Florida State University Athletics
Wednesday, October 14
Birmingham, Ala.
8:00 PM
Florida State
vs
Auburn
Photo by: Jack Mathieson
Florida State Faces Auburn in Preseason Ballin in Boutwell Event
10/13/2026 11:59:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Tipoff is set for Wednesday night at 8 p.m. ET
TALLAHASSEE – Florida State men's basketball returns to Birmingham, Alabama, for the second consecutive season as the Seminoles face Auburn Wednesday night at 8 p.m. ET in the 2026 Ballin in Boutwell preseason event inside historic Boutwell Auditorium.
The matchup will be televised on YouTube with Ryan Brown and Jim Dunaway on the call. The game will also air on the Seminole Sports Network with Jeff Culhane and Jacob Ridenhour calling the action.
This marks Florida State's second appearance in the annual event, presented by Nike and Hibbett, after facing Alabama in the 2025 showcase. The Seminoles fell to the Crimson Tide, 109-105. The event returns for its third year following sellout crowds in each of its first two editions.
Florida State enters the 2026-27 season under second-year head coach Luke Loucks, who led the Seminoles to an 18-15 overall record and a 10-8 mark in Atlantic Coast Conference play during his first season. The 10 ACC victories established a program record for conference wins by a first-year Florida State head coach.
The Seminoles finished the 2025-26 season by winning 10 of their final 12 games, including a school-record five consecutive ACC road victories. At 36 years old, Loucks enters his second season as the 10th-youngest head coach in Division I and the youngest among coaches at Power Four programs.
Florida State enters the new season with a retooled roster as the Seminoles welcome 12 newcomers, including six freshmen and six transfers. According to On3, Florida State's transfer class ranked seventh nationally and second in the ACC, while its high school recruiting class ranked 16th nationally and second in the conference.
Senior guard Anthony Robinson II and junior forward Sebastian Rancik recently represented Florida State at the 2026 ACC Tipoff, providing a first look at two of the Seminoles' key additions.
Robinson II, a Tallahassee native, transferred to Florida State after three seasons at Missouri. He appeared in 96 games with 50 starts for the Tigers and earned a spot on the 2025 SEC All-Defensive Team. During the 2025-26 season, Robinson averaged 8.9 points per game and recorded a team-high 54 steals.
Rancik arrives in Tallahassee after two seasons at Colorado, where the Slovakia native appeared in 62 games with 37 starts. He averaged 12.3 points and 5.6 rebounds per game in 2025-26, ranking third on the Buffaloes in scoring and second in rebounding.
Florida State's 2026-27 schedule features a demanding slate of opponents, including eight games against teams ranked in the top 18 of ESPN's Way-Too-Early Top 25. The total is tied for the second most in the country.
The Seminoles are scheduled to face No. 1 Florida, No. 2 Duke, No. 7 Tennessee, No. 12 Virginia, No. 15 Louisville, No. 17 Houston and No. 18 Miami twice. Duke, Florida and Houston also occupy the top three spots in KenPom's preseason ratings.
Wednesday's matchup will be the 32nd meeting between the Seminoles and Tigers. Seventeen of the first 31 meetings took place between 1958 and 1966, and the programs have met only four times since the turn of the century. Those four games came during home-and-home series spanning the 2009-10 through 2012-13 seasons.
Florida State's original exhibition opener, scheduled for Oct. 10 against Mississippi State in Pensacola as part of the Southern Tip-Off, was canceled because of anticipated impacts from Hurricane Isaias. Florida State will host LSU in a home exhibition on Oct. 24.
For more information on Florida State men's basketball, check Seminoles.com for the latest news and scheduling information, and keep up with the team on social media through Twitter/X (@FSUHoops), Instagram (@FSUHoops) and Facebook (@FSUMBasketball).
The matchup will be televised on YouTube with Ryan Brown and Jim Dunaway on the call. The game will also air on the Seminole Sports Network with Jeff Culhane and Jacob Ridenhour calling the action.
This marks Florida State's second appearance in the annual event, presented by Nike and Hibbett, after facing Alabama in the 2025 showcase. The Seminoles fell to the Crimson Tide, 109-105. The event returns for its third year following sellout crowds in each of its first two editions.
Florida State enters the 2026-27 season under second-year head coach Luke Loucks, who led the Seminoles to an 18-15 overall record and a 10-8 mark in Atlantic Coast Conference play during his first season. The 10 ACC victories established a program record for conference wins by a first-year Florida State head coach.
The Seminoles finished the 2025-26 season by winning 10 of their final 12 games, including a school-record five consecutive ACC road victories. At 36 years old, Loucks enters his second season as the 10th-youngest head coach in Division I and the youngest among coaches at Power Four programs.
Florida State enters the new season with a retooled roster as the Seminoles welcome 12 newcomers, including six freshmen and six transfers. According to On3, Florida State's transfer class ranked seventh nationally and second in the ACC, while its high school recruiting class ranked 16th nationally and second in the conference.
Senior guard Anthony Robinson II and junior forward Sebastian Rancik recently represented Florida State at the 2026 ACC Tipoff, providing a first look at two of the Seminoles' key additions.
Robinson II, a Tallahassee native, transferred to Florida State after three seasons at Missouri. He appeared in 96 games with 50 starts for the Tigers and earned a spot on the 2025 SEC All-Defensive Team. During the 2025-26 season, Robinson averaged 8.9 points per game and recorded a team-high 54 steals.
Rancik arrives in Tallahassee after two seasons at Colorado, where the Slovakia native appeared in 62 games with 37 starts. He averaged 12.3 points and 5.6 rebounds per game in 2025-26, ranking third on the Buffaloes in scoring and second in rebounding.
Florida State's 2026-27 schedule features a demanding slate of opponents, including eight games against teams ranked in the top 18 of ESPN's Way-Too-Early Top 25. The total is tied for the second most in the country.
The Seminoles are scheduled to face No. 1 Florida, No. 2 Duke, No. 7 Tennessee, No. 12 Virginia, No. 15 Louisville, No. 17 Houston and No. 18 Miami twice. Duke, Florida and Houston also occupy the top three spots in KenPom's preseason ratings.
Wednesday's matchup will be the 32nd meeting between the Seminoles and Tigers. Seventeen of the first 31 meetings took place between 1958 and 1966, and the programs have met only four times since the turn of the century. Those four games came during home-and-home series spanning the 2009-10 through 2012-13 seasons.
Florida State's original exhibition opener, scheduled for Oct. 10 against Mississippi State in Pensacola as part of the Southern Tip-Off, was canceled because of anticipated impacts from Hurricane Isaias. Florida State will host LSU in a home exhibition on Oct. 24.
For more information on Florida State men's basketball, check Seminoles.com for the latest news and scheduling information, and keep up with the team on social media through Twitter/X (@FSUHoops), Instagram (@FSUHoops) and Facebook (@FSUMBasketball).
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