College basketball

Aggressive FSU routs South Alabama by 31

The Seminoles please coach Leonard Hamilton with their 83-52 victory. But he says he won't get too excited about his inconsistent team.

By BRIAN LANDMAN
Published December 17, 2004

TALLAHASSEE - All season long, Florida State coach Leonard Hamilton has preached, heck, he has unabashedly begged, his players to be assertive at both ends of the floor for the full 40 minutes.

Finally, at least on Thursday evening, they put those words into actions.

His Seminoles were focused and intense, especially on defense and the boards, and easily beat South Alabama 83-52 to bounce back from a disappointing loss on Sunday to lightly regarded Florida International.

"We were assertive in all areas," Hamilton said, half excited, half relieved. "Contesting shots, blocking out, going to the offensive glass, fighting through screens, containing the dribble. I thought you could see all the guys were communicating more with each other. They had a little more pep in their step."

The Seminoles (5-4) needed to show that. They open ACC play Sunday at Maryland, and they have been driving their coaches a bit crazy with their inconsistency.

"They definitely have been challenging us to turn it up and play with passion," freshman guard Jason Rich said.

At least for one night, they did, following the lead of senior forward Adam Waleskowski, who felt the sting of Sunday's 65-60 loss, perhaps, more than most.

"After the FIU game, I felt I let the team down," he said of his 1-for-6 shooting.

No one could miss his desire to turn that around. Heck, they could even hear him yelling after a botched play during the opening minutes. Then they couldn't miss him scoring a career-high 24 points on 9-of-12 shooting, including 4-of-5 from 3-point range.

He said he was not sure if he ever scored that many even in high school. For the first time, he actually heard many of the fans among the announced crowd of 4,784 at the Donald L. Tucker Civic Center chant his name. With his team leading 42-33, Waleskowski scored inside off a nifty pass from Von Wafer, drew a foul and completed the three-point play that ignited a 20-4 run over the next six minutes that all but sealed the win.

"It's obvious to all of us that he's accepted the fact that we need leadership from our upperclassmen," Hamilton said. "And I thought he tried to supply that, vocally, physically and with his effort. I thought his body language was different."

But so, too, were the rest of the Seminoles.

Not only did they shoot 54.5 percent from the field, with four Seminoles scoring in double figures, they held the Jaguars to just 29.3 percent shooting (17-of-58), a season-low.

"They did a great job of being disruptive to us all night long," said South Alabama coach John Pelphrey, the former Florida assistant. "I'd say without question, the best to date."

The Jaguars (3-5) suffered their most lopsided loss of the season. They stayed closer to nationally ranked Mississippi State, losing in Starkville 66-52.

The Seminoles also dominated on the boards, outrebounding South Alabama 48-25. FSU entered the game averaging about two fewer rebounds than its opponents.

"Tonight was probably the first time I can say that I thought we played with the intensity (we need) for the entire game regardless of who was in the game," Hamilton said.

"I wish I could enjoy it. But my memory is not that bad, so I definitely can remember a few nights ago sitting there wondering where all the intensity has gone. Tonight I'd say was a baby step in the right direction."

[Last modified December 17, 2004, 00:08:09]