FSU men's basketball holds off Notre Dame, wins third straight

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Chauncey Wiggins scored 22 points to lead Florida State men's basketball past Notre Dame, 82-79, on Saturday, Feb. 7 at the Joyce Center in Notre Dame, Indiana.

The Seminoles (11-12) have now won three straight and are approaching .500 in ACC play, sitting at 4-6 in the conference.

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Wiggins, whose birthday was Saturday, scored over 20 for the fourth time this season and was in double figures for the 16th time. This is the third consecutive game that Wiggins has led the Seminoles in scoring, and he came up with a clutch three late against Notre Dame to help FSU extend its winning run.

FSU led by as many as 18 points against the Irish, but cold shooting and more late free-throw woes, missing four in the final minutes, gave Notre Dame a chance to tie the game with the final shot of the game. A missed three-pointer from Braeden Shrewsberry, however, allowed the Seminoles to escape with the win.

Wiggins scored 13 first-half points and helped the Seminoles lead by as many as 18 in the first half. The Seminoles shot 39% from the field in the first half and 41% from three. A pair of cold spells allowed Notre Dame to claw back into the game, cutting the lead to nine points at halftime.

Alongside Wiggins, AJ Swinton was a standout in the first half, scoring eight points, including a pair of three-pointers and an emphatic reverse dunk off a smart pass from Alex Steen.

FSU's defense allowed them to build the commanding lead. The Seminoles forced eight first-half turnovers and scored 12 points off them, and they added three blocks to cap off a strong opening half.

The momentum Notre Dame built at the end of the first half carried into the second, as the Irish stayed within two possessions of the lead for a majority of the half. However, FSU seemed to have an answer for every Notre Dame run, coming up with key turnovers and clutch scores whenever the Irish had a chance to take the lead, or even the brief 15 seconds the Irish led.

Notre Dame went on a 6-0 run in less than a minute to tie the game at 72 with just under three minutes left. After a pair of free throws from Robert McCray V, he fouled Notre Dame's Logan Imes on a three, which he made to earn the and-1.

It was McCray's fifth foul, and he left the game with 2:07 left. It was Notre Dame's first and only lead of the game. Wiggins hit a deep three from the elbow after the Irish took the lead, putting the Seminoles ahead 77-75, crucially as the final 90 seconds of the game became a free-throw shooting contest.

A combined three misses, one from Lajae Jones and two crucial misses by Notre Dame's Carson Towt, a 43.6% free thrower shooter, kept it a two-point game. Jones would rebound Towt's second miss, and he was fouled. He then made both free throws to give FSU a 79-75 lead.

Notre Dame scored one more basket to make it 79-77, but with 20 seconds left, FSU intentionally fouled Towt to send him back to the line, where he missed both free throws again, and FSU got the rebound. Martin Somerville made one of his two free throws after being fouled.

After a pair of Irish free throws, Alier Maluk, who came in for Steen after he fouled out, nailed two clutch free throws with his first and only touches of the night to ice the game for FSU.

Wiggins was one of four Seminoles in double figures, with McCray scoring 15 points, Jones adding 11, and Steen recording 10 points and nine rebounds.

What's next for FSU men's basketball? A home contest vs. No. 18 Virginia

  • When: Tuesday, Feb. 10 / 7 p.m.
  • Where: Donald L. Tucker Center / Tallahassee, Florida
  • Watch: ESPNU

Liam Rooney covers Florida State athletics for the Tallahassee Democrat. Contact him via email at [email protected] or on Twitter @__liamrooney.

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Florida State Seminoles basketball win third in a row, beats Notre Dame

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