PITTSBURGH, Pa. (SEMINOLES.COM) — RaiQuan Gray scored 16 points and led four Seminoles in double-figure scoring as Florida State beat Pittsburgh by a 79-72 margin at the Peterson Events Center. Grays’ scoring output marked his eighth consecutive double figure scoring. He was just two rebounds shy of earning his third career double double.
Florida State is now 13-3 (9-2 in ACC play) and Pittsburgh is now 9-9 (5-7 in ACC play).
In an unexpected road game at Pittsburgh, the Seminoles were able to hold Pitt to 38.2 percent shooting (26 of 68) and 23.5 percent (4 of 17) from the three-point line. The scheduling of this ACC matchup occurred late Wednesday after the Seminoles’ scheduled game against Virginia Tech was postponed and the Panther’s scheduled game against Clemson was postponed.
Redshirt junior Malik Osborne scored 12 points and pulled down nine rebounds in his third start of the season. Osborne was one rebound short of his second Seminole double-double.
Senior RayQuan Evans also had 12 points and contributed three rebounds and two assists. Taking a majority of the Seminoles’ free throw shots in the second half, Evans ended the night with an 83.3 shooting percentage (10 of 12) from the line.
Gray also contributed two steals and one block, marking his 84th steal in 81 career games. With his eight rebounds, Gray reached his 100 mark in rebounds for the second consecutive season and has now achieved his single-season career high of 187 points. The redshirt junior was four-of-five on free throws and has made 16 of 17 in the past three games.
With two dunks from sophomore Balsa Koprivica, the Seminoles totaled six dunks against the Panthers.
Going into the locker room at half, the Seminoles were leading by a 39-33 margin against the Panthers. Florida State has led 15 of its 16 games this season at half. Gray led with seven points and three Seminoles (Gray, Osborne, Koprivica) led with three rebounds.
Freshman Scottie Barnes also got into double-figure scoring with 11 points and pulled down six rebounds. Barnes blocked a career-high three shots and had three assists. The freshman was a perfect three of three from the line.
With eight Seminoles pulling down three or more rebounds, Florida State gained a rebounding advantage with a margin of 43-39. This marks the eighth time in the past nine ACC games in which the Seminoles held a rebounding advantage over their opponent.
Coach Leonard Hamilton continued to show off his team’s specialty – depth. With 33 bench points against the Panthers, at least nine players played for 13 or more minutes.
Redshirt junior Anthony Polite led the team with four assists, tying his season-high and approaching his career-high of five. Polite has also made at least one 3-point field goal in each of the 12 games he has played in this season.
Junior Sardaar Calhoun He contributed five points, three rebounds, and a steal against Pitt.
Florida State maintained a lead for 35:27 of the game with their largest lead of 11 points (70-59) coming after Polite’s 3-point jumper with under four minutes left in the game.
Pittsburgh’s leading scorer and rebounder, Justin Champagnie ended with a double-double of 21 points and 10 rebounds. The sophomore currently leads the ACC in both points and rebounds. Junior Xavier Johnson also scored in double-figures with 15 points and contributed three assists.
Florida State will continue to fight for the coveted No. 1 ACC seed when they travel to Miami on Wednesday, February 24. The game tips off at 8:30 pm ET and will be aired on the ACC Network.
