NCAA Tournament: Noles survive and advance past UNC-Greensboro

No. 4 seed FSU basketball survived a scare by No. 13 seed UNC-Greensboro, winning 64-54, and will advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament to face No. 5 seed Colorado.

The Noles started the game about as well as one could hope for, building a 16-point lead in the first 10 minutes of the first half.

However, a string of turnovers and terrible shots on offense led to a big UNC-Greensboro run that cut the lead to 29-26 at halftime.

The first five minutes of the second half were the difference in the game as FSU went on a run to open up a 12-point lead.

However, UNC-Greensboro wouldn’t go away quietly as they continued to battle and take advantage of FSU miscues.

FSU consistently settled for jump shots instead of attacking inside, where they had a massive advantage.

FSU played well defensively, forcing the Spartans to settle for jump shots, the difference was they were making a few every now and then while FSU floundered offensively.

The Noles went 0-9 from the three-point line and 14 of 20 from the charity stripe. They held the Spartans to 32.2 percent from the floor and 25 percent from the three-point line, both well below their seasonal averages.

As poorly as UNC-G shot the ball, it was only a three-point lead for the Noles with fewer than five minutes remaining.

Leonard Hamilton called timeout and began to run the offense through RaiQuan Gray and Balsa Koprivica. Both players had excellent games, finishing with 17 and 13 points, with Koprivica finishing with 11 rebounds for a double-double.

That approach allowed the Noles to build a seven-point lead, and it was fouling and free-throws the rest of the way. Anthony Polite chipped in with 12 points, with M.J. Walker and Scottie Barnes held to four points each.

Parting Thoughts

It wasn’t the best effort, but it’s surviving and advance in the NCAA Tournament. The game should have been a blowout win, but they nearly covered the spread despite not playing well overall.

The Noles will need to find themselves offensively when they take on Colorado, who hit a barrage of three-pointers to defeat Georgetown.