ATLANTA – The breakthrough season continues for Leonard Hamilton’s Florida State club after Saturday’s semifinal 73-70 win over North Carolina. They have a chance to get an even bigger one on Sunday.
Already, the Seminoles are in the ACC championship game for the first time in the program’s history. Two smaller notes are that this was their first ACC Tournament win over North Carolina in five tries, and it breaks a ten-game losing streak to the Tar Heels. It continues a pattern where this team has gotten over a lot of humps from recent years, after several close calls with the NCAA Tournament. There has been potential for several years now, but the Seminoles are harnessing it this time around.
“It means an awful lot for my seniors because they’ve been such great leaders this year,” said Hamilton. “I’m happy for them and I’m happy for our program. We’ve been so close so many times and we’ve had injuries, but this year has been one of those years where we have the team we started with, and I think it’s made a big difference in how well we have progressed.”
The Seminoles have six players who have played in every game this year, and Xavier Gibson is the only player of significance who didn’t play in every ACC game. That’s certainly a good sign of the health, and it’s probably a big reason this team has been a very together unit chemistry-wise.
Even with that, a major reason for the breakthrough is at the most important position in college basketball: point guard. Toney Douglas had a tremendous season as the runner-up in ACC Player of the Year voting, while also being named the Defensive Player of the Year. He’s scored, he’s set up teammates, he’s rebounded from that spot, and he’s made key plays all year. That has continued in the ACC Tournament, with 25 points against Georgia Tech and another 27 on 10-18 shooting against North Carolina, with 16 coming in the second half.
More than his numbers, though, have been when he has made shots. Against Georgia Tech, he made a number of baskets that kept a lead up as the Yellow Jackets tried to stay close or take the lead.
“He has supreme confidence, and we have supreme confidence in him that if we get him into the position, then something good is going to happen,” said Hamilton.
With Douglas’ leadership, as well as the development of a number of supporters, the Seminoles are now in a position for their first-ever ACC title. With the breakthroughs they have had thus far, could an ACC title be the next one to continue the trend?
“Florida State’s never been in that,” said Douglas. “We made a mark that can’t be erased, so we want to continue to make that mark.”
They hope to have one more before the NCAA Tournament.
