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Florida State rally comes up short in 77-66 loss to North Carolina

On3 imageby: Ira Schoffel02/28/23iraschoffel
On3 image
Florida State Seminoles guard Caleb Mills (4) drives to the basket during a college basketball game against the North Carolina Tar Heels at the Civic Center in Tallahassee on February 27, 2023.(Photo by Chris Leduc/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

There was no second-half miracle for the Florida State men’s basketball team this time — even though the Seminoles gave it quite a run.

Two days after rallying from a 25-point deficit to knock off Miami on the road, Florida State found itself in a similar hole Monday night against visiting North Carolina. But while the Seminoles did reduce their 18-point halftime deficit to four points in the final two minutes, they never got closer than that and fell 77-66.

The loss drops the Seminoles’ record to 9-21 overall and 7-12 in the ACC. The Tar Heels improve to 19-11 and 11-8.

Florida State now has tied a school record with 21 losses; the only other Seminole squad to suffer that many setbacks was Steve Robinson’s team in 2000-2001.

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North Carolina outplayed the Seminoles in several areas, but the game was essentially decided at the 3-point line. UNC connected on 14 of 29 shots from long range, while the Seminoles hit on just 3 of 15.

Junior guard RJ Davis led the Tar Heels with 19 points, and senior Leaky Black added 18. Star big man Armando Bacot scored just one point on 0-for-4 shooting from the field.

Florida State was led offensively by junior Caleb Mills with 19 points and sophomore Matthew Cleveland with 12.

FSU trailed by just one point with just over six minutes remaining in the first half, but North Carolina hit back-to-back-to-back 3-pointers to take a 10-point lead. The Tar Heels closed the first half with a 23-6 run to take control.

Florida State will finish the regular season Saturday at Virginia Tech. That game is scheduled for 4 p.m. on ESPN2. The Seminoles then will head to the ACC Tournament next week in Greensboro, N.C.

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