Behind 30 points by Jamir Watkins, Florida State men’s basketball moves to 2-0 on the season with a 73-65 victory over Rice in the Mattress Firm Battleground 2K24 at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas on Saturday evening.
The Seminles led from start-to-finish, though things tightened up to as close as one point when Rice went on an 11-0 run beginning with the final bucket at the end of the first half and scoring the first nine points of the second half, closing the gap to 33-32, from 33-23 at the half. FSU would push ahead by as many as 15 points with 2:30 remaining. The Owls fall to 1-1 on the early season.
The Seminoles started a season 2-0 under head coach Leonard Hamilton for the 17th time.
Watkins, who led all scorers, added six boards and three steals, as well as a block and an assist. Malique Ewin contributed 11 points, all in the second half, while grabbing seven boards (tied for team lead), recording two assists, a block, and a steal. Taylor Bol Bowen had just six points, but led the Seminoles with seven rebounds and tied for the team lead with two assists. Justin Thomas contributed eight points, three boards, two assists, a block, and a steal.
As a team, the Seminoles were 23-of-54 (42.6%) from the floor, including 5-of-19 (26.3%) from deep. They hit 22-of-34 (64.7%) of their free throws. The Seminoles recorded just 10 assists, while committing 13 turnovers. They had nine steals and seven blocks. FSU’s bench contributed 22 points. The Seminoles posted 30 points inside the paint.
The Owls, who had a trio in double figures, were 19-of-53 (35.8%) from the floor, including 8-of-25 (32.0%) from deep. They were 19-of-31 (61.3%) at the line. They had 10 assists and 17 turnovers, which FSU turned into 23 points. They also had six steals and two blocks.
Rice had a 39-36 advantage on the boards. The Owls had an 11-6 advantage in second-chance points.
The Seminoles are now 6-2 all-time against Rice. FSU has won the last three meetings.
FSU will return home to host Tarleton State on Tuesday evening at 7 p.m. That game will be broadcast on ACC Network Extra.
