FSU Basketball Recap: Seminoles Dominate Southern Miss, Nicholls State

The FSU basketball team played two of the worst teams in college basketball. They avoided complacency and beat both teams… handily.

Well, that was certainly something. If you actually watched both of those games, I commend you. We told you in the preview that these two opponents, Southern Miss and Nicholls Sate, were two of the worst teams in the country.

And they certainly didn’t disappoint. The Seminoles beat Southern Miss 98-49. They then followed that up by defeating Nicholls State 118-63. Oh, just for your information, 118 is the most points scored by Florida State since 1988 (via Corey Clark). They didn’t even need Jonathan Issac or Phil Cofer to do it.

Florida State’s record is now 9-1, which is their best start since 2009. A match-up against the 7-2 Florida Gators awaits us on Sunday, but we’ll take a closer look at that in an upcoming preview piece.

There’s not much to learn from either contest. The vastly superior team won both. Southern Miss and Nicholls State combined to shoot 32% and make 40 field goals in the two games. They also combined for 40 turnovers. Impressive defense by Florida State. It was encouraging to see them not take their foes lightly.

Let’s hand out some awards.

Dec 8, 2016; Tallahassee, FL, USA; Florida State Seminoles guard Pj Savoy (5) shoots the ball during the second half of the game against the Nicholls Colonels at the Donald L. Tucker Center. Mandatory Credit: Melina Vastola-USA TODAY Sports

Player of the Game(s)

In the preview, I mentioned that coach Leonard Hamilton could use this week to get a guy like PJ Savoy ready for conference play. Savoy is a first-year player, who was brought in to be a three-point specialist. And he was forced to miss the first five games of the season with injury.

This week though, he was finally unleashed. Savoy made 13 combined three-pointers over the last two games. On Tuesday, he dropped 27 points on 8-for-11 shooting. He didn’t record a single other statistic.

And on Thursday, he scored 18, on 6-for-14 from behind the arc. Also, Savoy did not attempt a single shot that wasn’t a three. Much respect, gunslinger.

For the week, on 24 three-point attempts, Savoy shot 54 percent. That’s obviously an unsustainable clip, but regardless, it was great to get his confidence going. He’s going to be an important piece once the competition improves. Here’s coach Ham talking about Savoy’s shooting ability, and why they brought him in:

Congrats to Savoy on his introduction to college basketball, and hopefully he knocks down just a few more against the Gators.

Just so I have a clear conscious, I wanted to quickly mention that Xavier Rathan-Mayes also had a great game against Nicholls State. He scored 16 points, had seven rebounds, seven assists, and capped the performance off with three steals. Job well done, sir, and I feel way better now.

Nov 15, 2016; Tallahassee, FL, USA; Florida State Seminoles forward Jarquez Smith (23) shoots the ball during the first period against the Iona Gaels at the Donald L. Tucker Center. Mandatory Credit: Melina Vastola-USA TODAY Sports

Ryan Reid Unsung Hero Award

It’s pretty hard to nominate someone as an unsung hero when the team combined for 216 points over two games. But I know how badly Florida State players covet this award, and I’m a man of the people, so someone is getting it.

Jarquez Smith played a great game on Tuesday against Southern Miss. Because Issac and Cofer sat out, he started at power forward, even though he had solely been playing center until then. Regardless, he performed admirably, nailing two three-pointers and scoring 14 points, while blocking two shots. That’s the exact kind of random showing that wins you a Ryan Reid Unsung Hero award. Kudos, sir. You earned it.

Highlights

I know I copped out of giving you guys highlights after the George Washington game, so here is my apology to you: Dwayne Bacon tossing an alley to Jarquez Smith.

What’s that? You’re still mad at me, and you want more? You got it. Here’s Bacon making the weirdest shot I’ve seen all season:

Bacon had a couple of relatively quiet games (14.5 points, five rebounds and three assists per contest), but it doesn’t matter. You know he’s gonna show up against the Gators. Unless you forgot what he did to them last year:

I fast forwarded to the game-winner, but you should watch his entire performance. That was probably his best game of the year. Here’s hoping he exceeds that this weekend.

Up Next

Okay, so as I’ve mentioned about four times already, we play the Gators on Sunday. Keep an eye out for our preview, which is coming Sunday morning. Game is at 4, and will be on ESPNU.

This is a big one, ‘Noles fans. I know, that’s obvious. But a win against Florida (barring a complete meltdown afterwards), and FSU will coast to a tournament bid. Let’s go ‘Noles! (I’m already nervous).