Leonard Hamilton stood in front of Florida State's bench, coaching as if Tuesday night was a normal February ACC matchup. He implored freshman AJ Swinton to get his hands up and defend an inbounds pass. He paced up to the scorer's table and back to the bench, hands in pockets, always watching, encouraging (at times yelling) and directing.
A day after after saying he would resign at season's end, Hamilton and the Seminoles gritted out a 67-60 win over Notre Dame on Tuesday night. It helps, of course, when Jamir Watkins scores 19 of FSU's first 43 points as the Seminoles were able to snap a four-game slide.
Watkins finished with 21 points and eight rebounds in 36 minutes, while Malique Ewin scored 18 points and pulled down 10 rebounds in 34 minutes.
Swinton added nine points on 5 of 6 shooting.
There was no pregame mention of Hamilton's resignation as FSU coach, just the standard pregame warmups. After the starters were announced, a sparse crowd of maybe 2,000 applauded Hamilton. It was a late-arriving crowd, with 5,101 sprinkled around the lower bowl of the arena.
After the game, Hamilton said often, "it's just time."
"There comes a time when it’s just time," Hamilton said. "I’m not going to do like a lot of coaches, talk about all of the ills and what’s going on and all of the challenges. It’s just time. It’s time for Florida State basketball to have a new voice. It’s time for what’s best for Florida State. And I also think it’s what’s best for me."
Hamilton was asked about qualities of coaches and potential names but declined to address those. He also stated that he would be available during the transition to help the next coach.
Is FSU in a better spot than it was 23 years ago when Hamilton was hired? Hamilton didn't want to answer, but he expressed care for more than just the basketball player.
"In many places and times, we are judged by how many games we win and lose. The definition of a coach has a lot more responsibility than just winning," Hamilton said. "You want to win those kids who, first time they’re away from home, help them go from teenagers, thinking like teenagers, to young adults. Some kids don’t come in with the right frame of mind. You got to help them grow. You have to develop those relationships to help them be the best version of who they are.
"And for us to have only one or two kids not graduate in 23 years, I think is an accomplishment I would pat myself on the back about. … I’ve done the very best I could. We’ve made some accomplishments. But our record speaks for itself."
Victory keeps chance at NIT in play
FSU (14-9, 5-7 ACC) edged out the win and kept some slim chances at a spot in the NIT alive. That's not the postseason Hamilton or the Seminoles want. But it would be the first time FSU played in any postseason since March 2021.
Tuesday night was a snapshot of a season in 20 minutes, the inconsistency Hamilton had discussed throughout the first 22 games of the year.
FSU started cold, trailing 17-7 with 12:10 until halftime. The Seminoles soon rallied with a 20-2 run, went cold again and led just 29-28 at the break.
The second half was a struggle for both teams. Notre Dame finished with 16 turnovers. FSU had 18 turnovers.
Markus Burton scored 25 points on 10 of 22 shooting for Notre Dame (10-12, 4-7), which had 16 offensive rebounds and 17 second-chance points.
The Seminoles struggled for the last few weeks, dropping four games that were all viewed as winnable. Now they get a week off before a road game at Wake on Feb. 12, followed by a home game a few days later against KenPom's No. 28 team, Clemson.
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