Xavier Rathan-Mayes’ jumper hit the back rim, shot way up in the air and dropped through the net for three points.

The twine was barely touched and never moved as the ball grazed through it. Rathan-Mayes turned around and smiled even though his Florida State team still trailed by 10 points with 7:14 left in the game. It was the Seminoles’ first made 3, and a circus shot that fit in perfectly with the team’s woeful shooting display against Syracuse on Sunday night.

“Mayes is a good 3-point shooter he was 1-for-5. (Robbie) Berwick is a good 3-point shooter, he’s 1-for-3,” FSU head coach Leonard Hamilton listed off. “And (Devon) Bookert has been one of the best shooters in the (Atlantic Coast Conference) and he was 0-for-6.”

In all, the Seminoles shot an abysmal 2-for-16 from beyond the arc while the Orange went a season-best 10-for-17 from deep. That was the biggest difference in SU’s (12-4, 3-0 ACC) 70-57 win over FSU (9-7, 1-2) in the Carrier Dome on Sunday night.

Florida State made eight 3s on 16 attempts in an 86-75 win over Virginia Tech on Tuesday, and the Orange focused on perimeter defense while holding the Seminoles to their third-lowest point total of the season.

“You just have to get up on them and not let them get set,” SU head coach Jim Boeheim said. “Bookert’s a 45 percent 3-point shooting guy and you just have to keep somebody near him all the time.

“We did a really good job the whole game defensively guarding the 3-point line and still helping in other places.”

On Wednesday, Boeheim called his team’s win over Georgia Tech the worst offensive performance he had ever seen. This time around, he praised his team’s offense and left Hamilton harping on a lackluster shooting night.

SU point guard Kaleb Joseph said that he and his teammates simply followed the scouting report and forced shooters off the line. The Orange didn’t want to give Florida State any space on the perimeter, and the Seminoles’ first 3 was followed by another with 52 seconds left on the game clock.

By that time, Syracuse had the game well in hand.

“Coach wanted us to get on their shooters, make them take tough shots and that’s what they were doing,” senior Rakeem Christmas said. “We just had to go get the rebounds and go on offense.”

Published on January 12, 2015 at 12:06 am

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