No. 8 FSU basketball prepares for the unknown from visiting Syracuse

Normally, you know what you're going to get when you play Syracuse.

The Orange are going to run a 2-3 zone defense. They're going to shoot a lot of 3-pointers. And Elijah Hughes is going to score a lot of points.

But on Saturday, when the No. 8 Florida State Seminoles (20-4, 10-3 in the ACC) welcome the Orange (14-10, 7-6) to the Tucker Center, Leonard Hamilton isn't sure about one of those aspects.

Hughes injured his groin during warm-ups on Tuesday night before the Orange's home loss to N.C. State. He played the first three minutes before having to be pulled from the game. And he's been announced as a "game-time decision" for the showdown with the Seminoles on Saturday.

Not that Hamilton has given it much thought leading up to the game.

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"Very seldom does it seem to affect them," Hamilton said. "It's just amazing how teams seem to rise to the occasion. Somebody else steps in. So you have to prepare for their players to be available. But I look back and see (teams) that have lost players and it's almost like they're playing better without the player.

"So we're not giving a whole lot of conversation to that. Matter of fact, we haven't even talked about it to our players. We just assume whoever shows up, we've got to give our best shot. ... That's just how we approach it. We don't have very much choice."

Hughes ranks second in the ACC in scoring at 18.6 points per game. But the Orange, of course, are far from a one-man show.

Buddy Boeheim, the son of veteran head coach Jim Boeheim, ranks fifth in the league in scoring at 16.3 points per game. He leads the ACC in 3-pointers made with 84 (3.5 per game). Hughes is fourth at 2.5 per game and freshman point guard Joe Girard, who is coming off a 30-point performance in the loss to N.C. State, is 10th in the league in 3-pointers made per contest.

The trio has combined for 206 made 3-pointers this year. And they're not all wide open either. All three have shown the propensity to shoot even if they're well-covered.

"It's unpredictable," FSU senior guard Trent Forrest said. "They're always keeping you on your toes, so you never know. ... You definitely have to be locked in."

"It's obvious when you watch them play that they must work on making tough shots," Hamilton said. "The players we've played against the last several years (from Syracuse) all can make tough, contested shots. ... That's an unusual skill. Maybe we need to find out what drills they're running."

He definitely knows what defense they've been running.

Syracuse has been playing a zone for decades, and it hasn't changed this season. The Orange have struggled on that end of the floor for much of the year, though. They're one of the worst rebounding teams in the country -- which is always a risk when you play zone -- but they're also just 10th in the conference in scoring defense, allowing almost 70 points per game.

They're also third in the ACC in 3-pointers allowed per game (8.6), which again is a risk when you play a zone defense.

"You just have to work them from side to side," Forrest said of going up against the Syracuse defense. "Get them into some rotations, and then you'll be able to attack. But you can't get too greedy, I guess, on the first couple of sides, because that's when they're at their best.

"But if you can get it to the third side, you're going to get a good shot."

Florida State has won two straight against Syracuse in the series, including a double-overtime win two years ago when the Orange last visited Tallahassee.

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