Florida State overcame another slow start on Wednesday night to run its winning streak to a season-high three games with a 90-66 victory over Mississippi State at the Donald L. Tucker Center.
The Bulldogs (4-5) used an early 11-0 run to take a 15-8 lead, but it didn’t take long for FSU to take control of the contest. The Seminoles trailed 23-18 with just over six minutes to play in the first half, but led 37-28 at the break thanks to a 19-5 run to end the half. Florida State center Boris Bojanovsky scored all 11 of his points in the first half.
After just eight combined points in the first half, FSU’s talented freshmen tandem of Dwayne Bacon and Malik Beasley combined for 37 points. Bacon tied a game-high with 20 points while Beasley added 17 and a game-high 10 rebounds.
Sophomore Xavier Rathan-Mayes also recorded a double-double with 11 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists. Terance Mann, another talented FSU freshman, finished with 10 points off the bench on 5-for-6 shooting.
Mississippi State never got closer than seven in the second half. A pair of free throws from Mississippi State forward Gavin Ware made it 59-52 midway through the half, but the Seminoles (7-2) responded with an 18-3 run to put the contest out of reach.
Craig Sword scored 20 points to lead the Bulldogs. Ware added 13 points and 8 rebounds while highly-touted freshman Malik Newman chipped in with 12, but was largely quiet during the second half.
Mississippi State will play at home for the first time in more than two weeks on Saturday as it hosts Tulane. Florida State will take on Florida Atlantic on Saturday afternoon in Sunrise, Florida.
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