Reid keys FSU victory in Vegas
Junior forward Ryan Reid had 14 points and six rebounds to lead Florida State to a 58-47 victory against previously undefeated Cincinnati in the third round of the Global Sports Classic at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada on Friday night.
"It was a team effort but you have to take your hat off to Ryan Reid. I thought he stepped up and made some big plays," head coach Leonard Hamilton said following the victory. "I thought it was a tremendous effort on his part. I thought he anchored us. He maintained his poise."
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The Bearcats posed the biggest challenge to the Seminoles on the early season largely due to their size on the interior. The Seminoles answered that challenge by attacking the paint, racking up 23 fouls on the opposition, while also winning the battle on the boards by a three rebound margin.
"It was part of the gameplan but it was also a challenge," Reid said. "It was a good experience for us showing what we could do against other big guys. We just took it to them. It was a battle down there but we did what we had to do."
Freshman forward Chris Singleton was the only other Seminole to reach double figures on the evening, scoring 10 points. Senior point guard Toney Douglas added eight points and 11 rebounds.
Cincinnati (4-1) got a game-high 16 points from guard Deonta Vaughn.
At the half, Florida State (6-0) led 27-23 behind eight points from Reid. They extended that lead by opening the second half with a 15-5 run to take a 42-28 advantage with 14:28 remaining. The rally was capped by a three-pointer from freshman Deividas Dulkys.
Cincinnati stormed back cutting the deficit to 46-39 with five minutes remaining, but back-to-back buckets by Reid took the lead back to double digits. Senior forward Uche Echefu, who finished with nine points, added a three-pointer with just over three minutes remaining to put the Seminoles ahead 53-39.
"We kind of panicked a little bit and got away from what we have been teaching," Hamilton said. "Once we made the adjustments we got the ball inside a couple of times."
With the victory, the Seminoles improve to 6-0 for the first time since the beginning of the 2003-04 season.
"Everybody is happy right now," Reid said of being 6-0. "We still can't be satisfied though. We are just trying to correct some things here early in the season but at the same time it means a lot to us and the program to get this win. We are really trying to get the program going the right direction."
Florida State returns to action on Saturday night at 10:30 p.m. against the California Bears (5-0) in the fourth round of the Global Sports Classic. Cal defeated UNLV 73-55 in the third round of the Global Sports Classic.
"They are one of the best three-point shooting teams in America," Hamilton said of the Bears. "We have our hands full once again tomorrow night."
AP contributed to this story.
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