Caleb Mills scored 23 of his 27 points in the first half and it proved to be enough thanks to another balanced scoring effort from host Florida State, which hung on for a 79-70 victory over Louisville on Saturday night in Tallahassee, Fla.
Florida State (8-5, 2-2 ACC) bounced back following a 22-point loss at Wake Forest on Tuesday and snapped Louisville’s three-game winning streak and dealt the Cardinals (10-5, 4-1 ACC) their first conference loss.
Mills scored his only points of the second half with 6:23 left in the second half a minute and nine seconds after he picked up his fourth foul. FSU coach Leonard Hamilton chose to keep Mills, who shot 9 of 16 from the field, in the game, which allowed him to match a career scoring high.
FSU used a 9-2 run capped by a 3-pointer by freshman Matthew Cleveland to take a nine-point lead with 1:51 left and effectively break open the close game.
Cleveland had a major role in helping FSU close out the Cardinals as he finished with 17 points on 7-of-8 shooting and grabbed five rebounds.
The Seminoles took a double-digit edge in the first half thanks to a very efficient offensive performance sparked by Mills’ 3-of-5 shooting from 3-point range. FSU shot 52.8 percent in the first half, including 7 of 16 from 3 and shot 45.8 percent from the field overall.
FSU cranked up its defense early in the second half as it held the Cardinals scoreless for the first four-plus minutes following halftime to open a 54-40 advantage.
El Ellis led Louisville in scoring for the second consecutive game and finished with 14 points, three rebounds and three assists. Samuell Williamson totaled 13 points and seven rebounds and Mason Faulkner had 12 points, three rebounds and three assists.
The three helped the Cardinals cut FSU’s lead to 63-61 with 4:42 left in the second half before a pair of free throws by Malik Osborne (six points, six rebounds) began the Seminoles’ late surge.
–Field Level Media