Florida State will look to run its winning streak to four on Wednesday night as it heads to Winston-Salem to take on struggling Wake Forest. FSU is fresh off a thrilling 103-94 overtime victory over Miami while the Demon Deacons have dropped seven straight games.
Florida State downed the Demon Deacons in Tallahassee last season, 88-72, in an ACC-opening contest that was close up until the final 10 minutes. The Seminoles won 91-71 in their last trip to Wake Forest two years ago and have won five straight overall in the series.
The Match-Up
Who: Florida State Seminoles (16-5, 5-4 ACC) at Wake Forest Demon Deacons (8-13, 1-8 ACC)
When: Wednesday, Jan. 31 at 8 p.m. EST (ACC Network)
Where: Lawrence Joel Coliseum in Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Key Players
For Florida State: Senior forward Phil Cofer is coming off a 21-point outing against Miami and hopes to keep up the scoring with his 12.9 points per game and 5.7 rebounds per game. Junior guard Terance Mann figures to once again lead the offensive and defensive effort with his 16 points per game and one steal per game. Christ Koumadje is the last name to watch, as the junior center has seen more action since returning from his injury. He currently contributes 8.6 points per game, five rebounds per game, and almost two blocks per game.
For Wake Forest: Junior guard Bryant Crawford averages a team-leading 15.8 points per game and 4.7 assists per game. The Demon Deacobs look to him to facilitate the offense and try to keep up with FSU. Doral Moore is a towering 7-foot-1 and 280-pound center who cleans up the boards to the tune of 10.5 points per game and 8.8 rebounds per game. Junior guard Keyshawn Woods should also play a role, as he averages almost 13 points per game.
What to Watch For
The centers of attention: Both Christ Koumadje (FSU) and Doral Moore (Wake Forest) are nightmares against undersized teams. Now that they’ll both be on the court at the same time, it will be interesting to see which one gains the upper hand. Moore is a powerful guy that will try to muscle his way into rebounds and points down low. Koumadje is more of a defensive anchor that focuses on disrupting shots any way he can. A combined 14 feet, five inches, and 513 pounds will go at it on Wednesday night in what figures to be an interesting match-up.
Derelict Demon Deacon defense: Results from the past couple of ACC games for Wake Forest have not been encouraging. Both Duke and Louisville dropped more than 80 points on the Demon Deacons, with the Cardinals almost reaching triple digits. This has become a recurring problem with Wake Forest as their defense continues to be substandard in the Danny Manning era. Meanwhile, Florida State averages over 85 points per game — good for 13th overall. If it’s the same old script for the Wake Forest defense, it simply won’t be able to keep up with the Seminoles as the game goes on. Where does the improvement come from?
C.J. Walk all over the defense: Florida State point guard C.J. Walker has had ups and downs throughout the year. Lately however, it’s been mostly ups. Walker is averaging over 12 points and four assists per game over the past four games. He’s become a valuable member of the offense with the way he attacks the basket, and he might be the second best finisher on the team behind Terance Mann. Wake Forest’s guards are a weaker part of the team (Crawford excluded) so Walker should have another opportunity to continue his recent play.
Number to Pay Attention To
74.8:Â That’s how many points Wake Forest gives up on average. It ranks 246th in the nation and indicates just how vulnerable the Demon Deacons are when the ball is not in their hands. Florida State struggles with inconsistency on offense, but Wednesday’s contest should not be one of those cases.
Clint Eiland contributed to the article
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