Dec. 18, 2011
Box Score
LOS ANGELES - Much has been made about Florida State's length since it led the Noles to the Sweet 16 a year ago. And it has been more of the same in 2011-12 as that length has helped them to the top-25 of all major defensive categories nationally heading into Sunday.
LMU found out how tough it is as Florida State out-rebounded LMU 49-32, to claim a 77-61 win at the Tucker Center in Tallahassee, Fla., Sunday afternoon. The Lions fall to 6-5 on the season, dropping their first road game of the season. FSU improves to 8-3, 8-0 at home.
"I have said this a lot this year, but defense and rebounding wins games," said Head Coach Max Good. "Leonard Hamilton (head coach of Florida State) understands that well. And he knows how to find the height to make that happen. They really beat us on the boards all game, and we knew going in it was going to be a challenge."
The Seminoles outscored the Lions 25-4 in second chance points and forced the Lions into 17 turnovers. FSU, who had 16 turnovers of their own, held a 18-9 edge in points off turnovers.
"We knew going in that their length would cause some problems. At times, their best shot comes after a missed shot," said Good. "Talking about it and then doing something about it are two different things. They are a pretty good team."
Anthony Ireland led all scorers with 19 points, scoring 15 in the second half. C.J. Blackwell had 14 points and seven rebounds and LaRon Armstead added 11. Bernard James led Florida State with a double-double, going for 17 points and 12 rebounds.
"James is a tough one to handle," said Good. "He works so hard and so often their bigs would beat us down the floor."
FSU held the Lions to 35.7 percent from the field, the second lowest on the season. FSU finished the game hitting 43.3 percent. LMU would hit 7-for-11 from the three-point line to finish 9-for-25 for the game (34.6 percent), a good 12 percent better than would FSU had allowed coming into the game, which ranked top-10 nationally.
"I was really proud of how we continued to fight," said Good. "We came out with a little stage fright early, which was odd for us given some of the big games we played already this season. In the second half we were much better."
The Lions continue their final non-conference road swing of the season when they head to Morgan State on Wednesday, Dec. 21 at 4 p.m. (PST).
GAME NOTES: Both teams are known for their defense, and both offenses started with a turnover... LMU took a 5-2 lead on Ayodeji Egbeyemi's three-pointer, but FSU went on a 10-0 run to take a 12-5 lead thanks to four offensive rebounds and a 7-2 rebounding edge early... Anthony Ireland ended it with another three-pointer... Both teams struggled early, LMU going 2-for-11 (20 percent) before Ireland's three-pointer and FSU 5-for-15 (33 percent)... LMU went on a 10-4 run, cutting it to 16-15 with 9:01 to play. FSU would close out the half on a 22-8 run, leading 38-23 at the break.
