assists.
But otherwise, it wasn't Florida State's best night offensively.
Forrest was 6-of-6 from the free-throw line, but the rest of the Seminoles connected on just 6 of 14 shots from the line. The Seminoles hit only 3 of 18 shots from 3-point range.
Duke was led by Tre Jones and Jordan Goldwire with 13 points apiece, and Matthew Hurt added 12. Blue Devils star freshman Vernon Carey Jr. scored 10 points and grabbed 10 rebounds.
Duke hit 17 of 22 shots from the free-throw line. The Blue Devils led FSU, 33-32, at halftime.
