National Basketball Association
Florida State 87, Winthrop 76
When: 2:00 PM ET, Tuesday, January 1, 2019
Where: Donald L. Tucker Center, Tallahassee, Florida
Officials:
# Jeb Hartness, # Tony Henderson, # Bert Smith
Attendance:
7237
By Field Level Media
The ninth-ranked Florida State men's basketball team closed out nonconference play and rang in the New Year on Tuesday with an 87-76 win over Winthrop in Tallahassee, Fla.
The Seminoles (12-1) built a 52-36 halftime lead then held off an Eagles comeback attempt to win their seventh straight game. Florida State's lone loss was on Nov. 25 against defending national champion Villanova.
Seminoles guard Terance Mann was one of four Florida State players who scored in double digits, leading the way with 22 points on 10-of-11 shooting along with seven rebounds and two assists.
Last season's leading scorer, forward Phil Cofer, added 14 points in just his third game of the season because of injury. Fellow forward Mfiondu Kabengele and guard David Nichols each added 10 points in the win.
Winthrop, which trailed by as many as 18 points early in the second half, made a furious rally and twice pulled within two points. But the Eagles, who had won four straight games coming into Tuesday, could never catch the Seminoles.
Winthrop's comeback was led by guard Adam Pickett, who finished with a team-high 19 points. The Eagles also got solid games from forward Charles Falden (15 points, seven rebounds), forward Kyle Zunic (13 points) and guard Michael Anumba (10 points).
The game was closer than the final score suggested. Winthrop shot 49 percent to Florida State's 47 percent, and the Seminoles narrowly outrebounded the Eagles 37-36.
It was the second meeting between the two teams. In 2016, the Seminoles beat the Eagles 100-86 in the Preseason NIT.
The Seminoles, who have won 32 consecutive nonconference games at home, improved to 12-1 for just the third time in school history. The difference Tuesday was 3-point shooting: Florida State shot 36.4 percent (8 of 22), while Winthrop shot 26.1 percent (6 of 23).
Florida State's last time playing on New Year's Day came during the 1957-58 season. Tuesday was only the third time in school history the Seminoles have played on Jan. 1.
Florida State opens ACC play Saturday at No. 4 Virginia. Winthrop moves on to Big South Conference action with a Saturday game at UNC-Asheville.
--Field Level Media
Top Game Performances
| Winthrop |
|
Florida State |
|
Adam Pickett 19 |
Scoring |
Terance Mann 22 |
|
Kyle Zunic 3 |
Assists |
Phil Cofer 3 |
|
Charles Falden 7 |
Rebounds |
Christ Koumadje 8 |
|
Kyle Zunic 4 |
Free Throws Made |
Mfiondu Kabengele 4 |
|
Josh Ferguson 1 |
Steals |
Anthony Polite 3 |
|
Adam Pickett 2 |
Blocks |
Mfiondu Kabengele 4 |
Team Stats Summary
| Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
| Winthrop
|
76 |
49.2 |
6-23 |
12-19 |
7 |
29 |
5 |
1 |
21 |
| Florida State
|
87 |
46.9 |
8-22 |
19-29 |
11 |
31 |
8 |
13 |
11 |
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