Three Questions about Florida State

Today, Oklahoma State takes on its third top-20 team of the season in Florida State in Orlando.

So far this season, the Seminoles are 9-0, and have been impressive. Their winning streak includes a 17-point win over then-ranked No. 5 Florida, and their closest game was a 5-point victory at Rutgers.

To help get the lowdown on this Seminoles team, I spoke with Andrew Miller of the SBNation site Tomahawk Nation about what makes their offense one of the best in the nation, and which players to keep an eye on.

Phillip Slavin: Florida State has a Top-25 scoring offense. What makes the Seminoles so dynamic on that end of the floor?

Andrew Miller: Before I go into the specific players and style of offense that is generating this much offensive fire-power, it’s important to take FSU’s play up until this point with a small grain-of-salt. The Seminoles, once again did not schedule competitive out of conference, which leads to its strength of schedule that ranks 241st in the country — yes, you read that right. That’s with a win on the road at Florida which the teams play every year. Still, FSU is undefeated, which is a great start, but we’ll see if the offense can continue when they hit the brutal ACC schedule.

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Led by C.J. Walker at point, the ‘Noles run a very quick paced, high motor offense and can quickly turn up the tempo. The team doesn’t only shoot a lot, but does so effectively. The Seminoles’ top scorer, Terance Mann, is shooting 64.5 percent from the field while scoring 15.6 points per game. The starting rotation either does a great job with ball rotation, or will turn the ball over. There’s not really an in-between. FSU is also shooting from long-range with all the weapons it has, averaging 24 three-pointers per game. Additionally, chances are if FSU gets a turnover, they’ll be down the court before you can blink.

PS: The starting lineup seems pretty balanced with experience and youth (2 seniors, 1 junior, 2 sophomores) Who is the leader for the team?

AM: I wouldn’t say there’s one bonafide leader, but many components who know both the offense and their teammates so well. The starting lineup has all played with each other for at least one year and even though not starting at the time, were on the court together. Senior Phil Cofer’s career has been hindered by injuries, however he’s finally having the season most thought he was capable of, scoring 12.3 points per game and 5.8 rebounds per game. With the injury to junior Christ Koumadje, FSU has had to turn to true freshman Ikey Obiagu who has done a fantastic defensively filling the void. He’s started the last six games and is blocking 2.7 shots per game.

PS: FSU has four players averaging double digits in scoring. Aside from the starters, who is the guy that can “get hot” for this team that fans might not be familiar with?

AM: Freshman M.J. Walker has been getting more comfortable in the offense as the season has gone on. He technically doesn’t start, but still averages around 20 minutes per game. He’s had four double-digit scoring games so far, but also three games with two or less points. Where Walker can/will get hot is from three-point range where he is shooting 48.7 percent through his first 37 attempts.