Fresh off a thrilling overtime victory against No. 11 Clemson, Florida State will remain home to take on the worst team in the ACC on Sunday evening. Pittsburgh comes in with just eight wins on the season with none of them coming in conference play.
Pittsburgh didn’t have a great season last year, but still managed to top the Seminoles in Pittsburgh, 80-66. Since the Panthers joined the ACC, they hold a 3-2 edge over FSU in the series. Jamel Artis hit a timely 3-pointer to help pull out a 74-72 victory in Pittsburgh’s last trip to Tallahassee two years ago.
The Match-Up
Who: Pittsburgh Panthers (8-19, 0-14 ACC) at Florida State Seminoles (18-8, 7-7 ACC)
When: Sunday, Feb. 18 at 6 p.m. EST (ESPNU)
Where: Donald L. Tucker Center in Tallahassee, Florida
Key Players
For Pittsburgh: With Ryan Luther out, Jared Wilson-Frame, a junior guard, has been forced to carry the Pittsburgh offense. Wilson-Frame averages nearly 13 points per game, but hasn’t been real efficient from the floor. Freshman guard Marcus Carr averages 10.5 points per game and a team-high 4.3 assists per contest. Freshman slasher Shamiel Stevenson scores nearly nine per game and grabs 4.5 rebounds while shooting 51 percent from the field.
For Florida State: Terance Mann scores 14.4 points and grabs six rebounds to lead FSU in both categories. Mann is also shooting 58 percent from the field. Phil Cofer and Braian Angola, both seniors, each average better than 13 points per game. Cofer is grabbing 5.4 rebounds per game and shooting better than 50 percent from the floor. Angola averages 1.5 steals per game to lead the team and ranks second at 3.1 assists per game.
What to Watch For
Trent Forrest: It wasn’t the usual suspects who carried Florida State down the stretch in Wednesday’s 81-79 overtime win over Clemson. Trent Forrest, a sophomore guard, scored 16 points on 7-for-11 shooting, including the basket that forced overtime and the bucket in overtime that put the Seminoles ahead for good. Forrest has scored in double-figures just five times this season and just 10 times in his career. When he does, the Seminoles are 8-2.
FSU seniors: Scholarship seniors Braian Angola and Phil Cofer have been absolutely vital to FSU’s success this season, but the two seem to be heading in different directions. Over his last seven games, Cofer is averaging nearly 16 points per game while shooting better than 55 percent from the field. That includes 17 points on 8-for-11 shooting against Clemson on Wednesday. Angola has been struggling of late, averaging just seven points over his last five games while shooting just 22 percent from the field and 4-for-23 from beyond the 3-point arc. Against struggling Pittsburgh, Sunday could provide an opportunity for Angola to get going.
Rebounding: With Ryan Luther out, Pittsburgh has had no answer for what to do on the glass. The Panthers have the worst rebounding margin in the ACC at -5.5 per game. The Seminoles rank fourth in the conference at +4.1 points per game. FSU plays a pair of 7-footers in Christ Koumadje and Ike Obiagu. With Luther out, Terrell Brown is the only player for the Panthers taller than 6-foot-6 who sees more than seven minutes per game.
Marcus Carr: It hasn’t been a season to remember for Pittsburgh, but guard Marcus Carr, a freshman from Canada, has been one of the few bright spots and particularly of late. In losses to North Carolina and Miami, Carr has averaged 18 points while shooting 14-for-23 from the field and 5-for-10 from deep. Good guards like Matt Farrell of Notre Dame, Clemson’s Marcquise Reed and Virginia’s Devon Hall have all recently had solid games against the Seminoles.
Number to Pay Attention To
80: That’s the scoring total that FSU has reached in each of its seven ACC wins. When the Seminoles hit that threshold in conference, they’re 7-1. When they fail to get there, they’re 0-6. Pitt is allowing 76.1 points per game in conference.
Mike Ferguson is the editor of The Daily Nole. Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeWFerguson
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