College basketball

FSU notches third consecutive rout

By D.C. REEVES
Published December 8, 2005

TALLAHASSEE - It wasn't an exam at the Donald L. Tucker Center Wednesday night; it was more like a test.

The Seminoles (5-1) passed easily, topping Texas Southern 90-54 for their third consecutive 20-plus point victory.

Scoring flurries were started and countered quickly on both sides early on. Knotted at 18 and trading punches through the first eight minutes, a Jason Rich jumper was the catalyst for a 19-5 FSU run leading to a 39-23 advantage with 5:36 to play in the half.

After the rally, the Tigers (1-7) would not cut the deficit to single digits again.

"(Texas Southern) really did a good job of responding to our first blow," said Rich, a guard who nabbed 11 rebounds to go with 15 points for his first career double-double. "They hit some tough shots in the first half."

Junior-college transfer Jerel Allen followed suit, going 3-for-3 behind the arc in the opening half. He finished with a career-high 14 points.

Heading to the locker room, Texas Southern shot 6 of 8 from 3-point range and FSU's 13-point advantage (48-35) was the slimmest halftime lead it has held in five home games this season.

"I think we did stay focused for 40 minutes," coach Leonard Hamilton said. "I think our intensity is getting better and it got better in the second half."

The Seminoles had six players - two reserves - score in double figures and pulled down a 46-36 edge on the glass.

Ike Count and Nick Walker led the Tigers with 13 points each. Walker scored a team-leading 18 points against the Seminoles in the 2004 matchup, a 71-62 FSU victory in Tallahassee.

Due to exam week, Florida State will wait 10 days before playing its next game; a meeting with Bowling Green in the Coors Classic in Mobile, Ala., on Dec. 17.

But not everyone is looking forward to the break. "I'm not going to lie to you," Rich said. "Personally, I want to keep playing basketball."

[Last modified December 8, 2005, 00:50:19]