Game Preview: Virginia Cavaliers vs. Florida State Seminoles Men's Basketball

Game Details

Who: Virginia Cavaliers (17-11, 11-7 ACC) vs. Florida State Seminoles (14-13, 7-10 ACC)

When: Saturday, February 26th at 4pm

Where: John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville, Virginia

How to watch: ESPN2

All-time series: Florida State leads 27-26

Last meeting: Florida State defeated Virginia 81-60 on February 15th, 2021 in Tallahassee.

By the Numbers

Virginia	By the Numbers	Florida State
63.4	Points Per Game
60.3	Opponent PPG
45.3%	Field Goal %
42.7%	Opponent FG %
32.4%	Three-Point FG %
34.6%	Opponent 3PT FG %
80th	NET Ranking	107th
73rd	KenPom Ranking	111th
62nd	Strength of Record	87th
6-4	Last 10 Games	2-8

Opponent Breakdown: Florida State

Notable results: Syracuse (63-60 L), NC State (83-81 W), Wake Forest (76-54 L), Louisville (79-70 W), Miami (65-64), Duke (79-78 W), Miami (61-60 W), Virginia Tech (85-72), Clemson (75-69 L), Pittsburgh (56-51 L), Duke (88-70 L)

On January 22nd, Florida State defeated Miami 61-60 to complete a season-sweep over the Hurricanes and move into a first-place tie at the top of the ACC standings with a record of 13-5 overall and 6-2 in ACC play. Since then, the Seminoles have been decimated by injuries and have lost eight of the last nine games.

FSU lost double-digit scorers Caleb Mills and Malik Osborne as well as Anthony Polite, who averages nearly 10 points per game and plays almost 30 minutes per contest. The Seminoles have also been without Naheem McLeod and RayQuan Evans, who returned for Florida State's game against Boston College, but scored just three points. For a Seminole program that has relied on depth as its calling card under Leonard Hamilton, the slew of injuries has derailed what was a promising season.

Still, Florida State should not be overlooked based on the team's lackluster record. Like the Cavaliers, the Seminoles went 3-1 in four games against Miami and Duke (with two wins over Miami and a split against Duke). Although the team has struggled with injuries, it has led to other players on the roster having increased roles, which can only be a good thing for Florida State's depth heading into the ACC Tournament. The Seminoles have not played since Monday and UVA should expect that Leonard Hamilton will have his team ready to give Virginia a fight on Saturday in Charlottesville.

What's at Stake

While Florida State's NCAA Tournament chances have been shattered by the team's slide in the second half of the season, but the Seminoles still have plenty to play for as they try to build momentum heading into the ACC Tournament. Florida State is currently the No. 9 seed in the ACC Tournament and is the final team that has a first-round bye, but the Seminoles hold just a one-game lead over Louisville and Boston College.

Virginia has a very slim chance of earning an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament if the Cavaliers can win their final two games of the regular season and then win two or three games in the ACC Tournament. Otherwise, UVA's only hope of making March Madness will be to win the ACC Tournament and secure the league's automatic bid. For more on Virginia's NCAA Tournament resume, see: Virginia Basketball: How Can the Cavaliers Make the NCAA Tournament?

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Game Details

By the Numbers

Opponent Breakdown: Florida State

What's at Stake

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