Florida State men’s basketball returns home after a grinding win over Tulane last Sunday night. What awaits it at the Tucker Center should be a fairly easy match-up. The Canisius Golden Griffins of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference travel to Tallahassee from New York, in hopes of pulling off the upset (or just escaping the snow).
The Golden Griffins have not made the NCAA Tournament since 1996 but did achieve co-champions status in the MAAC last season. They also have a promising group of underclassmen who should be able to push them into NIT/NCAA Tournament status in another year or so. Florida State is still the overwhelming favorite and will look to tune-up a couple aspects of their team for an easy victory.
The Match-Up
Who: No. 14 Florida State Seminoles (2-0) vs. Canisius Golden Griffins (1-1)
What: Advocare Invitational — Campus Game
When: Monday, Nov. 19 at 7 p.m. EST (ACC Network)
Where: Donald L. Tucker Center in Tallahassee, Florida
Key Players
For Canisius
Takal Molson, G (So.): 24.5 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 2.5 APG
Isaiah Reese, G (Jr.): 10.5 PPG, 7.0 RPG, 3.0 APG
Scott Hitchon, F (So.): 9.0 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 1.0 APG
For Florida State
Terance Mann, G (Sr.): 15.0 PPG, 9.5 RPG, 1.0 SPG
P.J. Savoy, G (Sr.): 17.0 PPG, 2.0 RPG, .615 3P%
Christ Koumadje, C (Sr.): 8.5 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 1.0 BPG
What to Watch For
Rebounding Battle: Canisius has more size than you would expect for a smaller school. It has three forwards who are at least 6-foot-7 and can go up against basically anybody on Florida State’s roster. Both teams average about the same number of rebounds per game. The Seminoles still have the advantage, but last week’s game at Tulane was surprisingly close on the boards.
Outside Shooting: P.J. Savoy is on an incredible hot streak from the 3-point line to start the season. It has allowed him to take over the leading scorer spot on the team and has powered the offense past both of its opponents. Compare this to Canisius, whose top three scorers are a combined 9-for-32 after two games. If those trends continue, this will be a sleeper by halftime.
Number to Pay Attention To
59: The last time Florida State lost to a non Power-5 team in the regular season was 59 games ago. That was to Temple on Nov. 24, 2016.
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