No. 23 Florida State will look for its eighth straight win as it wraps up non-conference play with a Monday matinee against Samford. The Seminoles are coming off a win over Manhattan and will take on the Bulldogs before having more than a week off before the start of ACC play.
Samford also comes in red-hot, having won four straight. Out of the Southern Conference, the Bulldogs have a win at Saint Louis and could be a dangerous team for FSU to face on short rest. Samford is coming off a hard-fought win at South Alabama. FSU won the last meeting between the schools in December 2008 by a 61-45 score.
The Match-Up
Who: Samford Bulldogs (7-3) at No. 23 Florida State Seminoles (11-1)
When: Monday, Dec. 19 at 2 p.m. EST (ACC Network Extra)
Where: Donald L. Tucker Civic Center in Tallahassee, FL
Key Players
For Samford: Sophomore forward Wyatt Walker is a walking double-double for the Bulldogs, averaging nearly 14 points and 12 rebounds per game while shooting 56 percent from the field. Walker has eight double-doubles for the season. Guard Demetrius Dyson is the team’s top scorer, averaging 14.5 points to go along with more than five rebounds per game while shooting 54 percent from 3-point land. Alex Thompson and Christen Cunningham are each averaging in double-figures scoring as well.
For Florida State: Dwayne Bacon is averaging 17.2 points per game to lead FSU. Freshman Jonathan Isaac is also tallying nearly 14 points per contest and a team-high 7.3 rebounds per game. P.J. Savoy, the team’s biggest threat from deep and facilitator Xavier Rathan-Mayes are averaging just under 10 points. Rathan-Mayes is averaging a team-high 4.8 assists per game.
What to Watch For
Jonathan Isaac: Freshman phenom Jonathan Isaac has been held to just nine points in each of his last two games after scoring at least 10 in each of his first seven. Isaac however has attempted just seven total shots over the last two games. Against a pretty good Samford team, it’ll be interesting to see if Isaac is more aggressive in looking for his own shot.
The battle inside: As has been the case most of the non-conference, FSU will be facing a smaller team with a roster that doesn’t have a player taller than 6-9. Walker is very talented, but is giving up several inches to the likes of Michael Ojo, a 7-1 graduate for FSU, and Christ Koumadje, a sophomore who stands at 7-4. FSU has dominated its last three opponents on the glass with an average edge in rebounding margin of 11.
Wyatt Walker: The Samford big man will need a big game for the Bulldogs to have a chance on Monday. With eight double-doubles in 10 games, Walker is a guy who can challenge FSU’s size inside. If Walker can draw some extra help inside, it could open things up for a Samford team that is shooting better than 39 percent from deep.
Trent Forrest: Jonathan Isaac might be the most high-profile freshman on the team, but Trent Forrest has slowly seen his role increased. Forrest has scored in double-figures in two of his last three games and has done just about everything for FSU this season. Forrest is averaging less than eight points per game, but is among the Seminoles’ leaders in rebounds, assists and tops the squad in steals.
Number to Pay Attention To
8: Florida State will be going for its eighth straight win on Monday, which would be the longest winning streak for the Seminoles in more than a decade. The last time FSU won eight straight was the 2003-04 season when it started the year 10-0.
Mike Ferguson is the editor of The Daily Nole. Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeWFerguson
You must be logged in to post a comment Login