Bleacher Report - Articles by Jonathan Caliari

FSU-Virginia: Seminoles Chop Cavaliers in Nail-Biter

Jonathan Caliari — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 14:24:51 -0500

Even Sean Singletary had to smile as his meaningless 3-pointer fell through at the buzzer, as if to say, "Now I make one."

The bucket wasn't enough, as FSU prevailed 69-67 in Tallahassee.

Virginia (11-6, 1-3) blew a 10-point first-half lead to trail 31-28 at halftime and once again built up a 10-point lead in the second-half. Again, the Seminoles (13-7, 2-3) fought back in front of a rowdy home crowd and erased the deficit.

Singletary, the Cavaliers' leading scorer at just under 19 points per game entering the contest, struggled to get his shots all night and finished with just 11 points, making only four of eleven shots and giving up five turnovers.

For most of the night, Singletary was picked up by junior Mamadi Diane (21 points on 6-12 FG, 5 3-PT) and senior Adrian Joseph (17 points).

The 'Noles were led by a trio of veteran guards. Senior Jason Rich scored 17 points despite being plagued with foul trouble for much of the night.

Senior Isaiah Swann didn't have one of his best shooting nights, but still chipped in with 16 points. However, the team was led by junior Toney Douglas, who scored 19 points and added 6 rebounds and 6 steals.

None of Douglas' 6 steals were bigger than his swipe in the final minute with the Seminoles clinging to a 63-62 lead. Douglas broke away from the pack and was hit hard for an intentional foul. The 'Noles would close out the game with Douglas and Swann knocking down free throws.

My Take

First, there was a great atmosphere at the Donad L. Tucker Center tonight. The final attendance number was less than impressive with 7,314 in attendance, but the fans who were there made their presence known. Singletary just couldn't get his game going and that was the difference in the game.

Isaiah Swann scored 7 points in 34 seconds, including a 4-point play to help dig the 'Noles out of their initial 10-point hole.

Douglas played a great game for an FSU team that desperately needed a victory, having lost their previous three games. He ran the offense well in the second half and shot the ball well all night (7-11 FG) after shooting just five of seventeen Sunday at Wake Forest.

Game Highlight

The highlight of the night for me (well, besides getting to catch one of those free shirts thrown by the cheerleaders during a timeout) had to be the steal by Douglas with the game on the line.

He had guts to go for the strip in that situation with the team in the bonus. His fearlessness, combined with his execution, equals one clutch play. That play was all ball, no arm on the swipe, and he had the quickness to go around and get in front of the play to start the fast break and seal the victory.

Great play by Douglas, great win for Leonard Hamilton's team. The victory marked the 300th of Hamilton's college coaching career, and 100th as coach of the 'Noles.

NCAA Hoops Preview: Florida State at Wake Forest

Jonathan Caliari — Sat, 19 Jan 2008 16:38:33 -0500

Meet the Teams:

The Florida State Seminoles head into Salem to face the Wake Forest Demon Deacons with both teams in desperate need of a win.

Both teams opened conference play with a victory, but both have since dropped their last two.

FSU comes in on the heels of two tough losses, the first in double-overtime to Clemson and the second a home loss to Duke.

The Clemson game saw the 'Noles blow a lead late in regulation and overtime only to run out of gas in double-overtime. Wednesday against Coach K's Blue Devils, they came out slow and trailed by as much as 17, before coming back to take a second half lead. Again, the 'Noles didn't have enough left in the tank to pull it out in the end.

Likewise, the Demon Deacons are looking to get off a two-game slide. After getting blown out at Boston College and dropping a close game to Maryland (a loss that suddenly looks a lot better after the Terps' win over UNC), Wake Forest returns home to play what is almost a must-win game.

The Seminoles are led by an experienced group of players and a deep backcourt. Senior guards Isaiah Swann, Jason Rich and Ralph Mims all average double-figures for Leonard Hamilton's squad. Fourth-year junior point guard Toney Douglas leads the team in scoring at a shade under 14 points per game, and also leads the ACC in steals at 2.6 per contest. Junior F/C Uche Echefu has been playing great ball of late, and has nearly doubled his scoring and rebounding outputs from a year ago.

Wake Forest has had trouble as a team this year shooting the ball from beyond the arc, with no player firing threes at a rate better than 35%. The leading scorer (14.4 ppg), rebounder (8.5 rpg), and shot blocker (1.7 bpg) is freshman sensation James Johnson. The forward has scored in double figures in all but two contests this season.

Johnson is complemented on the offensive end by another freshman, Jeff Teague (11.0 ppg), and a sophomore, L.D. Williams (10.1 ppg).

My Take:

These are two middle-of-the-pack ACC teams, struggling early but still with tournament expectations. The difference in these two teams is experience at this point, both have good talent.

The key for the Seminoles is to not let Johnson and company dominate the paint too much. Echefu is going to have a little more help inside than he's had the past few games as FSU welcomes back freshman Julian Vaughn (irregular heart beat) just one game after Ryan Reid (academic suspension) returned.

Wake Forest is going to need to put pressure on the 'Noles guards—and not let Rich, Douglas and company have their way.

My Prediction:

FSU has success on the road, Toney Douglas gets back on track with a 20-point effort leading his team to a 73-61 win.

Florida State Basketball: Seminoles' NCAA Tournament Outlook

Jonathan Caliari — Sat, 19 Jan 2008 08:25:43 -0500

With the loss to Duke and all the baggage that game brings along with it out of their system, it's time for Florida State to look forward to the rest of the ACC season, as they attempt to once again make the field of 65.

While a win at home against Duke would've done wonders for the March Madness resume, it wasn't essential and there's still plenty of games left for the 'Noles to prove their worthiness.

A win at Clemson would've been good too, but the double-overtime choke job is also not enough to cost the Noles a trip to the big dance.

But sooner or later, they're going to have to start winning some tough games.

First up is Wake Forest on the road this Sunday afternoon. The Demon Deacons come in to the matchup 11-5 overall, but only 1-2 in conference play. This is another chance for Leonard Hamilton's squad to win a game on the road—something you know the selection committee loves to see.

The Noles already won a tough one at Georgia Tech in their conference opener, and will be looking to even up their ACC record against one of the lower-level teams in the ACC. Look for Uche Echefu to bounce back from a tough game against Duke and have a good performance inside along with Ryan Reid, and lead the team to victory.

Florida State hopes to see better control on the perimeter offensively from Toney Douglas, Isaiah Swann, Ralph Mims, and Jason Rich. The Seminoles need fewer turnovers, crisper passes, and better penetration—like they showed in the second half against Duke—particularly from Rich and Douglas.

Wednesday night saw too much individual play from the guards and out of control penetration, resulting in turnovers and offensive fouls. Ralph Mims had an awful game offensively, as the senior tried to do too much all night long. He shot the ball terribly (1-9 FG, 0-3 3PT) and got caught up trying to win the game all by himself.

Penetration in the half court offense really isn't Mims' game. He did play good pressure defense, however, and finished with an impressive six steals.

I thought Swann played a pretty good, but not great game. I still don't see much of a sense of urgency from Isaiah very often on the court. Don't get me wrong—I think he wants to win as much as anyone does. I just don't think he has a terribly good feel for the game, and is a little too non-chalant and lackadaisical with the ball. Some of his shots that didn't fall were close and could have potentially changed the outcome of the game, and because of that I can't really fault him.

Had Jason Rich not got into foul trouble so quickly in the first half, we could've seen a completely different game. He did an amazing job of picking apart the Blue Devil defense in the second half, where he scored all of his team-high 18 points.

The 'Noles have talent and experience on the perimeter, which I see being just enough to get them into the tournament this year, for the first time in a decade. They have a pretty favorable schedule coming up leading to their Super Bowl Sunday matchup with the number-one ranked Tar Heels of North Carolina in Tallahassee.

After traveling to Wake Forest, the Seminoles come home to host Virginia and NC State, then go to Virginia Tech before returning home to welcome Roy Williams' squad.

Now, taking into consideration that those are still all ACC games and none of those come easy—that four-game stretch is about as easy as it gets in this conference. Anything worse than 3-1 is a huge disappointment, and a serious blow to the 'Noles tournament chances.

But winning all four would put Hamilton's squad in a great spot heading into February.

This undermanned squad is probably on paper the worst Florida Stat team in three years, but could just be the one to buck the trend and put the school in its first tournament in a decade.

Will the continued development of Echefu combined with veteran, skilled guards, and a favorable ACC schedule be enough? I say yes.

Florida State Seminoles Come Up Short Against Duke Blue Devils

Jonathan Caliari — Sat, 19 Jan 2008 05:22:35 -0500

Led by 21 points from sophomore Jon Scheyer, the Duke Blue Devils overcame a vicious second-half charge from an undermanned Florida State squad, to win for the first time in their last three meetings with the Seminoles.

Duke started the game on fire, breaking open a 14-13 game with a 16-0 run to take a 17-point lead in the first half. Jon Scheyer scored 16 of his game-high 21 points in that first half, which ended with the Blue Devils up 34-22.

Senior G/F Jason Rich was held scoreless in the first half for the Seminoles, who struggled to get anything going against the pressure defense of the Blue Devils. Rich was forced to sit for much of the half after picking up his second foul on a charge just minutes into the game.

But what looked like a one-sided affair for much of the first turned into a great game after recess.

Sparked by some terrific individual play from Rich (who scored all 18 of his points in the second half) Uche Echefu, and Toney Douglas, the 'Noles clawed their way back into the game. A Rich jumper pulled the game even at 48, and a left-handed lay-in by Rich gave Florida State a 55-54 lead—their first since taking a 5-4 advantage early in the contest.

But Duke responded, as freshman Kyle Singler hit an open trey on the very next Blue Devil possession to quiet the packed arena.

The Noles, who were playing just a seven-man rotation due to injuries and transfers, ran out of gas in the closing minutes. Echefu, who had been playing great basketball over his past four games—establishing career highs in each of his past two contests—fouled out with six points and seven rebounds with over four minutes to go in the game.

Duke made the big stops when it needed to, and made nine of ten free throws in the closing minutes to secure the victory, 70-57.

The Blue Devils improved to 14-1 overall and 2-0 in ACC play after handling Virginia earlier in the week.

The Seminoles, meanwhile, drop to 12-6 overall and 1-2 in the conference, losing their second-straight heartbreaker. Florida State entered this game coming off a double-overtime loss at Clemson, a game in which the 'Noles saw a four-point lead evaporate with 21 seconds to play in regulation, and a player (Trevor Booker) with one career three-pointer made coming into the game knock down all three of his long distance attempts.

Florida State had won their first conference game at Georgia Tech, 66-64. Leonard Hamilton's team next travels to play Wake Forest on Sunday, while the Blue Devils play host to Clemson Saturday evening.