Florida State gets its first real stress test of the season Tuesday night, and it comes with the biggest possible spotlight attached.
The Seminoles host No. 1 Florida at the Donald L.
Tucker Center in the latest Sunshine State Showdown, with tipoff set for 6 p.m. on ESPN2. FSU is 2-0 after beating Florida A&M and Troy, but this is a different kind of night entirely - a chance to see how the Seminoles stack up against a team sitting at the top of the poll.
Florida arrives with momentum and plenty of respect. The Gators already knocked off then-No.
14 Miami in the Orion180 Tipoff Classic and followed that with a win over Jacksonville. They come in ranked No. 1 and carrying the look of a team built for a run at the national title.
FSU had Florida on the ropes last season in Gainesville before falling 78-76, a game that went all the way down to the final possession. That near miss gives the Seminoles a clear reference point heading into this one, especially with home court on their side.
A win would be a major early-season statement for Florida State, one that would strengthen its NCAA Tournament résumé and immediately change the way the rest of the country views the Seminoles. Even without that result, Tuesday’s game will tell a lot about where FSU stands against one of college basketball’s elite teams.
Florida State’s early schedule has already been busy, and it only gets more crowded from here. After the Florida game, the Seminoles face Texas A&M-CC on Nov.
13, Ball State on Nov. 17, Green Bay on Nov.
20, UNC Asheville on Nov. 24, West Florida on Nov. 29, and Tennessee on Dec. 1 in the ACC.
/SEC showdown.
The rest of the nonconference slate includes Dayton on Dec. 5, Texas A&M on Dec. 12 in Houston, Jacksonville on Dec.
16, Houston on Dec. 20 in Jacksonville, Bethune-Cookman on Dec. 22, and Syracuse on Dec. 29.
ACC play begins in January with road trips to California on Jan. 6 and Stanford on Jan. 9, followed by North Carolina at home on Jan. 13. The conference schedule also brings Wake Forest, Virginia Tech, Clemson, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, North Carolina State, Miami, Duke, Louisville, Georgia Tech, and Virginia to the calendar before the regular season closes Feb. 27 at Virginia.
For now, though, it all comes back to Tuesday night - a rivalry game, a top-ranked opponent, and a first big chance for Florida State to find out exactly where it stands.
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Florida State Gets Its First Real Test Against No. 1 Florida
Florida State has spent the early part of the season showing how quickly a roster can take shape when transfers and freshmen click, and Tuesday night will bring the Seminoles their first real measuring stick. No. 1 Florida comes to Tallahassee unbeaten, with a frontcourt that has carried the Gators through their first two games and given them the kind of size and physical presence that tends to test every weakness.
For the Seminoles, this is the kind of matchup that can validate the early returns on a new-look group, especially with multiple players already scoring in double figures. It also gives Florida State a chance to see how its depth and balance hold up against the top-ranked team in the country, with tipoff set for 6 p.m. ET on ESPN2. [Read more 🡒]