Offense Struggles as Florida State Falls to SMU 68-57, Loses Fourth Straight
The offense never stood a chance in this game. From the very beginning of the game, Florida State just couldn't get clean looks most of the time, and when they did, they couldn't make them. And it's tough to win games when you can't make shots.
One of the broadcasters said in the first half "They're going to have to re-paint the rims at halftime," and that was an accurate assessment of the first half. The teams were a combined 17/61 from the floor and 3/25 from 3 as SMU used a late half 9-3 run to take a 25-18 lead into the break.
The second half started with a 14-5 run for the Mustangs, and before you knew it, the game was out of hand. SMU would have as big of a lead as 17 points when it was 43-26 with 12 minutes left. Florida State tried to chip in at that lead, but could never break it back into the single digits. It was down to 11 or 12 points multiple times, but they could never break the 10-point barrier until less than a minute left in the game. There was even one play where Florida State had a fastbreak down 11, De'Ante Green missed the layup on one end, and SMU's Samuell Williamson finished a lob on the other end to put the nail in the coffin.
SMU would go on to win 68-57.
SMU Beats Florida State 68-57
My biggest concern heading into the season was I didn't think Florida State had enough scorers, and that has reared its ugly head these last couple of games. There isn't anyone that can reliably get a bucket for this team right now. Since the start of the Georgia game, Florida State is 91/251 (36.25%). That will not get it done.
FSU lost this badly despite shooting 15/19 from the free throw line to SMU's 9/21. It's hard to do that. I said Florida State would have to shoot above 40% on 2s to have a chance, and they shot 38.5%. They forced 15 SMU turnovers, but turned them into just 14 points. Turnovers haven't been an issue for the offense; in fact their four lowest turnover rates on the year, including this game's 12.9% which is their lowest of the season, have all been losses. It's hard to fathom just how putrid the offense has been.
Primo Spears made his debut, and it did not go swimmingly. Despite getting to 10 points, it took 14 shot attempts and 5 free throws to get there. You could tell he was just trying to make an impact, forcing some bad shots here and there.
Darin Green Jr also had 10 points, as life was made difficult for him offensively. Teams have started to figure him out by being physical with him before the catch, and he's not athletic enough or good enough of a ball handler to take advantage of it.
Chuck Harris really led the way for SMU with 24 points, including a few tough 3-point shots. Zharic Phelps and Tyreek Smith each had 10 points as well. Florida State honestly did what they were supposed to do defensively. They just could not make shots on the other end.
I could say more, but I won't. Florida State will play UNF at home on Tuesday at 8 pm.
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