Florida State’s men’s basketball team is staring at a non-conference schedule with some real bite.
Leonard Hamilton’s group will play 14 games before ACC action begins, and the list is headlined by three SEC opponents plus a neutral-site meeting with a Big 12 heavyweight. The schedule also brings back the annual Florida rivalry, which lands right in the middle of a busy November.
The Seminoles open on Nov. 2 in Tampa against Florida A&M in the Orion180 Tip-Off Classic. The Rattlers are coached by Charlie Ward, who won the 1993 Heisman Trophy as Florida State's quarterback and played 11 years in the NBA. Florida A&M went 15-16 last season and finished 11-7 in SWAC play.
Florida State’s first home stretch begins Nov. 6 against Troy. The Trojans arrive as Sun Belt champions after a 22-12 season that ended with an NCAA Tournament berth.
Then comes the game that jumps off the page: Florida visits Tallahassee on Nov. 10.
The Gators are two years removed from a national title and are still described as the SEC’s top program. They were led last season by Thomas Haugh, a 6-9 senior forward who averaged 17.1 points and 6.1 rebounds per game.
The home schedule also includes Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Nov. 13, Ball State on Nov.
17, Green Bay on Nov. 20 and UNC Asheville on Nov. 24.
Green Bay is coached by former media personality Doug Gottlieb and finished 18-15 last season, ranking among the Horizon League’s better teams.
Florida State’s first road test after that comes Dec. 1 in Knoxville against Tennessee in the fourth annual SEC/ACC Challenge. The Volunteers, led by NBA rookies Ja’Kobi Gillespie and Nate Ament, went 25-12 and finished fourth in the SEC last season.
After a home date with Dayton on Dec. 5, the Seminoles head to Houston for a Dec. 12 matchup with Texas A&M at the Toyota Center. The Aggies had a season similar to Tennessee’s and return guard Marcus Hill, who averaged 10.3 points per game last year.
The final stretch brings Jacksonville to Tallahassee on Dec. 16, followed by a trip to Jacksonville to face Houston on Dec. 20. The Cougars, led by NBA rookies Kingston Flemings and Emanuel Sharp, were one of the nation’s top teams all season and finished second to Arizona in the Big 12 race.
Florida State closes the non-conference portion of the schedule at home against Bethune-Cookman on Dec. 22. The ACC schedule has not been announced yet.
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