CHARLOTTE, N.C. - As it was in the other two games between these teams this season, Florida State's Jason Rich was the top scorer (with 23 points) but it wasn't enough to help the Seminoles against the nation's No. 1 team. North Carolina got big games from Tyler Hansbrough (22 points) and Wayne Ellington (19) and didn't have much of a problem getting itself a 82-67 win.

The Tar Heels did a great job of taking care of the basketball in the second half, and without any mistakes to take advantage of, the Seminoles simply couldn't keep up with UNC's talent.

Up next is Virginia Tech against Miami in the 4/5 game.

Posted by Evan Markfield at 02:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - As it was in the other two games between these teams this season, Florida State's Jason Rich was the top scorer (with 23 points) but it wasn't enough to help the Seminoles against the nation's No. 1 team. North Carolina got big games from Tyler Hansbrough (22 points) and Wayne Ellington (19) and didn't have much of a problem getting itself a 82-70 win.

The Tar Heels did a great job of taking care of the basketball in the second half, and without any mistakes to take advantage of, the Seminoles simply couldn't keep up with UNC's talent.

Up next is Virginia Tech against Miami in the 4/5 game.

Posted by Evan Markfield at 02:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - It's starting to look like Carolina is wearing down Florida State. The Seminoles were so focused on getting Tyler Hansbrough to miss a minute ago that nobody boxed out shooting guard Wayne Ellington, who got the tip-in. That basket put UNC up by 12, though FSU hasn't yet thrown in the towel -- every time Carolina scores, the Noles seem to answer and put the lead back under double digits.

Posted by Evan Markfield at 01:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - That's not booing you here at Bobcats Arena. It's the many Carolina fans joining in on a chorus of "Q" -- in honor of senior point guard Quentin Thomas, who just dropped in a left-handed finger roll to put the Tar Heels up by 10, 48-38, with 13 minutes to go.

Posted by Evan Markfield at 01:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - North Carolina didn't get a field goal in the second half until Tyler Hansbrough got himself an and-one call at the 16:08 mark (a call that could have gone either way, honestly). But FSU isn't lighting it up either, and the Heels have a 41-32 edge at the moment. I'm still predicting that things get chippy inside at some point. Hansbrough and Ryan Reid are two large men intent on throwing their bodies into one another forcefully, and a the officials are letting a lot of it go.

Posted by Evan Markfield at 01:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Roy Williams took his jacket off (translation: "I'm dadgum angry!") and had quite a long discussion with the officials in the last TV timeout but appears to have calmed down now. He is still rocking it Phil Collins style (i.e. No Jacket Required) and the Tar Heels have a 35-28 lead at halftime. Jason Rich, who seems to always play well against UNC, leads all scorers with 11 points, but Wayne Ellington and Tyler Hansbrough have eight apiece for Carolina.

Posted by Evan Markfield at 12:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Marcus Ginyard isn't known as much of a shooter from outside, but when he does let one go, it often finds the mark. Mainly that's because he is extremely selective with his three balls, hitting 42 percent for the year. He just nailed one that broke a 20-20 tie that seemed to be lasting forever.

Posted by Evan Markfield at 12:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - This game is probably a lot closer than most of the blue-clad folks in the building would like right now. Florida State was up by as many as six points before Carolina came back to take a slim lead. It's 18-16 right now with 11:32 remaining in the first half. And it is pretty physical as well. The refs are blowing the whistle plenty, but they're also letting lots of stuff go. If the game stays this close, it would not be a surprise to see tempers flare at some point.

Posted by Evan Markfield at 12:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Florida State has an early 7-6 lead, and UNC coach Roy Williams has plenty of complaints aimed at the officials. Williams is mad that Tyler Hansbrough is getting fouled under the basket and no calls are being made because Hansbrough still scores. While he definitely had some legit gripes, you'd think he would be used to it by now, since this has happened to Psycho T for, oh, about the last three years.

Posted by Evan Markfield at 12:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - We're minutes from tipoff here at Bobcats Arena, which is notably partisan this afternoon because top-seeded North Carolina is facing No. 9-seed Florida State. The Heels swept the Seminoles in the regular season and the crowd here is obviously hoping for more of the same. Except for one thing: Ty Lawson and injuries. Lawson sprained his ankle in the first FSU matchup (keeping him out several weeks) and got a hip pointer in the rematch at Chapel Hill.

Posted by Evan Markfield at 12:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Apparently, fancy new Bobcats Arena hasn't experienced Internet traffic like this before. There was a mild panic in the press room and along press row as the hundreds of writers here lost internet connection for a while. Even the stat computer went down, preventing anyone from getting a post-game box score after No. 9-seed Florida State topped No. 8-seed Wake Forest 70-60 to open the day's action at the ACC Tournament.

Continue reading "Florida State hangs on to advance" »

Posted by Evan Markfield at 02:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - There was a brief wireless outage here on press row, and in that non-posting time, Florida State took control of the game, maintaining a big enough lead that the clock finally started to run out on Wake Forest, which was forced to start fouling. Now it's desperation 3-point time for Wake, but that's not going to get it done down 10 with less than a minute to go.

Posted by Evan Markfield at 02:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Every time Wake makes a run, Florida State has an answer. But the Seminoles can't seem to shake the Demon Deacons. After Wake pulled within one point (again) earlier, FSU rattled off six points in a row to get themselves some breathing room again. So what happened after that? Of course, the Demon Deacons answered back to pull within three, 41-38, which is where it stands now. Barring some big run that turns this into a double-digit game one way or the other, you get the feeling this back-and-forth stuff is going to continue right to the horn.

Posted by Evan Markfield at 01:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Wake Forest is looking a lot better on defense at the start of the second half. The Demon Deacons cut Florida State's lead to one, though the Seminoles now hold a 33-30 lead with 15:43 to go in the game. The Wake Forest fans here are certainly louder and more abundant than the FSU contingent, and their enthusiasm is growing with each Seminole turnover or miss. The Deacs look like they're starting to feed off that energy.

Posted by Evan Markfield at 01:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - After being down by double figures with a little more than a minute to go in the half, Wake Forest put together a mini-run, capped by a Gary Clark 3-pointer, to pull within five, 31-26 at halftime.

The Demon Deacons are only shooting 35.5 percent, so they're lucky to be as close as they are. Florida State is showing off a balanced attack and taking care of the basketball but could stand to do a better job on the glass in the second half.

Posted by Evan Markfield at 12:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Florida State is getting hot from outside. Back-to-back 3-pointers have pushed the Seminoles' lead to 28-15 and forced Dino Gaudio to take a timeout to settle down his Demon Deacons.

Posted by Evan Markfield at 12:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - One Wake Forest fan a few rows behind the media seating just expressed her opinion that one of the officials on the floor is "the worst ref ever!" Not only is that probably a bit of hyperbole, but the Demon Deacons also have bigger problems than which calls they are or aren't getting.

Florida State looks fairly smooth and efficient on offense, while Wake can't by a bucket. After an illegal screen call -- and some more yelling from the lady behind us -- some of the Deacs were bickering at each other on the way down the court. Not a good sign. That said, they're only down six to the Noles, 21-15 with 8 1/2 minutes to go in the first half.

Posted by Evan Markfield at 12:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - There hasn't been too much in the way of pretty basketball here yet, but that's often par for the course on day one of the ACC Tournament when there is little crowd energy to feed off of. Today is no exception, with sparse attendance (wait until tomorrow when Duke and Carolina play, and things pick up considerably) and largely disinterested spectators, save for the pockets of Wake and FSU fans.

Right now Florida State leads 15-11, but neither team is shooting well. Wake Forest beat the Seminoles twice this season already, so we'll see if FSU has figured the Deacs out at all. The Noles are showing a bit more offensive efficiency at this point than Wake, so that could bode well for them.

Posted by Evan Markfield at 12:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - We're about five minutes away from the start of the 55th ACC Tournament. Wake Forest takes on Florida State to kick off a day of four games, and I'll be here for every one of them. Stay tuned...

Posted by Evan Markfield at 11:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

LEBANON, Ind. - Sorry this is late. They shut down the internet at Conseco Fieldhouse before I could write an update.

You may have noticed that my dateline has changed. Icy roads forced me to abandon my trip home, so I am now in Lebanon, Ind., which is about halfway between Indianapolis and Lafayette. It's also the home town of Purdue's all-time leading scorer, Rick Mount. It's a good thing Purdue played the first game or they wouldn't have made it home tonight.

But, I digress.

First, a correction on the stats reported earlier. Florida State had 19 turnovers, not 23. Still, it was about a half a dozen too many.

Florida St shot 46.6 percent from the floor (27-for-58), but only 5-for-17 from three-point range. Take that out, and that's 54 percent from two-point distance. FSU killed Butler on the boards, 35-25, including 12 offensive rebounds, but the Bulldogs outscored the Seminoles from the free throw line, 20-9.

A.J. Graves' seven three-pointers is a Wooden Tradition record.

After the game, Butler coach Brad Stevens talked a lot about how his team dealt with losing to Wright State last time out and how they dealt with final exams. Stevens, who doesn't look a day older than his players, said that he expected a good effort from his team because "when final exams are over, there is such a relief, that the players come out with a high energy level."

He also talked about how it was nice to play near home for a change, although he referred incorrectly to this game as a neutral site game. Stevens said that his team traveled a total of 43 hours for its first 10 games, "so it was nice to travel 15 minutes each way, or 20 in the snow."

Florida State coach Leonard Hamilton was effusive in his praise for Graves. He said that the 'Noles game plan for defending Graves was to go over the top of the screens and not let him get good looks, but that Graves was too "clever" for them. Hamilton said that Graves "is the best I've ever seen at using ball screens to get open."

Posted by Jerry Palm at 11:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- Butler was able to force a few more turnovers and hit its free throws to put away Florida State, 79-68. A.J. Graves had a huge game with 25 points on 7-of-16 shooting from three-point range. Jason Rich had 17 and Ralph Mims had 16 to lead the Seminoles.

The key stat of the game was Florida State's 23 turnovers. The 'Noles shot reasonably well at 48 percent, but that's giving up a lot of opportunities.

I'll be back with more shortly, assuming I can get back downstairs through the mob.

Posted by Jerry Palm at 08:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- This has been a pretty ugly game, especially from the Florida State perspective, but the 'Noles are still hanging around. It's 63-56 at the last timeout. The teams have combined for 28 turnovers, and FSU has 17 of them, but when the teams hold on to the ball, they do reasonably well. Butler is still shooting 50 percent and FSU is at 46 percent. If the 'Noles can manage to get through the rest of this game without turning the ball over, they have a chance.

I spent a little time chatting with David Booth, a scout for the Memphis Grizzlies and former DePaul star. He's sitting next to me on the press row. As I said in an earlier post, he's not seeing much in terms of NBA prospects here, with the possible exception of Graves, who just buried another three.

With 2:20 left, it's Butler by four.

Posted by Jerry Palm at 07:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- Right after the last timeout, Florida State went on a 7-0 run to cut Butler's lead to five. Jason Rich got another dunk, followed by Isaiah Swann's first points of the game and then a Toney Douglas three. Both teams have gotten a little sloppy with their passing. Florida State stole a bad pass and was rushing down on the break, but Douglas threw it right back to Butler.

At the 10:17 mark, it's Butler 51-46.

Tonight's attendance was 17,170. The building seats 18,100. It's about half full now.

I'm sitting next to a scout for the Memphis Grizzlies. I don't think he's seeing a lot to report back.

Posted by Jerry Palm at 07:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- Florida State's offense has gone stagnant and Butler is starting to pull away again. The Bulldogs now lead by 12 at the first TV timeout. FSU only has four points this half so far, both on Solomon Alabi layups.

Posted by Jerry Palm at 07:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- Florida State is going to have to make some defensive adjustments at halftime if they hope to have any chance of getting back into this game. Butler is breaking them down too easily and getting too many good looks. As much as anything, that's why the Bulldogs are up 38-30 at the half and explains their 50 percent shooting percentage.

The odd thing about Butler's shooting percentage is that they are only 6-for-17 from three-point range, but 8-for-11 from inside the arc. A.J. Graves leads the Bulldogs with 14 points.

Florida State isn't shooting badly (48 percent) but isn't as productive on the long ball (1-for-6). Jason Rich has 11 points to pace FSU, and Butler is having trouble containing him right now.

The crowd has thinned out a bit with many of the Louisville fans in particular heading home. Butler has a good contingent here, but I have only seen a handful of FSU fans. We were told in the post-game press conference that despite the bad weather, the attendance will be a near-sellout.

Posted by Jerry Palm at 07:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- Florida State is on a 6-0 run thanks to a Ralph Mims put back and two Jason Rich dunks. FSU is picking up its pressure on defense and got a couple of turnovers to help key this little run. When Butler has had time to set up in the half court, they have been able to break the Seminoles down and get good shots, but the Bulldogs have been sloppy with the ball at times.

Butler's lead is now down to 27-23 at the four-minute timeout.

Posted by Jerry Palm at 06:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- Butler leads at the eight-minute timeout by a score of 25-17 thanks to 55 percent shooting from the floor. Graves and Mike Green are both 3-for-5 from the floor, with Graves hitting all threes and Green all twos.

Nobody is really standing out for Florida State so far. Toney Douglas, Ralph Mims and Jason Rich have four points each. The 'Noles leading scorer, Isaiah Swan, has yet to score in part because he's sitting with two fouls.

Posted by Jerry Palm at 06:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- Sorry for the delay. The post-game press conferences took awhile. In particular, there's a guy who covers Purdue that likes to hear himself talk, which sort of drags things on.

Butler is up, 22-14, on Florida State at the second timeout thanks in part to two A.J. Graves three-pointers.

Butler is 18th ranked in the AP poll but coming off a loss to Wright State in conference play. Butler is without the services of Pete Campbell again today. Campbell is the team's second leading scorer at 14.1 points per game.

Florida State is team schizophrenia so far this year. They have losses to Big East bottom-feeder USF and Horizon league bottom-feeder Cleveland State. But the Seminoles have also beaten Minnesota, Florida and UAB and have won six straight overall. The 'Noles have not played in the state of Indiana since 1998. They played Butler at Hinkle that season.

Posted by Jerry Palm at 06:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)