Keys to the Game: Wake Forest Basketball vs Florida State

The Deacs will need to execute in the post and on the glass

Wake Forest returns to the Joel on Wednesday night to take on the 5-11 Florida State Seminoles. After a 1-9 start to the year, the Noles have won four of their last six and are coming off an 11-point victory over Georgia Tech. Here are a few keys to the game that could make all the difference for Wake Forest.

Control the tempo

Florida State is 5-3 when they score over 70 points, and 0-9 when held to 69 or below. I’ve said it before, but Wake Forest’s best traits on defense are forcing long possessions, rotating well and playing with active hands. Tyree Appleby, Damari Monsanto and Cameron Hildreth are all averaging at least one steal per contest. The Deacs don’t have an excess of dominant individual defenders, but they make up for it with discipline and effort. This has helped them eke out victories on days when their offense doesn’t have its best stuff, and retaining their defensive identity will be crucial in this one. 

The Seminoles love to get out in transition, especially guards Matthew Cleveland (14.4 ppg) and Jalen Warley (5.4 ppg, 3.7 apg). They’ve shown they can score at a high clip when playing at a fast pace — the Noles are averaging just shy of 12 fast break points per game and scored eight in their recent win over the Yellow Jackets.

Dominate the post

Against Notre Dame, the Noles’ tallest starter was the 6-10 freshman forward Cam Corhen. With the Deacs trotting out 6-10 Andrew Carr and 7-1 Matthew Marsh, Wake Forest will likely have an edge down low at least to start things off. Wake Forest struggled mightily on the boards against Louisville, giving up 15 offensive boards and a boatload of second chance points. This has certainly been a point of emphasis for Forbes’ group in practice this week, and I’d look for them to prioritize locking things down on the glass Wednesday night.

That said, Wake will also have to deal with the Noles’ backup center, 7-4 Naheem McLeod. McLeod only plays about 16 minutes per game and doesn’t score at a high level, but he’s a dominant rim protector and chips in 1.6 blocks per contest. On the boards, McLeod can be dangerous in creating extra possessions for Florida State. His matchups against Wake’s bigs will be one to watch. However, Wake Forest also has an experience advantage in the post, as junior Andrew Carr will be the oldest post player for either team. 

Make things difficult for Baba Miller

The wild card for this game is FSU’s prized freshman, Spanish forward Baba Miller, who will be making his collegiate debut after serving a 16-game suspension for a violation of NCAA rules. There’s really no telling how much Florida State plans to use Miller — it’s possible that he starts or is eased into game action. But considering how Leonard Hamilton hasn’t had much depth at his disposal because of the injuries this season, it’s possible that Miller is thrown right into big minutes. His return will certainly create a buzz throughout the team and raise the group’s energy. The 6-11 Miller is still being projected as an NBA lottery pick, so he could prove to be quite a challenging matchup for Wake.Wake Forest’s bigs will certainly be tested Wednesday night. Stay tuned for a full workup on Miller’s situation and play later on.

Tipoff for the matchup between Wake Forest and Florida State is set for 9 p.m. Wednesday night on ACC Network.

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