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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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...
