No. 8 Seminoles look toward top-10 showdown with Duke after throttling UM

It will be one of the most important regular-season games in Florida State men's basketball history. And by about 2 p.m ET on Saturday, the No. 8 Seminoles could finally let themselves think about it.

But not until they dispatched of rival Miami, 99-81, with a dominant second-half performance before a sellout crowd in the Tucker Center.

The victory not only improved FSU's record to 20-3 overall, but it set up a likely top-10 showdown with No. 7 Duke that will go a long way in deciding the 2020 regular-season ACC championship.

*ALSO SEE: Top-50 junior McGowens commits to Florida State basketball

Florida State is 10-2 in conference play, while Duke carried a 9-2 mark into its rivalry game later Saturday against North Carolina. Louisville was 11-1 in league play heading into Saturday's game against Virginia, with its only loss coming at home to Florida State.

Don't miss out on our great Hoops coverage. Get your 30-day FREE trial

Florida State freshman forward Patrick Williams, who scored 14 points and grabbed 5 rebounds off the bench Saturday, said the Seminoles know some people were already looking ahead to the showdown with the Blue Devils before Miami even arrived in town.

None of those people, however, were in the Seminoles' locker room.

"We're all locked in to each practice, each game, each film session," Williams said. "We're just all locked in because we know that we have bigger goals. Duke is, I guess, a big game. Every game is a big game for us, but I guess Duke is a big game. People are already talking and stuff like that ... but to us, it's just another game where we have to go out and execute.

"In order to get to where we've got to go, we've got to win big games like this. We're just locked in to each and every day."

That was evident on Saturday.

While the Seminoles didn't get off to a very strong start -- Miami jumped out to an early eight-point lead -- FSU coach Leonard Hamilton said it wasn't due to a lack of effort or focus. He credited the Hurricanes with taking a slightly different offensive approach and said it took his team a little while to adjust.

Once they did, it was curtains for the Hurricanes.

FSU blew open a three-point game with a 14-4 run midway through the second half and then added a 17-3 run in the final minutes to really put the game out of reach. The result was the Seminoles' most lopsided victory in two months -- since a 19-point home win against Clemson in early December.

The fact that it came with No. 7 Duke looming was not lost on Hamilton.

"What we try to teach our guys is let's just stay in the moment," he said. "And let the next practice be one that you demonstrate how much you want to be successful. We try not to worry about road games or home games. We want them to worry about that what they can control.

"And what I'm seeing from this team -- that philosophy and that focus is causing them to grow and mature and make the progress I think is necessary for us to, hopefully at some point, reach our full potential. And that's our goal."

As is often the case, the Seminoles overwhelmed Miami with their depth of talent. Ten different FSU players were on the court for at least 10 minutes, and backup center Balsa Koprivica played 9:25.

Thirteen Seminoles scored, and FSU still shot 53.0 percent from the field, 50.0 percent from 3-point range and 94.1 percent from the free-throw line.

What really pleased Hamilton, however, was how well the Seminoles rebounded. After struggling in that area earlier this season -- even getting out-rebounded by the smaller Hurricanes last month -- FSU was relentless on the glass on Saturday, racking up a 46-24 advantage.

The 'Noles converted 16 offensive rebounds into 22 second-chance points, including a pair of thunderous put-back dunks by Williams and backup point guard RayQuan Evans.

"We fought a lot harder on the boards than we did down in Coral Gables," Hamilton said. "Today I felt our guys were focused for the most part."

*** Get your "'What the Tuck?" T-shirt ... proceeds go to good cause***

It actually marked two impressive rebounding performances in a row for Florida State, as the Seminoles grabbed a 43-37 advantage last Monday against North Carolina. The Tar Heels are ranked No. 8 nationally in rebounding margin.

"It's just a mindset that we had to get," Williams said. "The past games, we've just been locked in on rebounding. That's a big part of the game that I felt like at the beginning of the season, we were kind of blowing off or not really focused in on it. But now we're completely locked in on rebounding."

"Locked in" was the phrase of the day on Saturday. As it has been for the Seminoles all season.

"It's easy to look ahead ... Miami might not be at the top of the ACC," said sophomore guard Devin Vassell, who scored 13 points and grabbed 5 rebounds Saturday. "But they're a well-coached team. They have great players. So we've got to take it one day at a time, one game at a time. So now we're focused on Duke. We won this game, but we have to maintain and we have to really be focused on Duke."

----------

Discuss the game with fans on Warchant's Seminole Hoops message board