Florida State hasn’t played a game since Dec. 15 against Lipscomb, with the UCF game canceled and the two contests with North Florida and Boston College postponed.
Prior to the disruption, the Seminoles are off to a 6-4 start with only one win over a Power Five Conference opponent — 81-58 over Missouri on Nov. 22. FSU has losses to Florida, Purdue, Syracuse and South Carolina, so the Seminoles will probably need a strong ACC slate to reach the NCAA Tournament.
FSU plays at NC State at 4 p.m. today at PNC Arena on the ACC Network.
Overview
FSU plays at least 10 players with three in double figures for points, and nine healthy players who are averaging at least 13.4 minutes per game.
Rankings
Florida State is No. 71 in the NET rankings this season, and NC State is No. 176.
ESPN’s College Basketball Power Index (BPI) has the Seminoles currently ranked No. 48 overall, and NC State is No. 118.
KenPom.com has FSU at No. 39, and NCSU checks in at No. 119.
RealtimeRPI.com has NC State ranked No. 156 in the country, and Florida State is No. 87.
Shooting
FSU is shooting 45.6 percent from the field, 34.9 percent on three-pointers and 68.9 percent from the free-throw line.
Four different players have made at least 10 three-pointers, with senior post player Malik Osborne leading the way, going 16 of 32 for 50 percent. Freshman center John Butler has gone 10 of 25 for 40 percent.
Rebounding
Florida State is averaging 36.0 rebounds per game, and have 116 offensive rebounds in 10 games. Opponents are averaging 34.8 boards a contest.
Osborne leads the way with 7.2 rebounds per contest and 26 offensive rebounds. Anthony Polite is right behind with 5.3 rebounds and 17 offensive rebounds.
Defense
Opponents are shooting 40.8 percent from the field and 32.8 percent from three-point land. FSU doesn’t have the typical eraser inside with 7-1 John Butler chipping in eight blocks. Guard Caleb Mills has a team-high 22 steals, and leads the ACC with 2.2 steals per game. Polite has 18 steals.
Depth
Florida State is known for its depth and this year is no different. At least four players have played in at least nine games, with three that have played in 10.
Kentucky wing transfer Cam’Ron Fletcher, junior college transfer center Naheem McLeod, who is a listed at 7-4 and 255 pounds, senior power forward Wyatt Wilkes and freshmen wings Matthew Cleveland and Jalen Warley are regulars in the rotation.
Cleveland is fourth on the team with 9.2 points and 3.9 rebounds and is a former Rivals.com five-star prospect. Fletcher is averaging 6.3 points and 2.2 rebounds in 15.5 minutes per contest.
Star Watch
Fifth-year senior post player Malik Osborne has patiently waited his turn for an increased role and has found it this season.
The 6-9, 225-pounder from the Matteson, Ill., started his career at Rice and averaged 9.0 points and 6.5 rebounds per game his freshman year. He transferred to FSU and sat out a season, and then made his Seminoles debut in 2019-20.
Osborne averaged 5.9 points and 4.5 rebounds per game in 19.0 minutes per game last year, and he started four out of 24 games. Now, he has improved to 11.8 points and 7.2 rebounds and he is shooting an impressive 16 of 32 from three-point land for 50 percent.
Osborne scored 18 points apiece in the first two games of the season against Pennsylvania and Florida. He also added 13 rebounds against the Quakers. He has made at least two three-pointers in six contests out of 10.
Likely Starters
NC State
PG — 3 Cam Hayes (6-3, 180, Soph., 10.5 ppg. 2.8 rpg, 2.6 apg)
SG — 0 Terquavion Smith (6-4, 160, Fr., 13.8 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 1.7 apg, 1.2 spg)
SF — 1 Dereon Seabron (6-7, 180, R-Soph., 18.6 ppg, 10.2 rpg, 3.1 apg. 1.6 seg)
PF — 4 Jericole Hellems (6-7, 200, Sr., 15.2 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 1.7 apg, 1.6 spg)
C — 21 Ebenezer Dowuona (6-11, 225, Soph., 4.2 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 0.0 apg, 2.5 bpg)
Florida State
PG — 0 RayQuan Evans (6-4, 210, Sr., 7.0 ppg, 1.9 rpg, 2.6 apg, 1.8 spg)
SG — 4 Caleb Mills (6-5, 180, Soph., 12.2 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 3.0 apg, 2.2 spg)
SF — 2 Anthony Polite (6-6, 214, Sr., 10.1 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 3.4 apg, 1.8 spg)
PF — 10 Malik Osborne (6-9, 225, Sr., 11.8 ppg, 7.2 rpg, 0.7 apg, 1.0 spg)
C — 22 John Butler (7-1, 190, Fr., 5.9 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 0.5 apg)
Numbers Of Note
5: FSU coach Leonard Hamilton is fifth in ACC history with 383 wins, trailing Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski, UNC’s Roy Williams and Dean Smith and Maryland’s Gary Williams.
22 Assists in FSU’s last game against Lipscomb on Dec. 15.
25: Career-high 25 points for fifth-year senior wing Anthony Polite against Lipscomb.
Game Within The Game: FSU’s Caleb Mills vs. NC State’s Terquavion Smith
What an interesting journey it has been for FSU guard Caleb Mills, who attended Asheville (N.C.) Christian and finished up at Asheville Roberson High. He enrolled early at Houston and redshirted, but made a big splash in 2019-20 for the Cougars. The slender 6-5, 180-pounder averaged 13.2 points and 2.6 rebounds per game, and he shot 36.5 from three-point land.
Mills was named the AAC preseason player of the year for 2020-21, but his season fell apart and he left the Cougars after playing in four games. FSU swooped in and landed him.
Mills might never be a player of the year type, but he is averaging 12.2 points and 3.0 assists per game and shooting 42.7 percent from the field and 35.7 percent on three-pointers. He did pour in 22 points in the 93-65 loss at Purdue on Nov. 30. Mills has scored in double figures in all but four games out of 10.
NC State freshman wing Terquavion Smith has solidified his hold on the starting job. He’s averaging 13.8 points and 3.6 rebounds in 29.5 minutes per game. He’s shooting 39.3 percent from the field and 34.1 percent on three-pointers. Smith had a career-high 27 points in the 84-70 loss vs. Wright State.
Follow on Twitter:
@NCStateRivals or @JaceyZembal
Subscribe for free on YouTube:
For Jacey Zembal or The Wolfpack Central
Like on Facebook:
