Florida @ Florida St
Florida @ Florida St
First my thought then I will paste a write up from one of the the Sports Network writers.
At first I was leaning towards Florida but that was when the line came out at +11, now it is very obvious that the public is ALL over FSU as the line has gone to -8. This has made me really spend some time on this game and I have come up with the following. The public may be over reacting to Florida's two losses. The general feeling may be that they are over rated and are giving up a big number AT their biggest in state rival. All this could be true, but Florida has dominated FSU over the last 4 years winning 4 in a row by an average of 21 pts per game. FSU has not beaten Florida since 1997. FSU has a new coach (Leonard Hamilton) and he is a good one, but new coaches mean new systems and though they have looked impressive so far HAVE THEY REALLY PLAYED ANYONE? I don't think so. Iowa is not a good team this year and they beat them at home scoring 28 points on 21......21 TURNOVERS. Florida on the other hand is a very good team coming off an embarrasing loss at West Virginia where Walsh struggled for the first time this year. Billy Donavan and kids will be looking to get things back together and what better way to do it then to go into FSU and whip their tails. Both teams are shooting well from the floor....Florida 50%, FSU 47%.....3pt range is about equal Florida 38%, FSU 32%. Florida has 4 players averaging double digits with Nelson and Hamilton close and FSU has two. Both teams have 9 players averaging over 10 minutes so far, but their is no comparison in the competition that they have played against with Florida having the large edge. Florida starts 3 Forwards at 6-6, 6-9, and 6-10 vs FSU 3 guard line-up with Wilson being 6-6 playing G-F and the other front line being 6-7, 6-7. Not a huge deal just a point. The guy who wrote the following article likes FSU to win outright for what its worth. I will be betting 1 unit against the public and with the recent domination that Florida has had over FSU.
Good Luck
YAZ
HERE IS THE ARTICLE:
The eighth-ranked Florida Gators finish off a costly four-game road trip tonight, when they stop off in Tallahassee for a showdown with the Florida State Seminoles at the Leon County Civic Center. Following three straight wins at home, the Gators ran into some trouble in New York City in the semifinals of the Preseason NIT, falling to Stanford (69-65). Billy Donovan's team did rebound in the consolation game, knocking off then second- ranked Kansas (83-73), but lost again on the road on Tuesday, falling to West Virginia in Charleston, 68-66. The Seminoles are off to their first 3-0 start in five years and first-year coach Leonard Hamilton is the primary reason why.
FSU has routed all three teams it has played this year, beating up on Savannah State (79-46) and Mercer (83-47), before knocking off Iowa on Monday (80-67) as part of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. The Gators hold a 17-game advantage in the overall series with their in-state rivals (35-18) and have won four straight, including last year's 68-47 whipping in Gainesville.
What exactly happened to the Gators in Charleston? A team that is averaging almost 80 points per game, while relinquishing just 62.5, went cold from the floor over the final five minutes, scoring just one basket, and allowed the Mountaineers to steal a victory. Fab-freshman Matt Walsh was held to just six points in the contest, and only got off three shots in the game. On the year, it has been Walsh that has received most of the headlines, as the youngster has burst on the national scene, averaging a team-high 18.3 ppg. Walsh has been unconscious from the floor in the first six games overall, connecting on 61 percent of his shots, including half (14-of-28) of his three-point attempts. Three others are averaging double figures for Billy Donovan this season, with senior forward Matt Bonner (13.7 ppg) and sophomore center David Lee (11.0 ppg) getting it done in the frontcourt, while freshman guard Anthony Roberson (12.0 ppg) has provided a backcourt spark. Senior guard Brett Nelson (7.7 ppg) has only played in half the games this season, including one start, but should be able to get back to work full-time tonight.
Under Leonard Hamilton, the Seminoles have shown a new life, including some serious offensive firepower. Yes, the competition has not been that great, but the numbers are impressive just the same. FSU is netting 80.7 points per game this season, on 47 percent shooting. The team boasts just two players that average double figures, but key contributions come from everywhere, as seven players are averaging 7.0 points or more. Junior forward Michael Joiner has accepted the scoring mantle this season and currently leads the team at 15.3 ppg. The 6-7 Joiner has been unstoppable when shooting, as he has drilled 20- of-25 shots this season (80 percent), including 5-of-6 three-pointers (83.3 percent). Junior guard Tim Pickett has not had as much success from the floor (.341), but still adds a respectable 13.7 ppg. Anthony Richardson, Todd Galloway and Andrew Wilson all add to the overall depth, chipping in with 9.3, 8.7 and 8.0 ppg, respectively. In the big win over Iowa, Joiner led four Seminoles in double figures, with 19 points. The freshman Galloway poured in 14 points off the bench, while Pickett added 11 and Nate Johnson finished with 10.
