Florida State’s 8-game losing streak in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge is now a 1-game winning streak. The Seminoles defeated Minnesota 75-67 at the Donald L. Tucker Civic Center on Monday night in a game that wasn’t as close as the final score indicated.
FSU (6-1) trailed 33-31 at halftime, but used a big second half to run its lead to as many as 19 before lackadaisical play down the stretch allowed Minnesota (6-1) to get as close as seven in the waning seconds.
It didn’t take long for FSU to take charge of the game once the second half got underway. With the contest tied at 35, Florida State center Michael Ojo’s 3-point play less than two minutes into the second half gave the Seminoles a lead they would not relinquish. Including the 3-point play, the Seminoles outscored the Golden Gophers 35-16 over less than a 13-minute span.
Leading scorer Dwayne Bacon again paced FSU with 18 points. Freshman forward Jonathan Isaac recorded his second career double-double with 14 points and a career-high 13 rebounds to go along with two blocks and two steals. Ojo added 12 points and five rebounds in the win.
On a night where 53 fouls were called and 76 free throws were attempted, the Seminoles held the Golden Gophers to just 32 percent shooting from the field and 7-for-21 from deep. Leading scorer Amir Coffey, a freshman guard for Minnesota, was held to below double figures for the first time in his career with seven points on 3-for-10 shooting.
Minnesota, playing in its first road game, was led by Nate Mason and Akeem Springs, who each scored 11 points. Coffey and four others finished with seven.
The victory for FSU is the first in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge since beating Minnesota in November 2007. FSU will return to action against George Washington in the BB&T Classic in Washington D.C. on Sunday. The Golden Gophers will return home to face Vanderbilt on Saturday night.
Mike Ferguson is the editor of The Daily Nole. Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeWFerguson
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