FSU 71 Stanford 78 The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly
The Good
FSU was able to execute what it wanted to on defense. They forced a tempo Stanford was not comfortable playing resulting in 14 turnovers and 8 steals (FSU leads the ACC in both of those categories at 15 and 8.6 per game). That was the most turnovers the Cardinal have had this season so far that turned into 14 points for the Seminoles.
The defense on Maxime Raynaud. Stanford's leading scorer at 21.2 ppg was held to just 8 points. That was the first time he had been held under double digits this season and obviously is a season low for the 7-1 player from France. He did make his presence known on the boards grabbing 14 rebounds.
FTs. FSU was able to get to the line in this game shooting 21-28. They were a factor in keeping FSU in the game.
Players of the game: Once again Jamir Watkins leads the 'Noles with 20 points and 8 rebounds. That makes 28 straight ACC games Watkins has scored more than 10, 36 of his last 37 games, and 17 straight games in double digits. Malique Ewin saw his double doubles streak end at five games, but he scored 16, ten of which came from the charity stripe. Dequan Davis added 14.
Plays of the game: Watkins with a wide open path right to the rim and the slam dunk for FSU's first ..... and only ...... lead in the game, 10-9. 6-7 Justin Thomas defending 7-1 Raynaud and and able to make the steal face guarding him. Later he forced Ryan Agarwal into a turnover. In a rare possession where FSU actually moved the ball, several (several in this case meaning more than two) quick passes found Davis all alone above the key for the uncontested three, 14-18. Ewin with the rebound and launching a long pass to Davis all alone on the fly pattern and the slam dunk, 16-18. Davis with the lengthy pinpoint pass to Bostyn Holt who was covered by two Cardinal players and the lay up, 51-59.
The Bad
FSU falls to 13-7 overall and 4-5 in the ACC. It was another lost opportunity that would have been a Quad 1 win had FSU been to log the "W". That was not going to be an easy task as Stanford has lost just one home game all season. And that was back in November. The Seminole defense may have done an excellent job on Raynaud. But when a defense concentrates on one player, that leaves opportunities elsewhere. And that is exactly what happened as Oziyah Sellers scored a career high 27 points. He just about could not miss (10-16, 4-6 threes). Another player that stepped up his game was Barry Gealer (5.5 ppg) off teh bench with 13. After the 'Noles lost its only lead, Stanford held a 33-25 half time lead. The second half the Cardinal maintained a seven to nine point margin in the second period. Every time FSU would get within that range with a solid play, they would make an equally poor play (usually a foul) and Stanford would find itself in front by ten to twelve points. And then the process would start all over again.
The post game comments by Leonard Hamilton were not especially complimentary of his team's offense. Adding that while the defense was solid, "poor execution" by the offense was a factor in the loss. What was practiced all week did not translate to the game Hamilton commented. The team is just not reversing the ball and seem satisfied with making one or two passes. That is hardly what one would call ball movement.
Three pointers as in Stanford connecting on 11 of 24 (46%). Hamilton's comment about that I found interesting when he said "we've had several teams get hot against us" from the arc. Many I am sure have noticed that as the season has progressed. Is it a team getting hot or an opponent able to exploit whatever defensive scheme(s) we are using?
Stat of the game: When Sellers hits three or more 3 pointers, Stanford is 6-0. He had three by half time. Make that 7-0.
37.9% from the floor is not going to cut it.
With less than two minutes gone in the second half, Ewin, in the span of forty six seconds managed to pick up three fouls including one technical, which was somewhat questionable as to exactly what he did to get teed up. But that does not matter, he still got the "T" and got to sit on the bench for several minutes.
And speaking of iffy fouls, hey ref!!! The Stanford player slipped and had his legs go out from under him. But what the heck, Watkins had a hand on him so why not call a foul, a bogus one.
With 9:04 to play and FSU trailing 58-49, now is not the time for a flagrant foul. As in the one Watkins picked up for giving Raynaud a forearm on the back of the neck going for a rebound.
Chandler Jackson is still out.
The Ugly
FSU led 10-9 (did I mention that was FSU's only lead in the game?). A 9-0 run by Stanford ensued. One that saw the Seminoles shoot 1-10 including 0-5 from the arc over a span of 5:52. Oh yeah, there were four turnovers including the not so popular with Hamilton over and back call prompting the coach to call a timeout.
With less than eight minutes remaining in the half, Watkins and Ewin were the only 'Noles to score any points.
At intermission FSU had exactly 8 FGs. Which just happened to match the number of turnovers the team committed.
Three point shooting .... or the lack thereof. 1-7 at the half. 6-20 for the game. But they shoot well in practice.
2 hours and 30 minutes. As in let's have yet another replay review and draw the game out even longer. I like watching bball. I do not like watching the backsides of refs staring at a TV monitor yet again for the umpteenth time. Maybe the time could have been cut dramatically after Sellers hit his third three and just called the game right there.
Up Next
The Hokies come to Tallahassee on Wednesday for a 7 PM tip (Alright!!! An early start time) and broadcast on the ACCN. When we last saw Virginia Tech (which just happened to be right before our game came on), the Hokies (8-12, 3-6) were in the process of losing their third straight game. This time to Clemson, 72-57, who pretty much controlled VT the entire game. VT has the 16th ranked scoring offense at 70.1 ppg. FSU is 6th at 78.1 ppg. Defensively FSU is 8th and VT is 11th at 70.5 ppg and 72.9 ppg respectively.
The Good
FSU was able to execute what it wanted to on defense. They forced a tempo Stanford was not comfortable playing resulting in 14 turnovers and 8 steals (FSU leads the ACC in both of those categories at 15 and 8.6 per game). That was the most turnovers the Cardinal have had this season so far that turned into 14 points for the Seminoles.
The defense on Maxime Raynaud. Stanford's leading scorer at 21.2 ppg was held to just 8 points. That was the first time he had been held under double digits this season and obviously is a season low for the 7-1 player from France. He did make his presence known on the boards grabbing 14 rebounds.
FTs. FSU was able to get to the line in this game shooting 21-28. They were a factor in keeping FSU in the game.
Players of the game: Once again Jamir Watkins leads the 'Noles with 20 points and 8 rebounds. That makes 28 straight ACC games Watkins has scored more than 10, 36 of his last 37 games, and 17 straight games in double digits. Malique Ewin saw his double doubles streak end at five games, but he scored 16, ten of which came from the charity stripe. Dequan Davis added 14.
Plays of the game: Watkins with a wide open path right to the rim and the slam dunk for FSU's first ..... and only ...... lead in the game, 10-9. 6-7 Justin Thomas defending 7-1 Raynaud and and able to make the steal face guarding him. Later he forced Ryan Agarwal into a turnover. In a rare possession where FSU actually moved the ball, several (several in this case meaning more than two) quick passes found Davis all alone above the key for the uncontested three, 14-18. Ewin with the rebound and launching a long pass to Davis all alone on the fly pattern and the slam dunk, 16-18. Davis with the lengthy pinpoint pass to Bostyn Holt who was covered by two Cardinal players and the lay up, 51-59.
The Bad
FSU falls to 13-7 overall and 4-5 in the ACC. It was another lost opportunity that would have been a Quad 1 win had FSU been to log the "W". That was not going to be an easy task as Stanford has lost just one home game all season. And that was back in November. The Seminole defense may have done an excellent job on Raynaud. But when a defense concentrates on one player, that leaves opportunities elsewhere. And that is exactly what happened as Oziyah Sellers scored a career high 27 points. He just about could not miss (10-16, 4-6 threes). Another player that stepped up his game was Barry Gealer (5.5 ppg) off teh bench with 13. After the 'Noles lost its only lead, Stanford held a 33-25 half time lead. The second half the Cardinal maintained a seven to nine point margin in the second period. Every time FSU would get within that range with a solid play, they would make an equally poor play (usually a foul) and Stanford would find itself in front by ten to twelve points. And then the process would start all over again.
The post game comments by Leonard Hamilton were not especially complimentary of his team's offense. Adding that while the defense was solid, "poor execution" by the offense was a factor in the loss. What was practiced all week did not translate to the game Hamilton commented. The team is just not reversing the ball and seem satisfied with making one or two passes. That is hardly what one would call ball movement.
Three pointers as in Stanford connecting on 11 of 24 (46%). Hamilton's comment about that I found interesting when he said "we've had several teams get hot against us" from the arc. Many I am sure have noticed that as the season has progressed. Is it a team getting hot or an opponent able to exploit whatever defensive scheme(s) we are using?
Stat of the game: When Sellers hits three or more 3 pointers, Stanford is 6-0. He had three by half time. Make that 7-0.
37.9% from the floor is not going to cut it.
With less than two minutes gone in the second half, Ewin, in the span of forty six seconds managed to pick up three fouls including one technical, which was somewhat questionable as to exactly what he did to get teed up. But that does not matter, he still got the "T" and got to sit on the bench for several minutes.
And speaking of iffy fouls, hey ref!!! The Stanford player slipped and had his legs go out from under him. But what the heck, Watkins had a hand on him so why not call a foul, a bogus one.
With 9:04 to play and FSU trailing 58-49, now is not the time for a flagrant foul. As in the one Watkins picked up for giving Raynaud a forearm on the back of the neck going for a rebound.
Chandler Jackson is still out.
The Ugly
FSU led 10-9 (did I mention that was FSU's only lead in the game?). A 9-0 run by Stanford ensued. One that saw the Seminoles shoot 1-10 including 0-5 from the arc over a span of 5:52. Oh yeah, there were four turnovers including the not so popular with Hamilton over and back call prompting the coach to call a timeout.
With less than eight minutes remaining in the half, Watkins and Ewin were the only 'Noles to score any points.
At intermission FSU had exactly 8 FGs. Which just happened to match the number of turnovers the team committed.
Three point shooting .... or the lack thereof. 1-7 at the half. 6-20 for the game. But they shoot well in practice.
2 hours and 30 minutes. As in let's have yet another replay review and draw the game out even longer. I like watching bball. I do not like watching the backsides of refs staring at a TV monitor yet again for the umpteenth time. Maybe the time could have been cut dramatically after Sellers hit his third three and just called the game right there.
Up Next
The Hokies come to Tallahassee on Wednesday for a 7 PM tip (Alright!!! An early start time) and broadcast on the ACCN. When we last saw Virginia Tech (which just happened to be right before our game came on), the Hokies (8-12, 3-6) were in the process of losing their third straight game. This time to Clemson, 72-57, who pretty much controlled VT the entire game. VT has the 16th ranked scoring offense at 70.1 ppg. FSU is 6th at 78.1 ppg. Defensively FSU is 8th and VT is 11th at 70.5 ppg and 72.9 ppg respectively.
