Transition offense, free throws guide Florida State men's basketball to win over Virginia Tech

In a game where it struggled with the 3-ball, shooting just 20% from deep, Florida State men's basketball (8-6, 2-1 ACC) leaned on its transition offense and free throw shooting Saturday.

The result was its second straight conference win with a 77-74 verdict over Virginia Tech (9-5, 1-2) at the Donald L. Tucker Center in front of 5,025 fans.

Primo Spears was fouled with 1.2 seconds left in the game when it was tied at 74. His 2-of-2 shooting at the line put the game away.

"That was an ACC blowout by three points," FSU head coach Leonard Hamilton said.

"A lot of games in the ACC are hard-fought and it seems to be coming down to the wire most of the time. I thought we had our moments where we've shown what we're accustomed to over the years and moments where we didn't execute from a defensive or offensive standpoint."

"But when the game was on the line, we had great physical play from Baba [Miller] and [Jaylan] Gainey. Everyone found a way to contribute."

Winning by committee

The Seminoles scored 16 points off of turnovers compared to the Hokies eight and dominated at the free-throw line, shooting 18-of-29 for 62.1%. FSU had 42 points in the paint and another huge boost from the bench as it scored 39 points. 10 different players found the scoresheet for the Seminoles.

"We've always tried to win games by committee, which is why we try to play so many people," Hamilton said. "The way we play, we have to keep fresh bodies on the court because we have to stay in rhythm. If you get two or three guys fatigued trying to push the ball offensively and being aggressive 95 feet defensively at some point in time you're fatigued."

"This afternoon we had great contributions from our rotation because they gave the guys that started some rest. We didn't always play well, but I thought that our effort was good."

The Hokies out-fouled the Seminoles, 18-to-12 in the second half and 24-to-19 in the game.

FSU shut down Virginia Tech's 6-foot-10-inch center Lynn Kidd, who was averaging 16.3 points coming into Saturday's matchup and was shooting 68% from the field, which ranks third nationally. Saturday, he had just two points and shot 1-of-5 from the field.

"We've always been a team that switches one through five and tries to keep the ball out of the post as much as possible. I thought our techniques were pretty good in defending them on the post," Hamilton said. "A lot of times you think it's the individuals defending the post guy, but a lot the time it's about how you guard the players trying to feed the post guy."

Bouncing back

Offensively, the Seminoles were led by Jaylan Gainey and Spears with 11 points, closely followed by Darin Green Jr (10 points) and Jamir Watkins (10 points). Baba Miller pushed a double-double with eight points and 10 rebounds. His pulldown total led the Seminoles.

Teammates were quick to credit Gainey's performance Saturday. He suffered a knee injury during preseason camp, which forced him to sit out five games of the season. Prior to Saturday's game, he was averaging just 2.9 points but had a breakout performance against the Hokies.

He was 5-of-7 from the field, contributing to the Seminoles' dominance in the paint.

"Outside looking in, cause I wasn't playing in the first few games of the season, his [Gainey's] presence at the rim defensively is huge," Spears said. "He getting back to blocking shots, but I think that'll come along with time. Offensively, he's done a great job with giving us driving lanes and drop-offs were the highlight of the day."

"He's a great locker room guy and he doesn't shy away from telling us what we have to do."

Spears' addition to the team after his NCAA transfer waiver was approved continues to be resounding. In six games this season, he has averaged 11.2 points and broke double-scoring figures in every game.

"I think my pace was my issue sitting out for two months," Spears said. "I feel like my pace is getting better as it goes throughout the season. I'm getting better every game as far as that goes, but I'm with a great group of guys in the locker room. They're helping me make reads and are there for me as I get used to the system."

FSU improves to 8-6 overall and 2-1 in ACC play. It will face Wake Forest (11-3, 3-0) at home on Tuesday at 7 p.m. The Demon Deacons' are riding a nine-game winning streak, most recently defeating Miami, 86-82, in overtime on Saturday at Winston-Salem.

"We've just got to take care of our bodies, be ready for the next day, go to film, study the next game and get ready," Miller said.

Jack Williams covers Florida State athletics for Tallahassee Democrat. Contact him via email at jwilliams@tallahassee.com or on X @jackgwilliams.

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Florida State men's basketball picks up second straight ACC win over Virginia Tech