Florida State University Athletics
Tuesday, November 21
Daytona Beach, Fla.
4:00 p.m.
Florida State
vs
Colorado
Warley, Seminoles Face No. 18/21 Colorado for Sunshine Slam Championship
11/21/2023 8:53:00 AM | Men's Basketball
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. --Â A steal in basketball is a play that can quickly change the momentum of a game. It can excite the team who benefits from the steal and deflate the team that now has one fewer offensive possession during the course of a game. In a close game, a steal can be the deciding play on the scoreboard whether the team who earned the steal directly benefits by adding to its scoring total or simply keeps its opponent from adding to its scoring total.
For Florida State junior point guard Jalen Warley, who has 89 steals in the first 67 games of his Seminole career, steals are earned with instinctive play and a high basketball IQ.
"I've always thought that I have a good feel for steals because of my instincts as a point guard," said Warley who will start his 26th consecutive game against Colorado in the championship game of the Sunshine Slam. "As the point guard for our team, I have a good idea of what our opponent is going to do before it happens."
Warley totaled a career-high five steals in Florida State's game against Florida and has earned 11 steals in the first four games of the 2023-24 season. He totaled a career-high 41 steals as a sophomore and is on pace to become one of the few Seminoles with 100 career steals. Warley will join Florida State's all-time top 25 for career steals when he notches the 124th steal of his career.
"Jalen has been on a steady upward turn in his maturation in so many areas," said Florida State Associate Head Coach Stan Jones. "Coming out of Covid where a lot of development and experience were missed, he has had to find his way differently than past players. He is just scratching the surface of how much more of a ceiling he has as he continues to raise his floor. I feel good about all he will do in the second half of his Seminole career."
Prior to Warley's five steal performance against Florida, he totaled four steals twice in the first two years of his career – against Virginia Tech as a freshman and against Boston College as a sophomore.
"I normally don't set a goal for steals in each game; my goal is to be as disruptive as possible on defense in each game," said Warley.
Warley's disruptive style and Florida State's defensive system under Head Coach Leonard Hamilton has made the Seminoles one of the top defensive teams in the nation. Under Hamilton, Florida State's defensive success has been a calling card for the Seminoles who have won two ACC Championships since 2012. The Seminoles' national reputation for playing a "Junk Yard Dog" style of defense is illustrated by their annually high rankings in the defensive statistics in both the ACC and the nation.
The Seminoles have led the NCAA in field goal percentage defense twice under Hamilton and are one of only six teams in NCAA history to lead the nation in field goal percentage defense in consecutive seasons. The Seminoles' .363 field goal percentage mark in 2011 was the best in the ACC since 1960 (a span of 52 years).Â
Florida State enters Tuesday's game against Colorado ranked first in the ACC with an average of more than 10 steals per game and have earned more than twice as many steals as its first four opponents.
According to Warley, his steals total continues to increase on a game-by-game basis, more because of his preparation for each game than any other factor.
"A steal is not about going into a defensive stance looking for a steal," said Warley. "It's about being prepared, knowing who you are playing against, timing, and playing defense with the idea of being disruptive within our system. It's a lot like scoring within the Florida State system, if you're prepared statistics are going to come your way. It's also very gratifying to create a steal for one of my teammates. That's team basketball; that's Florida State basketball."
Warley's teammate Baba Miller agrees with Florida State's starting point guard.
"Jalen is a great athlete, he's really built to be a successful basketball player," said Miller. "He's good at getting steals because he is so fast and mobile at 6'7. He has great timing to make a break on the ball and give us extra possessions."
Of his 89 career steals, Warley remembers nearly each one of them, but one in particular.
"The steal I remember the most came against Miami during my freshman season," said Warley. "It led to the first dunk of my career and we won the game."
While Warley is becoming a Chief Thief for the Seminoles in the ACC, he is, and will always be a point guard at heart.
In addition to currently ranking as Florida State's leader in steals, he's also the team leader in assists. With nearly 200 career assists, he will soon move into the Seminoles' all-time top 25 for career assists.
"I think assists are more important than steals," said Warley. "They are more important to me because assists involve your teammates and allow them to get easier shots. Easier shots mean more baskets, and that leads to winning."
Winning. That's Florida State basketball.
Â
For Florida State junior point guard Jalen Warley, who has 89 steals in the first 67 games of his Seminole career, steals are earned with instinctive play and a high basketball IQ.
"I've always thought that I have a good feel for steals because of my instincts as a point guard," said Warley who will start his 26th consecutive game against Colorado in the championship game of the Sunshine Slam. "As the point guard for our team, I have a good idea of what our opponent is going to do before it happens."
Warley totaled a career-high five steals in Florida State's game against Florida and has earned 11 steals in the first four games of the 2023-24 season. He totaled a career-high 41 steals as a sophomore and is on pace to become one of the few Seminoles with 100 career steals. Warley will join Florida State's all-time top 25 for career steals when he notches the 124th steal of his career.
"Jalen has been on a steady upward turn in his maturation in so many areas," said Florida State Associate Head Coach Stan Jones. "Coming out of Covid where a lot of development and experience were missed, he has had to find his way differently than past players. He is just scratching the surface of how much more of a ceiling he has as he continues to raise his floor. I feel good about all he will do in the second half of his Seminole career."
Prior to Warley's five steal performance against Florida, he totaled four steals twice in the first two years of his career – against Virginia Tech as a freshman and against Boston College as a sophomore.
"I normally don't set a goal for steals in each game; my goal is to be as disruptive as possible on defense in each game," said Warley.
Warley's disruptive style and Florida State's defensive system under Head Coach Leonard Hamilton has made the Seminoles one of the top defensive teams in the nation. Under Hamilton, Florida State's defensive success has been a calling card for the Seminoles who have won two ACC Championships since 2012. The Seminoles' national reputation for playing a "Junk Yard Dog" style of defense is illustrated by their annually high rankings in the defensive statistics in both the ACC and the nation.
The Seminoles have led the NCAA in field goal percentage defense twice under Hamilton and are one of only six teams in NCAA history to lead the nation in field goal percentage defense in consecutive seasons. The Seminoles' .363 field goal percentage mark in 2011 was the best in the ACC since 1960 (a span of 52 years).Â
Florida State enters Tuesday's game against Colorado ranked first in the ACC with an average of more than 10 steals per game and have earned more than twice as many steals as its first four opponents.
According to Warley, his steals total continues to increase on a game-by-game basis, more because of his preparation for each game than any other factor.
"A steal is not about going into a defensive stance looking for a steal," said Warley. "It's about being prepared, knowing who you are playing against, timing, and playing defense with the idea of being disruptive within our system. It's a lot like scoring within the Florida State system, if you're prepared statistics are going to come your way. It's also very gratifying to create a steal for one of my teammates. That's team basketball; that's Florida State basketball."
Warley's teammate Baba Miller agrees with Florida State's starting point guard.
"Jalen is a great athlete, he's really built to be a successful basketball player," said Miller. "He's good at getting steals because he is so fast and mobile at 6'7. He has great timing to make a break on the ball and give us extra possessions."
Of his 89 career steals, Warley remembers nearly each one of them, but one in particular.
"The steal I remember the most came against Miami during my freshman season," said Warley. "It led to the first dunk of my career and we won the game."
While Warley is becoming a Chief Thief for the Seminoles in the ACC, he is, and will always be a point guard at heart.
In addition to currently ranking as Florida State's leader in steals, he's also the team leader in assists. With nearly 200 career assists, he will soon move into the Seminoles' all-time top 25 for career assists.
"I think assists are more important than steals," said Warley. "They are more important to me because assists involve your teammates and allow them to get easier shots. Easier shots mean more baskets, and that leads to winning."
Winning. That's Florida State basketball.
Â
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