Watkins Scores Game-High 26; Seminoles Fall to North Carolina, 96-85

TALLAHASSEE – RJ Davis led five North Carolina double figure scorers with 20 points and the Tar Heels won their fourth consecutive game with a 96-85 win over Florida State at the Donald L. Tucker Center. Davis totaled 20 points, five assists, zero turnovers, and two rebounds to lead the Tar Heels to their third consecutive win over the Seminoles in Tallahassee.

Florida State is now 16-12 overall and 7-10 in the ACC. North Carolina improved to 18-11 overall and 11-6 in ACC play.

The game saw seven ties and four lead changes. The Seminoles cut the Tar Heels' lead to six three times in the second half but were unable to retake the lead after leading by four during the first half.

Jamir Watkins led the Seminoles with 26 points on seven of 12 shooting from the field and nine of 10 shooting from the free throw line. He added two rebounds, two assists and two blocked shots. Also in double figures for the Seminoles was Jerry Deng, who scored his Florida State high of 16 points on four made 3-point field goals.

Watkins has scored 20+ points in consecutive games and has scored in double figures in seven straight and 23 of his last 24 games since November 15 against Florida. Watkins made three 3-point shots to extend his streak to 18 games with at least one 3-point shot made. That streak began on December 14 against Tulane in the Orange Bowl Classic.

Deng had an electric game with his season-best of 16 points, with a strong performance inside the paint being six of eight. And then outside the arc being four of six, only committing one turnover during his 20 minutes of playtime.

Alier Maluk scored his career-high of seven points as he was a perfect two of two from the field with three made free throws.

"Alier has really, really been improving all year long," said Hamilton. "Every time he plays, he gets better. When you think about it, he should still be in high school for his senior year. But he came out a year early. He's made tremendous progress. And you don't see the hesitancy in his game that you saw earlier in the year."

Florida State played well offensively as it scored 85 points – the third time this season they have scored 85 or more points in an ACC game. The Seminoles shot .552 from the field, were credited with 16 assists on 27 baskets, and made 10 of 20 3-point shots. The Seminoles tied their season-high from beyond the arc with 10 three-pointers, equaling their output in their win over Miami on January 8.

North Carolina was limited to two steals and only created nine points off of turnovers.

"We did play really good defense," said Florida State head coach Leonard Hamilton. "I thought they made some great plays. They made a couple of threes that were contested very well doing a very critical part in the game."

The Seminole's next game is on the road Saturday at 7:00 pm against No 3 ranked Duke in Durham at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Watkins Scores Game-High 26; Seminoles Fall to North Carolina, 96-85

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Team Stats

Jamir Watkins

Jerry Deng

Daquan Davis

Taylor Bol Bowen

Players Mentioned

Jerry Deng

Alier Maluk

Jamir Watkins

Florida State University Athletics