This one is going to hurt for a while. Florida State basketball fell to No. 1 seed Duke 80-79 Thursday night in the ACC Tournament semifinals at Spectrum Center in Charlotte. It was one of the most gut-wrenching losses you’ll ever see from a team that had absolutely no business being in this game. And yet, there they were. One point away. One moment away from one of the greatest upsets in program history.
I was fortunate enough to be in the building for the first two days of the tournament, and I can tell you this team looked like it belonged as much as any. Considering it’s only year one with a portal-built team on a slim NIL budget compared to the competition, this team under Luke Loucks has been downright impressive.
LаJae Jones and Robert McCray Shine
LаJae Jones led the offense Thursday night. The senior guard finished with 28 points on 8-of-15 shooting, went a perfect 8-for-8 from the free throw line, and hit four three-pointers that either kept FSU in the game or threatened to blow it open in the Noles’ favor. He was relentless.
Every time Duke pushed the lead to six, seven, eight points, Jones had an answer. His three at the 4:05 mark cut it to five, his three at 2:26 cut it to three, and his two free throws at the 1:28 mark made it a one-possession game with over a minute to play. Against the No. 1 team in the conference. As a massive underdog. It was a big-time performance on a big stage.
Robert McCray V poured in 25 points, 4 assists, and 2 steals. Chauncey Wiggins added 13, including the jumper with 37 seconds left that made it 80-79 and brought the arena to its feet. FSU shot 51.9% for the game and hit 11 threes.
The First Half Was a Battle
Duke jumped out to a 9-3 lead early, and it briefly looked like this might be a long night. But FSU clawed back, McCray going on a stretch of three straight baskets in the mid-15-minute range to pull the Noles within two. The game was tied nine times and saw 16 lead changes. Nine times tied. Sixteen lead changes. That is a battle between two heavyweights.
FSU actually closed the first half on a significant run, with Jones hitting back-to-back threes in the nine-minute range to tie it, then McCray hitting a pull-up jumper at the buzzer to give the Noles a 44-43 halftime lead.
The Second Half: Heartbreak in Slow Motion
FSU came out of the locker room and pushed the lead to eight in the early second half. It started to feel like FSU might pull away. Then Duke did what No. 1 seeds do. Isaiah Evans, who finished with 32 points on 11-of-20 shooting with seven threes, went on a personal run that flipped the game. Duke pushed the lead to nine with eight minutes left and appeared to be the ones pulling away. FSU’s biggest issue on the night was getting dominated on the boards, 46-25. That helped lead the Blue Devils to outscore the Noles 24-7 in second-chance points.
But FSU wouldn’t go down without a fight. Even though Duke went on a 19-2 run in the second half, the Noles chipped away, and with 37 seconds on the clock, made it a one-point game. FSU fouled, Duke made one of two, and McCray’s three-pointer at the buzzer was just off the mark. I don’t love attempting a low percentage shot like a three-pointer when you’re only down by one with time to drive to the basket (especially when McCray was 2-8 from three-point range on the night), but he got a clean look, and unfortunately, was just off target.
Final: Duke 80, Florida State 79.
The Bigger Picture: This Program Will Be a Contender under Loucks
Here’s what I want you to hold onto. FSU was picked to finish dead last in the ACC. They started 0-5 in conference play, and it was looking like they might not even make the cut for Charlotte. They entered this game as nearly a 20-point underdog against Duke in the semifinals. They led at halftime. They had a chance to win it in the final seconds. Two days ago, they handled Cal. This is not the FSU basketball program of recent seasons that was playing out the string in February. This team is competing. This team believes, and the excitement among the fan base is building.
The turnaround this year has been real, and the foundation being built here is something worth being genuinely excited about. The roster has some returning talent that saw significant minutes this season, and the way this group competed against the best team in the conference should serve as a massive confidence builder going into the offseason.
They will also add a host of talented freshmen if they sign the top 10 class that’s in the fold currently. It hurts today. It’s supposed to. That’s what caring looks like. At least we finally have a basketball team worth being emotionally invested in in Tallahassee again.
Stay tuned to your source for fan-focused FSU coverage here at Plant The Spear. Thanks for reading and Go Noles!