The last undefeated team in ACC play will look to stay that way on Wednesday night as Notre Dame heads to Tallahassee to take on a top-10 Florida State team. The Fighting Irish are a perfect 5-0 in conference after holding off a good Virginia Tech in Blacksburg over the weekend. After a 4-0 start, FSU took its first ACC loss on Saturday, falling at North Carolina, 96-83.
Wednesday’s contest will be the first of two match-ups between Notre Dame and Florida State this season. The Seminoles will head to South Bend on Feb. 11. Since Notre Dame joined the ACC for the 2013-14 season, the home team has won every match-up in the series. FSU defeated Notre Dame in the Donald L. Tucker Center last season 77-56 behind 21 points from Dwayne Bacon.
The Match-Up
Who: No. 15 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (16-2, 5-0 ACC) at No. 10 Florida State Seminoles (16-2, 4-1 ACC)
When: Wednesday, Jan. 18 at 7 p.m. EST (Raycom Sports Network)
Where: Donald L. Tucker Civic Center in Tallahassee, Florida
Key Players
For Notre Dame: With Zach Auguste gone, Bonzie Colson, an undersized junior forward, has more than filled the void. Colson leads the Irish, averaging nearly 16 points and 11 rebounds. Sharpshooter Steve Vasturia is scoring 15 points per contest while stroking it at better than a 44 percent clip from deep. Guard Matt Farrell and forward V.J. Beachem are each averaging about 14 points per contest. Farrell’s 5.4 assists per game average ranks third in the ACC.
For Florida State: Dwayne Bacon is scoring nearly 18 points per contest to lead FSU while freshman forward Jonathan Isaac, who averages 12.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game, is coming off his first ACC double-double. Xavier Rathan-Mayes is getting nearly 11 points per game to go along with a team-high 4.7 assists.
Things to Watch For
Dwayne Bacon: Florida State’s leading scorer, sophomore Dwayne Bacon has scored in double-figures in every game this season. Against Notre Dame last season, Bacon scored 21 points on an efficient 7-for-11 shooting. Big-time scorers have had nice games against the Fighting Irish this season. Jamel Artis and Michael Young of Pittsburgh each put up 25 points. Louisville’s Donovan Mitchell also put up 20 points against the Fighting Irish this season. Notre Dame however, happened to win both of those games.
Rebounding: Florida State was shellacked on the glass its last time out against North Carolina, losing the rebounding battle by a healthy 56-34 margin. As good as Bonzie Colson, the ACC’s leading rebounder, has been this season, Notre Dame as a whole has struggled. Notre Dame ranks just 12th in the conference in rebounding and rebounding margin. In conference games, the Fighting Irish rank just 13th. FSU has one of the nation’s biggest teams, headlined by 7-4 sophomore Christ Koumadje and 7-1 senior Michael Ojo.
3-point shooting: With 174 makes, Notre Dame has seen more 3-pointers go down this season than any other team in the ACC. The Fighting Irish also rank second in the conference, shooting nearly 40 percent from deep. Both Steve Vasturia and Matt Farrell are deadly from downtown, but FSU has done a pretty good job defending the arc this season. In its two losses however, opponents combined to shoot 19-for-39 from deep. In Notre Dame’s two losses, the Irish went just 12-for-36 or 33 percent from beyond the 3-point arc. FSU had a decent day from deep against Notre Dame last season, shooting 11-for-24.
Atmosphere: Florida State midweek home games have often become notorious for their lack of attendance, but the crowd was alive in last week’s 88-72 win over Duke. Another sellout is expected for Wednesday’s game against Notre Dame and that could be a difference-maker against a Fighting Irish squad that has wins at Pittsburgh, Miami and Virginia Tech. FSU is 12-0 at home so far this season.
Number to Pay Attention To
3-5: That’s Notre Dame’s record on the road against AP-ranked ACC opponents since joining the conference. Considering the depth of the ACC, that’s nothing to sneeze at. FSU’s record at home against ranked ACC opponents over that same span is 4-4.
Mike Ferguson is the editor of The Daily Nole. Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeWFerguson
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