Florida State shot lights out all game long pulling away in the second half with intensified defense in the second half in defeating the Maryland Terrapins 96-79.

In producing its highest point total of the season so far, FSU shot 62% from the floor, 8-17 (47%) from behind the arc, and was 14 of 16 from the free throw line.

It was a shooting exhibition lead by Al Thornton’s 27 points that had Maryland’s Gary Williams visibly upset at his team’s defensive effort during a timeout.

Williams said in his Monday ACC press conference that Thornton was a player that could beat you in many ways.

Thornton gave Williams a close up look at that ability with an array of mid range jump shots, three pointers, layups, and slam dunks. It didn’t matter who the Terps head coach put on him, the All American candidate faced up, dribbled past, or posted up his Terrapins almost at will.

The Seminoles also put three other players in double figures.

Jason Rich reached a new career high with 24 points missing just two of his twelve shots. Toney Douglas took over at the end scoring 9 of his 16 in the last 5:11. Isaiah Swann added 15.

“I thought the guys came out extremely focused and ready to play”, Leonard Hamilton said afterwards. “They rose to the occasion.”

Hamilton complemented his entire squad’s efforts making mention that “everyone who played contributed.”

Indeed it was a team effort as FSU was able to do just about anything it wanted on offense and controlled the boards, something the ‘Noles have not been able to say often this season. The Seminoles dominated the rebounding 33 to 19 including 12 offensive boards.

Hamilton joked later that shooting 62% doesn’t leave much opportunity for many rebounds however.

Scoring 96 points allowed Hamilton to able to joke about his team’s defense commenting that after giving up 62% to the Terrapins and holding them to 50% in the second.

Maryland had two leads in the game, both in the first half. The first was 2-0. The second James Gist’s shot from just inside the arc from the left corner giving the Terps a 25-24 advantage.

That caused an irritated Hamilton to call timeout to give his team an earful about their defense.

While the defense didn’t exactly shut down Maryland, FSU’s offense was unstoppable with Thornton’s turnaround fade away jumper giving the lead right back.

Douglas’ runner with six seconds left gave the ‘Noles a 49-46 margin at the half.

The highlight play of the half was a 2 on 1 break with Rich passing to Douglas who passed back to Rich completely turning the defender around giving Rich the easy layup.

FSU took control early in the second half with a 12-2 run. Thornton and Rich attacked the rim and Swann added the rare four point play as he made a three when fouled by DJ Strawberry. It was the second four point play of the game for Swann.

Thornton’s drive and hop to the basket on a 3 on 2 break during the run brought cheers from the 8,894 in attendance and even more looks from the NBA scouts in attendance.

Just to make his case stronger for being a high draft pick, Thornton knocked the ball away and went the distance for the slam dunk giving FSU a 70-53 lead.

The ‘Noles experienced a brief cold streak for almost three minutes while Maryland pulled to within nine points, 79-70. A left handed layup by Thornton ended that run and for that matter any realistic chance for the Terrapins to pull out the game.

Gist led the Terps with 23 points with Greivis Vasquez adding 13 and Ekene Ibewke scoring 10.

While the Seminoles gave up those points to the Terrapin post players the key for FSU was holding leading scorers Strawberry and Mike Jones to a combined 16 points showing that not all was bad with the ‘Nole defense.

Next up for FSU is Duke at Cameron Indoor where the ‘Noles have never won. Tip off is at 2:00 PM.

By Bill Kristoph

The Seminole Pitching staff is the key to FSU’s baseball season year in and year out. FSU’s lack of offense in recent years has strained the pitching staff and pressured them to perform perfectly each time out. On teams in the past, the success has been determined by strong starters and great middle relief. FSU always seems to have a closer that is solid, but if FSU can get through 7 or 8 innings to get there, then the closer is rendered irrelevant. Even worse for the Noles, Luke Tucker is out at least three weeks, and you read different message boards, it might be a whole lot longer than that. If FSU can get to the closer, will Buster Posey be able to do double duty at Catcher and Closer?

Bryan Henry and Michael Hyde have been announced as weekend starters. The third starter remains a mystery at the moment, but Casey Whitmer is a good bet. The coaches have been dishing out the praise for the freshman. Henry, the only remaining starter from last year’s rotation should be good again this year. If his early season dominant ways can continue throughout the season, the Noles will be in good shape on Friday nights. Michael Hyde, although never appearing dominant, has a 3-0 playoff record and went 9-1 last year. Hopefully he can continue to sneak up on opponents. Casey Whitmer throws in the low 90’s and rumor has it, he has a great breaking ball that makes hitters weak in the knees.

The bullpen for FSU has a range of talent.  The key might be Travis Burge, who has closer talent, but needs to match his .201 against average with lefties to the righties.  If he overcomes that fact,the Noles will have found a great setup man. At closer, Buster Posey will be doing double duty as he leaves Catcher if the Noles need him in the 9th.  Seminole fans should hope for a speedy recover by Luke Tucker, but also need to realize that FSU shouldn’t need him until late in the regular season.  If he needs more than three weeks, he should take it.

Stay Tuned for Part 4 where I’ll talk about our coaching, and what Seminole fans can expect.

By Bill Kristoph

In Part 2 of the 2007 FSU Baseball Preview I’m taking a look at the probably defense for FSU by position.

At Catcher, Buster Posey will provide his athletic prowess.  Posey provides a very good arm and is an intelligent player, his only downside is that he hasn’t played the position since he was ten years old.  Evidently that doesn’t matter much, though, because numerous publications have him on their underclassman watch list.

Brandon Reichert will get an opportunity at First Base. Last year’s opening day starting, Dennis Guinn has moved to left field. Reichert sat out the 2006 season after transferring from Mercer University. If his previous stats are any indication, he should provide the Noles with a .300+ batting average and should hit the gaps for plenty of doubles.
Up the middle for the Seminoles, Tony Thomas, Jr. and transfer Mark Hallberg will patrol Second Base and Shortstop respectively.  Tony Thomas, Jr. is quite possibly the best middle infielder to grace Dick Howser Stadium. Mark Hallberg’s arrival is what allow Coach Mike Martin to move Buster Posey behind the plate.  Good luck to any opposing hitters that are anywhere near either of these two with a ground ball.  Unless they are super fast or super lucky, most balls won’t be getting through. These two have range that will take away a couple of Texas Leaguers too.

Third base has been a rocky situation for the past couple of seasons.  This season, freshman Jason Stidham takes over.  Don’t be too scared Seminole fans, Stidham was named the MVP of the fall Garnet & Gold game.  He doesn’t have to be spectacular at third this year, solid is all anyone is looking to find.

The weak spot for FSU’s defense is the outfield.  Gone are the days of Shane Robinson running down balls in Center, Left Center, and Right Center.  Dennis Guinn, Ruairi O’Connor and Jack Rye combine to make, most likely, the slowest outfield in the ACC. Rye has a good arm out of right, but Guinn and O’Connor are big question marks in the outfield.  Big defensive plays in the outfield can turn around a game for the team, and I don’t expect this edition of the FSU Outfield to make many of them. I hope they prove me wrong.

In Part 3, I’ll dissect the Seminole Pitchers.

By Bill Kristoph

Florida State Baseball heads into the 2007 season picked to finish the ACC second to Clemson, and ranked between 13 - 18 in the various preseason polls. The Noles are young, but obviously, the ACC coaches respect both Mike Martin’s coaching staff and the players’ talent. There have been quite a few changes since last year, and many Seminole fans will be surprised by a couple of the highlights.

Buster Posey - The fantastic freshman shortstop is moving behind the plate as FSU’s new starting catcher after Kyle Maxie transferred and Danny Diaz was dismissed from the team. In all fairness, neither of those were a big loss to the offense, Maxie didn’t adjust quickly to college pitching, and to say Diaz struggled at the plate and with throws to second base is kind. Posey offers the best bat behind the plate that FSU has had in years a rocket arm to throw runners out. Posey is also going to see time as the 2nd option at closer, behind Luke Tucker, when Tucker is not available out of the bullpen.

But what about shortstop? Moving Posey behind the plate is a bad idea when he was great at shortstop in 2006, right? Never fear Seminole fans, Mark Hallberg should fill in quite nicely.

One scary note about the defense though, FSU has the slowest outfield in Division I. Fans have been treated to years of Shane Robinson patrolling the Dick Howser Stadium outfield and running down all kinds of would-be hits. Don’t count on that this season, as O’Conner, Guinn and Rye try to run those down. I wonder why / where Mark Gildea is, considering he started off the 2006 season on fire before injuring his hamstring?

The FSU offense is likely to be average again, long gone are the days of “gorilla” ball during the late 1990’s. FSU needs to rely on their speed this season, and hope that defensive genius Tony Thomas, Jr. can cut down on his strikeouts. If Thomas can get on base, he can swipe second with ease and put the Noles in a position to steal a run or two. If FSU can figure out how to manufacture that extra run or two per game, they have a shot to host an NCAA regional this season.

Stay tuned for Part 2, tomorrow. I’ll check out FSU’s projected starting rotation.

Update:  Luke Tucker is out for at least three weeks.

Florida State vs Wake Forest Saturday 4:00 PM tip off TV Raycom

Records:

FSU 14-6, ACC 2-4 (t 7^th), Home record overall 11-1, ACC 2-1

WF 9-10, ACC 1-6 (12^th), Road record overall 2-5, ACC 1-3

Last Game:

FSU lost to Boston College 85-82 on a buzzer beater from Sean Marshall

WF lost at home to UNC 88-60, UNC’s largest margin of victory ever at WF

Key Stats (Conference only):

Scoring offense – FSU 75.7 ppg (5^th); WF 64.9 ppg (12^th)

Scoring defense – FSU 77.5 ppg (t 10^th); WF 77.4 (9^th)

Free throws – FSU .835 (1^st in ACC, 2^nd in NCAA); WF .563 (11^th)

FG percentage – FSU .459 (6^th); WF .411 (12^th)

FG percentage defense – FSU .482 (10^th); WF .496 (11^th)

3-pt FG percentage – FSU .420 (1^st); WF .326 (11^th)

3-pt FG percentage defense – FSU .325 (5^th); WF .414 (12^th)

Rebounding margin – FSU -1.3 (8^th); WF -.9 (7^th)

Assists – FSU 14.83 (t 2^nd); WF 11.29 (t 11^th)

Turnover margin – FSU +.83 (3^rd); WF -1.29 (8^th)

Steals – FSU 6.83 (7^th); WF 7.00 (6^th)

Projected Starters (stats for all games):
Florida State

Al Thornton – 17.1 ppg , .551 FG %, .837 FT %, 6.2 rpg, .361 3-pt %, 25 blocks (1st)

Toney Douglas – 13.5 ppg, .497 FG %, .755 FT %, .412 3-pt %, 55 assists (2^nd)

Jason Rich – 10.7 ppg, .537 FG %, .800 FT %, .429 3-pt %, 3.3 rpg

Isaiah Swann – 8.4 ppg, .431 FG %, .762 FT %, .333 3-pt %, 62 assists (1^st), 31 stls (1^st)

Uche Echefu – 7.5 PPG, .465 FG%, .818 FT %, .350 3-pt %, 4.1 rpg

Wake Forest

Kyle Visser C SR (6-11, 244) – 17.3 ppg, .605 FG %, .609 FT %, 7.5 rpg, 26 blocks (1^st)

Ishmael Smith PG FR (5-11, 155) – 9.2 ppg, .465 FG %, .451 FT %, 108 assists (1^st)

Michael Drum F SR (6-6, 204) – 8.3 ppg, .432 FG %, .843 FT % .360 3-pt %

L.D. Williams G FR (6-4, 210) – 7.4 ppg, .491 FG %, .548 FT %, .433 3-pt %, 4.1 rpg

Kevin Swinton F SO (6-7, 224) – 3.8 ppg, .568 FG %, .423 FT %, 3.1 rpg

Bench:

Florida State – (Mims, Allen, Breeden, Reid) 17.6 ppg, 9.4 rpg

Wake Forest – (Hale, Skeen, Gurley, Dukes, Weaver) 26.0 ppg, 11.4 rpg

Starting three freshmen for much of the season, Skip Prosser’s team has searched to find consistency on the floor. With so much youth his team has struggled and particularly early in games this season. WF has shown moments of playing well in the late parts of games. But usually the Deacons have been behind by such large margins they have been unable to pull out the victory.

Attrition has been a factor in the Deacon’s travails as well with Wake losing two to transfer and one, Chris Paul, to the NBA after his sophomore season two years ago.

In addition inability to settle on a starting lineup has contributed to the instability of the team’s performance.

Visser is much improved over his past seasons and is by far the focal point of the offense. ACC teams however have begun to focus on him holding him to just 12 ppg in the Deacs last three games.

Smith is a very quick guard adept at making plays. He is also equally adept at making turnovers (69) frequently playing at too fast a tempo and dribbling the ball in too deep around traffic.

Look for Florida State to pressure the ball and force turnovers from the young players.

On offense the Deacons in the past were a dangerous team in transition. If you scored you better get back on defense because they would be back at your rim in seconds. That aspect from the offense has been missing this season however.

As has been in the past, Wake has not been an especially good defensive team. With FSU’s free throw shooting prowess getting to the line would be a big plus in securing the win.

On paper this would look to be a game that FSU should win. But it is an ACC and as fans have seen ACC games are a war every single game. The ‘Noles will have to still be on top of their game.

I just wanted to let the readers know that the Baseball and Softball Previews will start Sunday and have different parts running throughout next week, before the start of the 2007 Season.

2007 Florida State Seminoles Football Schedule

September 3: @ Clemson (Monday Night)

September 8: UAB

September 15: @ Colorado

September 22: BYE

September 29: @ Alabama (Jacksonville, FL)

October 6: N.C. State

October 11: @ Wake Forest (Thursday Night)

October 20: Miami

October 27: Duke

November 3: @ Boston College

November 10: @ Virginia Tech

November 17: Maryland

November 24: @ Florida

Florida State shot 48% from the floor, connected on 8 of 17 three pointers, was nearly perfect from the free throw line missing just one of its 17 attempts, dished out 17 assists while taking care of the ball with a season low 7 turnovers. After all that the Seminoles still lost the game when Boston College guard Sean Marshall hit a three pointer at the buzzer to beating FSU 85-82.

Unfortunately the five players FSU had in double figures could not match the three big guns of the Eagles. Tyrese Rice shredded the ‘Noles defense time and again with circus like shots in the lane en route to scoring a game high 26 points. Jared Dudley pounded FSU underneath the rim as well adding 23. Marshall who was in foul trouble much of the game ended the game with 22.

After Boston College had to call timeout before getting the ball over the time line, Marshall received the inbound pass and dribbled quickly to the left of the key where he launched the game winner over the outstretched hands of two defenders.

The shot touched off a storm the court celebration by the students while Marshall ripped his jersey off.

Leonard Hamilton gave credit to Marshall saying “he hit a very, very tough shot that we contested.”

Despite the fine offensive performance, the game came down to the Seminole defense. FSU just could not get the stops it needed to late in the game as the Eagles scored on all eight of its possessions in the last four minutes of the game.

“We just needed more stops”, Hamilton said afterwards. “We mixed our defenses up and just was not as sharp with the various defenses we used. We didn’t rotate to the baseline very well and gave up too many second shots.”

“A defense just can’t give up 53% and expect to win a game” added the head coach.

Despite the end of the game, Hamilton was more disappointed with his team’s first half defensive performance.

“In the first half shots were not contested. We gave too many good looks to BC and had unnecessary fouls that weren’t hustle fouls. We took a couple of possessions off tonight.”

Al Thornton continued his stellar performance in league play leading FSU with 22 points along with 8 boards. Jason Rich also had a fine game scoring 15. Isaiah Swann added 13 along with 7 assists and Toney Douglas and Uche Echefu each had 10.

A tightly contested game the entire way, there were 17 lead changes and 10 ties.

FSU managed maintain a small lead for much of the first 12 minutes. An 18 foot jumper by Echefu gave FSU a 21-19 lead that touched off a flurry of seven lead changes over the next 3 ½ minutes.

BC took a 30-27 lead on two Dudley free throws.

FSU played catch up with the Eagles holding a small lead until the final 2.9 seconds of the half. Casaan Breeden’s two free throws gave the Seminoles a 41-39 lead.

BC quickly inbounded the ball to Marcus Haynes who was inexplicably fouled by Swann near the time line with .9 seconds left on a blocking call. Haynes sent the two teams to the locker room tied at 41.

The second half was not much different as the teams jockeyed back and forth.

FSU started the second half shaky forcing Hamilton to call a timeout at the 18:37 mark after Douglas fouled Rice while taking a three point shot.

Marshall gave BC a 48-43 lead on a three. Echefu seconds later hit a three from above the key and erased the lead on another three from the right corner with Dudley running at him.

The Eagles twice stretched the lead to five when Rich’s driving layup between the screens of Ryan Reid and Thornton followed by an 18 ft jumper preceded Swann’s wide open three from the right corner to give FSU a 59-56 edge with 12:30 remaining.

Again BC took the lead back but not for long as the Seminoles exerted its will connecting on two straight three pointers. A turnover by the Eagles resulted in a Thornton slam dunk giving the ‘Noles its largest lead at 68-61 with 8:48 left.

FSU tried its best but could not hold off the Eagles slow chipping away at the lead.

Thornton’s runner in the lane at the 4:41 mark gave FSU a 74-69 margin.

But as they had done all game long, BC attacked the basket relentlessly getting acrobatic shots in the lane from Rice, offensive putbacks from Dudley and Marshall, or getting to the charity stripe.

An NBA three from Rice put BC up 79-78 with 1:18 to play. Thornton took the lead back with two points from the line. That was followed by Rice’s circus underhand flip as he dribbled past Douglas just below the free throw line.

Marshall made one of two free throws giving Douglas the opportunity to tie the game at 82 when he was fouled driving into the lane.

FSU slapped on a press that caused the Eagles some difficulty bringing in the ball. Even when they did get the ball in BC could not get the ball thru FSU’s press calling timeout before getting the ball over mid court.

That set the stage for Marshall’s heroics keeping the Seminoles winless on the road this season.

With the loss FSU drops to 14-6 and 2-4 in league play.

Hamilton said it was a “hurt and disappointed locker room” as the ‘Noles let an opportunity to get to .500 slip away after starting 0-3 in the ACC.

Hamilton was optimistic though commenting that FSU has “five games at home and five games on the road.”

The Seminoles will attempt to regroup taking on Wake Forest this Saturday at the Civic Center. Tip off is at 4:00 PM. The game will be aired by Raycom.

I checked good old ScalpEm.info this morning and saw that SectionB.com has posted a link to this Tallahassee Democrat article. Luke Tucker is going to remain in the bullpen this season as the Seminoles closer. Buster Posey, will see some limited closer action when Tucker is not available. Also, they’ve updated who is competing for the starting rotation, and freshman Casey Whitmer is on the short list. He’s been hobbled by an ankle injury, but in his first action was throwing in the low 90’s and had a very, very good breaking ball.

If he isn’t in the rotation to start the season, expect him to be there by mid-season if he continues to improve.