FSU Basketball 2019 ACC Tournament Quarterfinal Preview: vs. Va. Tech

Here’s a preview of FSU basketball and their upcoming game scheduled for play during the 2018-19 season.

It has been quite a regular season for the FSU basketball team – a year that has seen the Seminoles set program records for the most wins in a regular season as well as most wins in ACC play since joining the conference in the 1991-92 season while finishing the year ranked in the top 15 nationally.

Now, none of that matters from this point on as head coach Leonard Hamilton’s team turns their attention toward the postseason – as the ACC tournament started on Tuesday but the Noles get some time off and don’t tip their first game until Thursday, getting a double bye for the second time in the five seasons of the current format.

Can the Seminoles, who have won 12 of their last 13 games, continue being one of the hottest teams in the country and set the stage for a deep tournament run? It will all start with a tournament opener against a team they had some recent success against.

More from FSU Basketball

Here’s our recap of last week’s game action and a preview of what’s ahead for the Seminoles.

Last Week Recap

The action started on Tuesday last week when the Noles hosted Virginia Tech in a battle of top 15 teams that was for the coveted double bye in this week’s tournament. The Hokies jumped out big early and took a 14 point lead into the half before the Seminoles staged an epic comeback to take the lead – only to have Va. Tech tie it up and send it to overtime.

In the extra frame, FSU basketball scored seven of their 12 points from the line and coasted to a 73-64 win to clinch that double bye behind 17 points from Mfiondu Kabengele and 14 from Terance Mann, one of five seniors to play their final game inside the Tucker Center.

Saturday, the Noles looked like they mailed it in early against a lowly Wake Forest team as they were behind by double digits early on before getting to within one point in the second half. An 18-0 run by the Seminoles made the 65-57 victory look a lot more of a blowout than it was with Trent Forrest leading the way with 11 points – the only Nole to have double figure points in the game.

Opponent Preview

The Seminoles will see some a very familiar foe as the No. 5 seed Virginia Tech Hokies and the Seminoles will meet for the second time in less than a week and a half with a spot in the semifinals on the line.

As we mentioned above, the Noles clinched the double bye just over a week ago by beating the Hokies in Tallahassee. Virginia Tech entered Charlotte with a 23-7 record and wins in five of their final seven regular season games – including a win over Miami to finish things out before the post season.

It looked like so much fun in the regular season that the Hokies decided to do it again and beat the Hurricanes in Wednesday’s second round game – where they led by over 20 points before walking out with a convincing 71-56 victory.

Interesting Fact

The good news for FSU basketball is that history shows the chances are good the Seminoles won’t be one and done in the ACC Tournament – something that used to take place on the regular as the Noles won just three games in their first 10 tournaments in the conference.

Over the past seven ACC tournaments dating back to the Seminoles winning their only title during the 2012 edition, the Noles have won their first game six times – with the one exception being last year when they lost to Louisville. All time, FSU is 1-1 against Virginia Tech in the tournament.

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