Quote:'Noles Upset Terps Behind Freshman Duo
From The Associated Press
The Tampa Tribune
Published: Dec 29, 2003

TALLAHASSEE - Second-year Florida State coach Leonard Hamilton might have found his answer for winning in the Atlantic Coast Conference: a couple of freshmen.
First-year players Alexander Johnson and Von Wafer took charge during a 16-2 second-half run Sunday, and Florida State bounced back from its only loss with a 79-75 victory against 24th-ranked Maryland.

Johnson's ferocious dunk gave the Seminoles a 57-56 lead with 8:48 left as they snapped a five-game losing streak against Maryland dating to the 1999-2000 season.

``That was a huge play,'' Hamilton said. ``It gave our team a lift and excited the crowd, and our team seemed to feed off that.''

Moments later, Wafer sank a 3-point shot from deep in the corner as Florida State built a 65-58 lead during the decisive spurt that wiped out a five-point deficit early in the half.

Johnson led Florida State with 14 points on 5-for-7 shooting, while Wafer added 11 with a 4-for-7 night that included a pair of 3s.

``They're learning what it's like to play at this level,'' Hamilton said.

The 6-foot-10, 245-pound Johnson's dunk impressed his older teammates as well.

``I thought the goal was going to break, he's so strong,'' said Tim Pickett, who fed Johnson for the dunk.

Florida State (11-1, 1-0) blew a 14-point lead early in the game and fell behind 56-51 in the second half before the run gave them a 67-58 lead with 6:20 left.

Wafer and Nate Johnson hit successive 3-point shots during the spurt to help the Seminoles win their first conference opener in four seasons.

Pickett scored 13, all in the second half. The Seminoles started the season with 10 consecutive wins before losing 63-56 to No. 16 Pittsburgh on Dec. 22.

Nik Caner-Medley, John Gilchrist and Chris McCray each scored 15 for Maryland.

Maryland (7-3, 0-1) shot 44 percent (29-for-66) from the field but shot poorly from the free-throw line, especially in the second half, when it went 5-for-11.

Michael Joiner and Mike Mathews combined for 13 points in the opening minutes when Florida State jumped to an 18-4 lead, but Maryland scrambled back and tied the game at 30.

But the early deficit hurt the Terrapins.

``We paid the price,'' Maryland coach Gary Williams said. ``When you get down 18-4, you're going to lose something to get back.''

The Seminoles led 37-36 at the half, even though Pickett and Anthony Richardson, their top two scorers on the season, were held scoreless.


MARYLAND (7-3) - Smith 4-12 0-4 8, Garrison 4-5 0-0 9, Caner-Medley 6-15 1-2 15, Gilchrist 5-10 4-4 15, McCray 4-5 5-6 15, Strawberry 3-9 1-3 7, Jones 0-1 0-0 0, Ibekwe 3-8 0-0 6, Bowers 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 29-66 10-18 75. FLORIDA ST. (11-1) - Joiner 4-8 1-2 10, Richardson 0-3 6-6 6, Mathews 3-9 2-2 8, N.Johnson 3-5 0-0 7, Pickett 4-14 3-4 13, Galloway 0-1 2-4 2, 2, Thornton 0-0 1-2 1, Wilson 1-4 0-0 3, Callier 0-0 0-0 0, Wafer 4-7 1-3 11, A.Johnson 5-7 4-6 14, Waleskowski 0-2 4-4 4. Totals 24-60 24-33 79. Halftime-Florida St. 37-36. 3-point goals-Maryland 7-20 (McCray 2-3, Caner-Medley 2-6, Garrison 1-1, Strawberry 1-3, Gilchrist 1-5, Jones 0-1, Ibekwe 0-1), Florida St. 7-16 (Wafer 2-4, Pickett 2-5, N.Johnson 1-1, Joiner 1-2, Wilson 1-3, Richardson 0-1). Fouled out- Caner-Medley, McCray. Rebounds-Maryland 42 (Smith 11), Florida St. 39 (Richardson 7). Assists- Maryland 11 (Gilchrist 5), Florida St. 11 (Richardson 3). Total fouls-Maryland 24, Florida St. 22. Technicals-Caner-Medley, Galloway. A-8,074.