No. 17 Florida St. Upsets No. 6 Duke in ACC Semis

by David Cassilo / @dcassilo

Using its trademark stifling defense, No. 17 Florida State held No. 6 Duke 37.3 percent shooting and escaped with a 62-59 victory to advance to the ACC final. Awaiting them in the matchup is No. 4 North Carolina.

The Seminoles, who had already beaten Duke once this season, advanced to its second ever ACC final by clamping down on the Blue Devils, especially from beyond the arc. Duke made just five of 20 three-pointers on the afternoon.

On offense, the play of junior guard Michael Snaer gave the Seminoles a much-needed boost. Snaer finished with 16 points and six assists. He had 14 points in a 76-73 victory at Duke on Jan. 21.

For the Seminoles, the win on Saturday is just a step toward making Florida State a perennial ACC power.

From The Miami Herald:

“We want to kind of change the culture and make it something of significance,” Seminoles guard Luke Loucks said. “We want to be something the fans can get excited for and I think we’ve done that. We’re not satisfied, we still haven’t gotten a championship that we all hoped for, tomorrow we’ll have an opportunity to do that.”

The ACC final against North Carolina marks the second time the two teams will face off this season. The Seminoles beat the Tar Heels, 90-57, on Jan. 14.