NCAA Tournament: 3 keys to Noles advancing past Colorado

No. 4 seed FSU basketball advanced past UNC-Greensboro and will meet No. 5 seed Colorado in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

Oddsmakers believe it’ll be a tight contest with the Noles as slight favorites, but over 60 percent of the bets are on the Buffaloes.

FSU basketball fans are nervous, as Colorado blitzed Georgetown in the first round with an offensive barrage from three-point land.

However, that game is an outlier from their seasonal average, and Georgetown isn’t a good team. They just happened to get hot in their conference tournament.

I wonder which FSU team will show up? They didn’t play terribly against UNC-Greensboro but struggled with shot selection and complacency with double-digit leads.

I think FSU has a good shot of advancing to the Sweet 16, and here are three keys to the Noles advancing in the NCAA Tournament:

• Play with a sense of urgency from the tip
• Run offense through RaiQuan Gray and Balsa Koprovica
• Limit turnovers

I could list other factors like make free-throws, rebound, etc. However, the most important factor for the Noles is playing with great effort from the tip. When they do that, they either blow teams out or at least have a shot at winning games whether they are shooting well or not.

I’d like to see the ball in RaiQuan Gray’s hands more. Scottie Barnes turns the ball over too much and Gray is capable of getting to the rim with his size. Balsa Koprivica has become a force inside, averaging 13.6 points and 10 rebounds over the last three games.

Both players can kick the ball out to shooters behind the three-point line if the defense collapses. I’d like to see Scottie Barnes use his athleticism and size more against smaller players trying to guard him. Players like Tanor Ngom don’t need to shoot unless it’s a layup or dunk.

Limiting turnovers is a given with how the Noles have struggled in that area the last few games. I know some fans have a concern with Colorado shooting the three-ball, but FSU defends the three decently.

Teams have made 33 percent of their three-point attempts against the Noles, and Colorado makes 36 percent of their attempts.

They will make some of those, and FSU can’t afford to go 0-9 again. However, if FSU takes care of the ball and Colorado isn’t NBA Jam hot from beyond-the-arc, the Noles should win.