After not playing for more than a week during the holidays, Florida State will host Lipscomb on Saturday afternoon in Tallahassee, Fla.
The matchup will be the final game for each side before jumping into conference play next week.
Florida State (6-5) enters Saturday having won back-to-back games for the third time this season.
Lipscomb (8-6) won two of its past three but is 0-2 this season against power conference teams.
The Bisons did come close to snatching away a victory from Arkansas before losing 69-66 on Dec. 16.
Lipscomb bounced back with a comfortable victory over NAIA foe Bryan College 101-55 on Dec. 20.
The Seminoles’ offensive struggles continued, however, despite having a winning record for the first time in over a month.
Without multiple injured starters, FSU shot just 31 percent and finished 3 for 18 from 3-point range in a 67-61 win over visiting Winthrop on Dec. 22.
Fortunately for the Seminoles, their defense has been up to par as it forced 24 turnovers in the win. Junior guard Primo Spears led the charge at both ends with 12 points and three steals.
“We were extremely active out there on the court,” Florida State coach Leonard Hamilton said after the game. “We put them on the foul line a few times at the end of the second half, but that just shows how aggressive we were being from a defensive perspective.”
Lipscomb will enter Atlantic Sun Conference play with high expectations thanks largely to its solid backcourt. Derrin Boyd leads the Bisons, averaging 17.3 points per game, while Will Pruitt is averaging 12.1 points and a team-high 5.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game.
“Florida State is a really tall task, literally, they’re really big and athletic and hard to play against,” Lipscomb coach Lennie Acuff said. “I’m really proud of our guys. I don’t remember a year I’ve ever lost as many key guys as we’ve lost and we’ve kept going.”
–Field Level Media