Florida State (4-1, 0-0 ACC) welcomed Cal State Bakersfield (3-3, 0-0 Big West) to the Tuck for the first time in program history on Tuesday for a pre-Thanksgiving game. The Seminoles, prolific from the three
so far this season, failed to score a single point from behind the arc in the first half — ultimately, though, FSU would pull away in the second half and win, 89-59, to move to 5-1 on the season.
First Half
A slow start by FSU saw all of CSUB’s first eight points come from Ronald Jessamy, someone who hadn’t scored more than 17 points in his career. The defense seemed to come to life after the first media timeout, suffocating multiple players. The Seminoles would go on a 15-2 run over almost four and a half minutes of game time. Florida State went 0/15 on three-pointers in the first half, forced to rely entirely on two-pointers, after-foul shots and a fast-as-hell defense to lead 35-24 at half.
The turnover game was squarely won by the Seminoles, but CSUB took the offensive rebounding battle. CSUB scored on 32.4% of its possessions, while turning it over on 35.1%.
Second Half
After the poor shooting performance in the first, of course the first bucket of the second half was a Florida State three. Six turnovers by CSUB in the span of five minutes led to a 15-2 run by the Seminoles as they neared 11 minutes remaining. They finally woke up in the three-pointer department, hitting four of their first seven threes.
The team started to pull away throughout the second half, and it didn’t get close afterwards. FSU went on a 23-4 run in seven minutes. It looks good for the NET ratings, after all. Somerville entered the 2nd half with no points, and he put up 14 when all was said and done. Dunks and three-pointers fell repeatedly, and the team started to look like they were playing a competent brand of basketball after all. Luke’s halftime adjustments definitely played a role here.
Player of the Game
Alex Steen felt like the bright spot of the team tonight. He was absolutely everywhere, getting all the rebounds, it felt like. Well earned.
What’s Next?
Florida State travels to Tampa for a match against Texas A&M on November 28th. Fans can catch that game on ESPN2. Then it’s a home game against Georgia, followed by No. 3 Houston at the Houston Hoops Showdown and UMass at the AutoNation Orange Bowl Classic.
