Behind sophomore guard Dwayne Bacon, the Seminoles were able to kick off their season with an 88-67 win over Charleston Southern. Bacon registered 23 points and nine rebounds in the season opener for the ‘Noles.
FSU (1-0) held a slim 38-32 lead at the break, but jumped out to a 14-2 run early in the second half, extending the lead to 52-34 and allowing the Seminoles to coast to a solid first win against a Charleston Southern (0-1) team that showed good ability on both sides of the ball.
While Bacon led the way, Florida State is fortunate to have scorers all over the court, and able to come off the bench and contribute right away. 11 ‘Noles were able to put points on the board against Southern while three Seminoles added at least 10 points.
Freshman Jonathan Isaac had 10 points and three rebounds, Isaac is looked at as one of the best freshman in College basketball. In 23 minutes, his numbers do not jump out at you, but he looked comfortable on the floor and with so much scoring depth, Isaac does not have to go out and record a double digit points every night.
Junior Xavier Rathan-Mayes also contributed 12 points and seven assist, five of which came in the second half alone. XRM as he is known in Tallahassee was able to secure five rebounds in 29 minutes. XRM has the ability to shoot, he has shown this over his three year period in Tallahassee, but he is really able to open the court with his passing ability. With two ‘7 footers on the team, he can dish it into the paint and let a big guy play off the glass, or he can dish it around the perimeter and let one of the deep threats convert from behind the arc.
Florida State outscored Charleston Southern 50-35 in the second half. FSU was able to beat Southern in transition which led to a lot of quick buckets for the ‘Noles. FSU had 18 fast break points to Southerns’ four.
The turnover margin was just separated by five cough-ups, but Southern struggled to really take advantage of some keys turnovers. FSU added 17 points off turnovers while Charleston Southern could only manage seven points on 10 FSU turnovers.
The Seminoles will remain in Tallahassee as they turn their attention to Iona on Tuesday night. Charleston Southern will head home for its season opener also on Tuesday against Columbia International.
Iona won the MAAC championship in 2015 and was No. 13 Seed in the tournament. The game will tip off at 7 P.M. in the Tucker Center.
