Field Level Media
Jan 4, 2020
M.J. Walker scored 23 points and Trent Forrest added 20 as No. 18 Florida State won its sixth straight game, a 78-65 Atlantic Coast Conference road victory against No. 7 Louisville on Saturday afternoon at KFC Yum! Center.
Devin Vassell added 14 points for the Seminoles (13-2, 3-1 ACC), who won for the 13th time in 14 games. FSU, which didn't attempt a free throw until Forrest went 1-for-2 with 6:42 left, led by double digits throughout the final 4:07.
Jordan Nwora scored 32 points for the Cardinals (11-3, 2-1) , who lost their second straight game. They were defeated 78-70 in overtime at then-No. 19 Kentucky a week earlier.
Consecutive layups by Nwora pulled Louisville within 54-51 with 9:59 remaining. Florida State called a 30-second timeout, then answered with an 8-2 run -- sparked by Vassell's seven points (two jumpers, 3-pointer) -- to build a nine-point lead with 8:01 to go.
Forrest scored five points in a 2:38 span to help the Seminoles go ahead 67-56 with 4:43 to go.
Florida State shot 55.2 percent (32 of 58) overall and sank 11 of 23 from behind the arc.
Walker made 6 of 8, including 3 of 5 from 3-point range, to score 15 points and help the Seminoles grab a 39-32 halftime lead. The junior guard had missed FSU's previous game, against Georgia Tech, due to a sore hip.
Florida State went on a 12-2 run during the half's final 3:19. Walker and RayQuan Evans each had five points to fuel the spurt.
Florida State shot 55.2 percent (16 of 29) in the first half -- which it also did in the second half -- while Louisville hit just 27 percent (10 of 37).
Louisville had more offensive rebounds (12-4) and scored 10 second-chance points to keep things close.
--Field Level Media