Preview: FSU Ends 6-Game Gauntlet vs. Louisville

Florida State will conclude a 6-game stretch against top 25 teams on Saturday as it plays host to No. 12 Louisville. So far, the Seminoles are 4-1 during that stretch with an 83-80 victory over Notre Dame on Wednesday coming most recent. The Cardinals destroyed Clemson on Thursday night, 92-60, but will be coming to Tallahassee on very short rest.

Since joining the ACC two years ago, Louisville has crushed FSU in both meetings. In its last trip to Tallahassee two years ago, Louisville won by an 81-59 margin. At home last season, the Cardinals beat up on the Seminoles again, 84-65. Louisville has won four straight overall after starting 0-2 in ACC play. FSU will be wearing throwback uniforms.

The Match-Up

Who: No. 12 Louisville Cardinals 16-3 (4-2 ACC) at No. 10 Florida State Seminoles (17-2, 5-1 ACC)
When: Saturday, Jan. 21 at 2 p.m. EST (ESPN)
Where: Donald L. Tucker Civic Center in Tallahassee, Florida

Key Players

For Louisville: Sophomore guard Donovan Mitchell is averaging nearly 14 points to lead Louisville to go along with five rebounds. Quentin Snider is averaging better than 12 points and a team-high four assists. Deng Adel is scoring nearly 11 points while Jaylen Johnson has been one of the more efficient Cardinals, averaging more than eight points and nearly seven rebounds while shooting over 60 percent from the field.

For Florida State: Dwayne Bacon averages 17.4 points per game to lead FSU while Jonathan Isaac is coming off back-to-back double-doubles. Isaac, who averages 13.1 points and nearly eight rebounds, finished with 23 points, 10 rebounds and seven blocks in his last game. Junior guard Xavier Rathan-Mayes averages nearly 11 points and a team-high 4.8 assists.

What to Watch For

Tempo: Much like Virginia, who FSU defeated earlier in the season, Louisville likes to play a physical half-court game. The Cardinals lead the ACC in field goal percentage defense at less than 38 percent and are giving up only 62 points per game. The Seminoles’ style of play is just the opposite as FSU is among the nation’s leading scoring teams and shooting an ACC-best 51 percent as a team.

Xavier Rathan-Mayes: Florida State guard Xavier Rathan-Mayes didn’t play last season against Louisville and his absence was noticeable as the Seminoles were crushed from the start. After scoring 23 points against Duke last week, Rathan-Mayes has been quiet in his last two games, averaging only seven points. Rathan-Mayes struggled in his only previous match-up with Louisville, scoring just 12 points two years ago on 5-for-16 shooting. Rathan-Mayes won’t only be responsible for getting FSU into its offense, but he’ll try to slow down Louisville’s Quentin Snider, who scored 20 points in last season’s win over FSU.

3-point shooting: Florida State defeated Notre Dame on Thursday despite allowing the Fighting Irish to shoot 15-for-21 from behind the 3-point line. The Seminoles shouldn’t have that problem on Saturday as Louisville is the worst 3-point shooting team in the ACC at just 34 percent. The Cardinals also make the second fewest 3s per game in the conference, ahead of only Georgia Tech. What Louisville does do better than any other team in the conference however, is defend the perimeter. While FSU defensively shouldn’t have a day like it had against Notre Dame, getting shots to fall from deep for guys like Dwayne Bacon, P.J. Savoy and Rathan-Mayes won’t be easy either.

Bigs: Florida State will be facing a very good front line for Louisville on Saturday in Johnson, Ray Spalding and Anas Mahmoud. For the most part, FSU has done a pretty good job this season against talented big men, but was exposed last week against North Carolina as the Seminoles were manhandled on the glass, 56-34. The Cardinals should provide a formidable challenge for the likes of FSU’s Michael Ojo, Christ Koumadje, Phil Cofer and Jarquez Smith. Louisville ranks third in the ACC in rebound margin and second in rebounds per game and blocked shots.

Number to Pay Attention To

21: That’s the total number of players for Saturday’s game that average at least 10 minutes. FSU has 12 such players while Louisville has nine. In what could be a tight, competitive game, finding fresh bodies down the stretch shouldn’t be a problem.

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