RECAP: FSU Basketball Suffers Embarrassing Loss To ACC Bottomfeeder Louisville
No sugarcoating it, this was an embarrassing defensive performance from Florida State in a game they couldn't lose.
Florida State simply couldn't get out of their own way in the first half. 11 turnovers, 15 fouls, and seven different 'Noles had two fouls at halftime. Ty-Laur Johnson and Brandon Huntley-Hatfield were doing whatever they wanted. I was surprised by FSU's defensive strategy and that they weren't shrinking the floor more. Louisville isn't a great 3-point shooting team, so I figured Florida State would squeeze the driving lanes more, force turnovers, and make it congested on the interior. Instead, Louisville shot 26 shots inside the arc because Johnson was getting downhill at will.
The second half started strong, with Jalen Warley doing his part to cut the lead down to 4 points just over five minutes into the half, but Louisville instantly responded with a 9-0 run to extend the lead to a game-high 13 points. Once again, it was Johnson getting downhill and creating for others that was making a difference.
It was just a horrible defensive performance from Florida State, outside of one or two guys. On multiple occasions, Ty-Laur Johnson took the ball coast-to-coast with little to no defensive resistance, either getting a basket for himself or for someone else. FSU couldn't stop the ball at any point. In no way, shape, or form, should Louisville finish 31/57 from the floor and with 13 assists given their point guard situation.
After a final two minutes that lasted 20 real-life minutes, it would end in a 101-92 win for Louisville, just their 7th win of the season and their first ACC home win in almost a full calendar year. Giving up 100 points to Louisville is embarrassing and inexcusable. It's Louisville's first time scoring 100+ points since November 2018 against Southern University and it's Florida State's first time allowing 100+ since December 2017 against Duke in Cameron Indoor.
There are times when I really don't like college basketball. Tonight was one of them. This game saw 57 total fouls, and 80 total free throws, and took two hours and 38 minutes, all without going to overtime. Even if some of those free throws were Florida State trying to stay in the game at the end, that's an awful product to watch.
The offense wasn't the main issue for Florida State, even if they could've been better from 3, and 18 turnovers is a rough showing. Even still, they were 33/64 from the floor and shot 28 layups. Free throws weren't great with 12 misses, but that's not the reason FSU lost this game. They were getting to the basket frequently, they just couldn't get it done on the other end of the floor and couldn't keep control of the ball.
If the team was five Jalen Warleys, it would've been a much different game. He was the lone bright spot for most of the night, especially on the offensive end. There were times when it felt like Warley was the only one who wanted to win this game. Unfortunately, he fouled out with 3 minutes to go, tying a career-high with 23 points. he also added 6 rebounds and 3 assists.
Primo Spears had 17 points, but seven of those came in the final two minutes when Louisville was up by around 10. His three turnovers didn't help matters either.
Jamir Watkins, Cameron Corhen, and Darin Green Jr all had 14 points each. Watkins was again inefficient, going just 3/12 from the floor, but was 8/10 from the stripe. Louisville was being very physical with him and he wasn't always rewarded with a whistle. Corhen was solid offensively, but not great defensively.
It's not often I'll single a player out after a bad performance, but Baba Miller played arguably his worst game this season in this one: 4 points (2/5 from the floor), 5 turnovers, 5 fouls, and allowed 14 points, according to StatBroadcast. He finished with 3 blocks, but he would've had 7 or 8 if his energy was higher. Miller often looked disinterested in stopping the ball or challenging shots at the rim. I like Baba Miller as a player and a big reason why the team was successful in January was because he was finding his stride. He's better than this and has to play like it.
Louisville had three players finish with career-highs in points: Brandon Huntley-Hatfield (29 points), Ty-Laur Johnson (27 points and 11 assists are both career-highs), and Curtis Williams (19). Mike James added another 18 after coming into the game struggling. Johnson was getting downhill whenever he wanted, generating wide open looks for him and his teammates. When FSU can't keep the ball in front of them, it's going to be a long night, which this was. They didn't even shoot the 3 well at just 3/11, so to allow 100 points like this was hard to watch from an FSU perspective.
Florida State is on the road again on Tuesday, playing Boston College in Massachusetts at 7 PM.
READ MORE: Potential Star Wide Receiver Returning To FSU Football In 2024
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