FSU Basketball Recap: Seminoles Split Games At NIT Tip-Off Tourney

Player of the Tournament

Dwayne Bacon should be the player of the tournament, but the fact that he sat for most of the latter part of the second half against Illinois means that he’s going to have to share the award. Making his first appearance in this feature, CJ Walker will be FSU’s Co-Player of the Tournament.

Against Temple, Bacon was the only Seminole who had the ability to score once things got tight. Probably shouldn’t come as a surprise, since he’s Florida State’s most talented player who has experience in big games. Notice the time and score, and the difficulty of the shots Bacon was making to keep the Seminoles in it.

CJ Walker, on the other hand, was playing in just his sixth game of his college career. And despite that, Coach Hamilton still trusted him enough to play 25 minutes, in a game that FSU almost had to have. Illinois appears to be headed for a rough year, and could have been considered a bad loss on Florida State’s resume.

Walker was dynamic. He made both of his three-point attempts, as well as a couple of layups in heavy traffic. Beyond that, his ability to put pressure on the Illini guards, and make them earn every step they took, was a major factor in Florida State pulling away. The diminutive point guard is going to be a lot of fun to watch, both this year and in the future.

“Ryan Reid Unsung Hero” Award

If you’re not sure what this “award” is, read about it by clicking here.

For his four steal performance against Illinois, Trent Forrest repeats as “Ryan Reid Unsung Hero” award-recipient. Two of those steals came in consecutive possessions, and were key in the Florida State run that put the game away. Forrest also led the team in minutes played, and there’s a reason for that. Coach Ham loves his defensive versatility, and the effort he plays with.

Forrest isn’t just a defensive specialist though. He can score too, there are simply better offensive options on the team. Against Temple, with the game on the line late, Forrest grabbed a rebound and went the full length of the court to score a layup, all with a defender on his hip. His layup cut the lead to one, and gave FSU a chance to win it at the buzzer. Like Walker, Forrest is going to be fun to watch grow as a player. Believe it or not, the future is bright in Tallahassee.

Highlight of the Tournament

Since I already gave you guys a couple different highlights, I’m gonna keep this section short. Here is a glimpse of what Florida State’s defense used to do:

If the Seminoles can channel that sort of energy more often, to go along with their offensive capabilities, they’re going to be tough to beat. (That is, unless poor-shooting teams like Temple catch fire from three and steal games. Yes, I’m still bitter).

Next Up

Florida State has a quick turnaround; they face the Minnesota Golden Gophers on Monday night as part of the ACC-Big 10 Challenge. The game is at the Donald L. Tucker Center. Tip-off is at 7 PM, and you can catch it on ESPNU.