In a game marred by the on-court collapse of Florida standout Keyontae Johnson, No. 20 Florida State cruised to an 83-71 victory over the visiting Gators on Saturday in Tallahassee, Fla.
The SEC's Preseason Player of the Year, Johnson finished an alley-oop dunk off a pass from Tyree Appleby to give Florida an 11-3 lead just 3:37 into the game, prompting a timeout by Seminoles coach Leonard Hamilton.
The teams went to their benches, and Johnson -- a 6-foot-5 native of Norfolk, Va. -- suddenly fell near the center court after the huddle broke and the players were returning to the court.
Following medical attention, Johnson was stretchered off and taken to nearby Tallahassee Memorial Hospital, while his teammates huddled together -- many crying -- to regain their focus.
As the second half began, ESPN's broadcast crew announced that Johnson was in critical but stable condition, which was confirmed by the school.
Florida State (3-0) made a strong push after Johnson left, building a 10-point halftime lead, and then rolled on to its 26th consecutive home victory.
Freshman Scottie Barnes scored a season-high 17 points with five assists, and M.J. Walker and Anthony Polite added 17 and 14, respectively.
The defending Atlantic Coast Conference champion, Florida State has won seven straight over its cross-state rival in the Southeastern Conference, but Florida holds a 43-29 series advantage.
Florida (3-1) sprinted out to an 11-3 edge in the first 3:37 behind some sharp long-distance shooting by Scottie Lewis (game-high 19 points) and Tre Mann (17), but the Seminoles used a 17-0 run to go ahead 31-23 on Polite's 3-pointer with just under five minutes left in the half.
The Seminoles led 45-35 at the break, getting 13 points from Barnes -- including a spectacular slam dunk -- and 12 from Polite.
The home side shot 53.8 percent (14 of 26) from the field in the opening 20 minutes, including 6 of 12 attempts from behind the arc.
The Gators struggled to find their shooting touch after the good start, knocking down just 12 of 30 attempts, though they did connect on 5 of 12 3-point attempts.
Florida State produced its biggest lead at 59-41 at 14:44 in the second half -- Florida cut the deficit to 10 points late -- and recorded its 41st consecutive nonconference win.
--Field Level Media
Florida | Florida State | |
Scottie Lewis 19 | Scoring | Scottie Barnes 17 |
Tre Mann 7 | Assists | Scottie Barnes 5 |
Tre Mann 8 | Rebounds | Raiquan Gray 8 |
Scottie Lewis 3 | Free Throws Made | M.J. Walker 12 |
Colin Castleton 2 | Steals | M.J. Walker 3 |
Scottie Lewis 3 | Blocks | Raiquan Gray 2 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
Florida | 71 | 42.4 | 10-23 | 11-16 | 14 | 29 | 8 | 6 | 20 |
Florida State | 83 | 48.1 | 8-16 | 23-30 | 17 | 26 | 4 | 8 | 16 |