FSU Preview

Florida St. vs. Clemson, 02/10, 7:00pm, Littlejohn

I've been battling computer problems at my home, so I don't have much time. I just wanted to point out that in all likelihood a birth in the NCAA tournament is riding on tonight's game. A loss and we have to go at least 4-2 the rest of the way, 5-1 if we want to remove any doubts come selection Sunday.

Moreover, tonight's game will tell us a lot about how the rest of the season should swing. When looking at general team profiles, FSU, GT, and Wake Forest all share a lot of similarities and we play these teams four times in the last seven games. Lose tonight and I wouldn't be surprised to end up 1-3 in those four games, instead of the 3-1 mark we probably need to post.

Like GT and Wake Forest, FSU is an extremely tall team that plays fantastic defense that focuses on lowering an opponent's field goal percentage. Last season, Clemson had trouble getting passes into the post due to FSU's average effective height blocking passing lanes on the perimeter. On the rare occasion when we did get the ball inside, Trevor Booker was manhandled by Solomon Alabi and crew. This season is no different, FSU is outstanding against the 2pt shot. To beat FSU, you have to stick some three-pointers, which is the only semi-weakness in their defense. Only problem is, they do a good job of limiting the number of open looks so teams don't put up a lot of shots. We better hope Potter has some semblance of a stroke, because he's the guy that could possibly see over the FSU defense.

The good news is that FSU still isn't producing much on offense. They struggle in turning the ball over, which plays right into our strength. Of course, this was also true last year and we managed to lose twice with the game in Tallahassee not even being particulalry close. Season's effectively on the line boys, let's see what we Clemson can do with their backs against the wall. GO TIGERS!!!