Florida State Seminoles vs Boston College Eagles Basketball Recap

Florida State 67, Boston College 51

Fine, so this isn’t your father’s ACC. Go ahead and ask the Florida State Seminoles if they care one whit.

It’s not a typical year on the Atlantic Seaboard, but a 12-man team from Tallahassee, Florida, is taking advantage of that fact. Say what you want about the Noles; they’re getting the job done within the framework of conference competition.

Florida State gained a share of first place in the ACC (and technically snared the top spot due to a head-to-head win against Duke) on Saturday night by dismissing Boston College at the Tallahassee-Leon County Civic Center. The decisive win in the Florida panhandle gives FSU a 5-1 ACC mark alongside the Dukies, while Boston College – a team with designs on that very same ACC lead – fell to 4-2, just one game back. It’s a bizarre world in the ACC this year, with Wake Forest, Georgia Tech and Maryland all struggling. If 3-1 North Carolina doesn’t start elevating its level of play, the ACC really could have just three teams in the Big Dance this March.

Boston College could be one of them, and after this decisive triumph on home hardwood, Florida State is almost certain to carry the ACC banner into the NCAA Tournament. It’s a somewhat remarkable idea to contemplate, given the trajectory of Florida State’s non-conference season.

In November and December, Florida State did precious little to bolster its resume in the eyes of the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee. The Noles did beat Baylor, but a lot of teams have done that this season. FSU lost at home to Florida and got dusted by a Butler team that’s springing leaks in the Horizon League. The Seminoles then suffered the ultimate embarrassment in this college basketball season, losing to an Auburn team that carries an RPI rating of over 300. The immensity of that loss forced coach Leonard Hamilton’s crew to put together a huge ACC season, but that’s exactly what the Noles are doing. The team that dumped Duke didn’t lose focus against coach Steve Donahue’s Boston College boys in a surprisingly significant matchup. If you thought before the season started that FSU-BC was going to determine a share of first place in late January, you’d have received a lot of strange glances from friends or colleagues. However, this was the backdrop to Saturday’s showdown, and Florida State was the team that took advantage of the occasion.

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The Noles worked their magic on defense, just as they always do. Florida State limited Boston College to 35-percent shooting on Saturday, marking the 86th time in the last 87 games that FSU has held an opponent under 50 percent from the field. Florida State’s offense is often cringe-inducing, but its defense is the best in the country. With forward Bernard James blocking four shots for the Noles, the home team intimidated Boston College near the rim and established pronounced dominance at the defensive end, especially in the second half. The game was a standoff at the 14:33 mark of regulation, with FSU leading 38-37 in a classic grinder. Then the Noles’ already-solid defense became impregnable. James and his teammates limited BC to one made field goal in the next nine minutes. With just 5:33 remaining in the second half, Florida State had accumulated a 55-40 lead over the paralyzed Eagles, and the outcome was sealed.

The Noles received major contributions from unlikely sources, with James being just one member of a standout ensemble cast. Okaro White contributed 11 huge points off the bench, a decided bonus for Hamilton and his staff. Guard Derwin Kitchen hit  6 of 7 shots in a highly efficient 16-point effort that lent stability to FSU’s offense.

Boston College did get 19 points and 12 rebounds from forward Joe Trapani, but that commendable performance was lost in the midst of that nine-minute stretch from hell. The Eagles are still in better shape than most of the ACC, but now they’ll have to fight a little harder to bolster their NCAA prospects.

It’s Florida State that enjoys a measure of leverage in the ACC. It’s not how a basketball season usually unfolds in this league, but the folks in Tallahassee don’t mind at all.

By: Matt Zemek
DFN Sports Senior Staff Writer