Preview: FSU Hosts Duke in Top 10 Showdown

Contests between top 10 teams aren’t all that uncommon in Tallahassee. Usually however, they happened to be played on grass and in front of about 80,000 people. For the first time in 24 years, fans will get to see one played by men on hardwood Tuesday night as Florida State welcomes in Duke.

The Seminoles are off to their best 16-game start ever and are 3-0 in ACC play for the first time. On Tuesday, they’ll be in front of a sold out crowd. Duke is coming off consecutive home victories over Georgia Tech and Boston College and will look to beat FSU for a fifth straight time. FSU handled Virginia Tech its last time out, 93-78. Under Leonard Hamilton, the Seminoles have beat a top-10 Duke team six times, but not since the 2012 ACC Tournament semifinals.

The Match-Up

Who: No. 7 Duke Blue Devils (14-2, 2-1 ACC) at No. 9 Florida State Seminoles (15-1, 3-0 ACC)
When: Tuesday, Jan. 10 at 8 p.m. EST (ACC Network)
Where: Donald L. Tucker Civic Center in Tallahassee, Florida

Key Players

For Duke: Guard Luke Kennard has had an unbelievable season for Duke, averaging more than 20 points per game while shooting 53 percent from the field and 46 percent from beyond the 3-point arc. Grayson Allen is a very athletic player regarded by many before the season as Duke’s best. Allen is averaging 15.6 points and a team-high 4.3 assists. The freshman duo of Jayson Tatum and Frank Jackson are combining to average more than 19 points. Tatum also averages seven rebounds. The Blue Devils will be without Amile Jefferson, a 6-9 senior forward who averages 13.6 points and 10.1 rebounds, on Tuesday to a foot injury.

For Florida State: Dwayne Bacon leads the Seminoles in scoring for a second straight year with 18.1 points per game. FSU forward Jonathan Isaac is averaging 12.2 points and a team-high 7.4 rebounds and might be the best freshman on the floor Tuesday night. Xavier Rathan-Mayes is scoring 10.4 points and averaging a team-high 4.7 assists per game while Terance Mann, a 6-6 slasher, does just about everything for the Seminoles.

What to Watch For

Freshmen: For two teams who have several contributing freshmen, this may be the biggest game they’ve played thus far. Duke plays in big games more regularly than FSU, but Jayson Tatum was absent when the Blue Devils lost to Kansas earlier in the season. For Frank Jackson, the Seminoles will be the highest ranked team he has faced on the road. For Florida State, freshman Jonathan Isaac looks to build on an efficient 13-point effort against Virginia Tech. Guards Trent Forrest and C.J. Walker are also combining to average about 13 points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals off the FSU bench.

Terance Mann: Terance Mann, a sophomore for Florida State, is coming off a career-day against Virginia Tech with 22 points and nine rebounds. Mann has done just about everything for the Seminoles this season, ranking in the top 4 on the team in scoring, rebounding, assists and steals. Mann is an athletic slasher who can handle the ball, defend and create havoc on the floor. Mann was also 2-for-2 from downtown his last time out. Against a talented Duke team, Mann could be a real X-factor on Tuesday.

Rebounding: With Amile Jefferson out with a foot injury on Tuesday, the Seminoles could have a significant advantage on the glass. With players like Christ Koumadje, a 7-4 sophomore and 7-1 senior Michael Ojo on the inside, FSU will have the edge in size. Duke has five players who stand at least 6-10, but all are very young and none were close to as productive on the glass as Jefferson. Duke ranks third in the ACC in rebounding margin, but without Jefferson, who ranks second in the conference in rebounding, things won’t come as easily.

Grayson Allen: After serving a 1-game suspension for habitual tripping of opposing players, Grayson Allen has been efficient for the Blue Devils, averaging 13.5 points, four rebounds and nine assists in ACC play. In last season’s 80-65 win in Durham, Allen led Duke with 18 points, but was caught tripping FSU’s Xavier Rathan-Mayes late in the game on replay. Allen had a close call running through a screen in Saturday’s 93-82 win over Boston College and having that on his mind could limit his aggressiveness against the Seminoles. Allen is arguably Duke’s most athletic and most versatile player and slowing him down will be key for FSU.

Number to Pay Attention To

14.75: That’s been Duke’s average margin of victory over Florida State during its 4-game winning streak over the Seminoles. The only contest decided by fewer than 15 points was a 73-70 Duke win two years ago in Tallahassee. Each of FSU’s six victories over Duke under Hamilton have come by five points or less. In games against the Blue Devils decided by five points or less under Hamilton, FSU is 6-4.

Mike Ferguson is the editor of The Daily Nole. Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeWFerguson