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Cam'Ron Fletcher scores career-high 23, leads Florida State past Mercer for first win of season

On3 imageby: Ira Schoffel11/22/22iraschoffel
On3 image
Center Naheem McLeod slams home a dunk Monday night against Mercer. (Courtesy of FSU Sports Information)

Junior guard Cam’Ron Fletcher scored a career-high 23 points and the Florida State men’s basketball team earned its first victory of the season Monday night against visiting Mercer, 81-72.

But the Seminoles had to go down to the wire to do it.

The ‘Noles, who continue to get healthier after playing their first few games with only six or seven scholarship players, took control midway through the first half before eventually squandering a 16-point lead. But unlike the Florida game last Friday, Leonard Hamilton’s team responded down the stretch and pulled out the victory.

“I thought tonight, our guys played with a little more energy consistently,” Hamilton said. “I think they knew they could come out of the game [when tired], and we could get the start of developing a rotation.”

The Seminoles actually were able to use 10 players for at least five minutes apiece, and only two players saw more than 30 minutes of action. Eight Seminoles scored, which is closer to what Florida State fans have come to expect from Hamilton’s teams.

Perhaps the biggest shot down the stretch was an 18-foot jumper by Darin Green Jr. that gave the Seminoles a 73-66 lead with 1:23 remaining.

Florida State improves to 1-4 on the season, while Mercer falls to 2-3.

Fletcher was the star for the Seminoles. scoring his 23 points on 9-of-12 shooting; he hit all three of his attempts from 3-point range.

“Cam has always played with tremendous effort and passion,” Hamilton said. “Sometimes almost to a fault, he’s really, really a competitive youngster. But he spent so much time over the summer grooving his shot. … He’s becoming more confident. He’s maintaining his poise.”

Florida State also got 18 points from sophomore guard Matthew Cleveland and 12 from junior Caleb Mills.

Forward Jalyn McCreary led Mercer with 20 points on 10-of-15 shooting.

Florida State’s defense appeared to be much improved compared to some of the first games of this season, as the Seminoles blocked 11 shots and forced Mercer to shoot less than 40 percent from the field. Center Naheem McLeod blocked five shots by himself.

“I just thought his presence in the lane made a huge difference,” Hamilton said. “Even when he wasn’t blocking shots, he was deterring them, challenging them and altering shots. We need him playing at that level.”

Next up for the Seminoles is a Thanksgiving morning game against Siena in Buena Vista, Fla.

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