Right now, unranked Florida State is the best team in the ACC . . . in basketball.
Although the Seminoles won the regular season last year and were awarded the ACC tournament trophy when the coronavirus stopped the event by TKO, this is really the first time you can say that about them on the hardwood.
FSU dominated the ACC it joined in 1992 in football, winning the gridiron title 15 times under Bobby Bowden and Jimbo Fisher. And while the basketball team has been talented in most years, it has never been in the same league with Duke and North Carolina, which have ruled the court over the last 40 years.
Among the many things that are different about the 2020-21 school year, the Seminoles are the best in basketball and among the worst in football (3-6). And they showed it in Tallahassee Saturday with an 82-75 win over Carolina, which continues to improve and, in many ways, played its best game in falling to 8-5.
Consider these stats:
- The Tar Heels made their most 3-pointers of the season, 10, and have now drained 40 in their last five games. In shooting just under 42 percent from the arc, Carolina has now made at least 40 percent in three of its last four games, losing such a game for the first time in more than two years.
- The longball firepower came from guards Kerwin Walton (4), Caleb Love (3), RJ Davis (2) and Anthony Harris (1), who saw his first action in almost a year after recovering from major knee surgery. That quartet combined for 46 points, which was 61 percent of the scoring by the team, which could not dominate inside as usual against the equally tall and deep ‘Noles, who outrebounded the Heels (30-29) and outscored them in the paint while playing without their injured 6-9 five-star freshman Scottie Barnes.
- Carolina had more points than FSU overall from the floor, with a six-point advantage in 3-pointers, made more assists and fewer turnovers, but lost mainly because the Seminoles hit 26 of 27 from the foul line, after they had made 11 of 11 (and shot 71 percent from the floor) while blowing out NC State by 32 in their last win. UNC made a respectable 11 of 14 free throws, but still gave up a 15-point margin from the line. As Roy Williams said afterward, “We have to learn how to defend without fouling.”
- The Tar Heels rallied from a double-digit, first-half deficit to take the lead for sixth time this season against the best opponent. The only game they did not fully catch up was against State in a three-point loss they hope to avenge next Saturday after playing Wake Forest Wednesday night, both games in Chapel Hill. If they continue improving and winning, they have a chance to get off the NCAA tournament bubble where they currently reside.
Meanwhile, Florida State (3-1 in the ACC) will have to prove its prowess on the court against a COVID-interrupted schedule that still has ranked opponents Louisville, Clemson, Virginia and Virginia Tech, plus a make-up game against Duke and a visit to Chapel Hill on February 27.
Maybe the Tar Heels will keep improving enough by then to win the rematch. And maybe not, since they got within three points in the last three minutes but did not score another field goal.
“We want to find the things we can fix easily,” said Williams, whose Heels fell to 3-3 in the ACC. “I think we are playing better and I’m frustrated right now. But you have to remember Florida State has four red-shirt juniors and four seniors.”
His team has two seniors, one junior, one sophomore and seven freshmen. The Tar Heels are not the best team n the ACC but finishing in the top half of the league would be a quantum leap over last season. Day’Ron Sharpe may be the only freshman to turn pro, but he is still raw in fundamentals.
So it may be a sign of the times, but we can say assuredly that Carolina’s best days are still ahead.
Photo via Mike Olivella/ACC Media.
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Day Ron is not the type of man that will leave to early
It seems since he announced to Roy..that he has been laser focused on making himself better .
Also he committed his sophomore year to his dream school and coach
When men like that committ for the long haul ..
Mark my words …
He won’t leave until he has made a permanent mark in UNC lore by winning a Natty or coming real close
He is the type of man that committed to his brother on the team as much as he does rhe coach and program
Can you imagine this group after their freshman seasons and having an off season to work on themselves
They come here thinking they are ready …but you don’t know what you don’t know …
All 6 of these guys are terrific players with tremendous potential and upside …Caleb Love will be a Superstar point guard ….Coby had Seventh to lean on …and well Cole just played Coles way and didn’t try to become better .
But you can see Caleb improves every game …i think the hardest thing these freshmen have to do is take what they do in practice and apply it in competition
Can’t forget there is another team trying to undo and prevent you from succeeding…
All these guys will be back and be great
Rhe guy with tremendous potential is Kessler …Roy is doing him exactly the way he should be built up …
We still haven’t seen him shoot and that’s what he was known for ..stretching the floor …its like a secret weapon to deploy once he adds strength and can play extended minutes without fouling at this level