3 Takeaways as FSU Basketball Fights Hard, Comes Up Just Short to SMU

Florida State finally got on the board with an ACC win earlier in the week against Miami, which was its first win over a power conference school this season. To keep that going, they'd have to go on the road to beat SMU, which has been one of the better teams in the ACC this year despite the measly 3-3 ACC start.

This game started ugly, as the Seminoles came out missing their first eight shots and down 8-0, but they came right back. Martin Somerville went on a personal 7-0 run, including a rare four-point play, to go in front 20-17 a few minutes later. They kept in the game by relentlessly attacking the offensive glass, bringing down 8 of their own misses in the first few minutes.

But SMU's lethal offense woke up in the final six minutes of the half, outscoring FSU 23-10 in that timeframe. They can be a hot shooting team, and they were working FSU's zone to get open shots. Jason Pierre Jr. was the one to get things started in that run, but Boopie Miller was also starting to establish himself in the game.

That strong close to the half had SMU out in front 46-34. But Florida State came out of halftime on FIRE in an icy Dallas. They outscored SMU 16-3 to open the half, as a three-pointer in the corner from Lajae Jones put them back in front, 50-49, just five minutes into the half.

SMU responded well to that, though, instantly going on a 7-0 run to retake the lead. And once again, FSU refused to die, responding with a 7-0 run of their own, with Robert McCray V hitting a tough pull-up from the elbow to jump ahead.

The next few minutes saw some of the most absurd shot-making you'll ever see. From Robert McCray V putting Samet Yigitoglu on a poster, Jaron Pierre Jr. hitting a contested fallaway mid-range with the shot clock expiring, matching threes from Pierre and Martin Somerville, and McCray being McCray again, it was a fun stretch of basketball that left the game tied with about 6:30 left. But then McCray stole an inbounds and laid it in on the other end, and FSU was back out in front.

ROBERT MCCRAY V JUST PUT SAMET YIGITOGLU ON A POSTER #Noles https://t.co/WD1lgeIESM pic.twitter.com/Iegz8zwAHo
— Austin Veazey (@EasyVeazeyNG) January 24, 2026

That absurd shot-making continued, as Lajae Jones hit a stepback fallaway three just before the final media timeout to give the 'Noles a three-point lead. SMU had gone zone defensively in the second half to try and cool FSU down, and it started to in the final four minutes. And it allowed SMU to go on a 7-0 run when it was needed most. They stole an inbounds and Jaron Pierre Jr. flushed it home to push them up by 4.

But again, FSU would not die. Lajae Jones hit his third three-pointer of the game to pull them back within one with about 90 seconds to go. Pierre hit a tough layup to go back up by three, and Thomas Bassong missed both free throws in a critical situation. McCray would flip in a layup to make it a 2-point game again, but Jaron Pierre Jr. flushed home an insane alley-oop over his own teammate to push the lead right back to 4. Lajae Jones, with his fourth three of the game, made it a one-point game in the final 10 seconds. From there, we played the foul game.

Robert McCray missed the front end of a one-and-one, but FSU grabbed the offensive rebound before a tie-up. That possession arrow favored Florida State. They tried to inbound it, but the ball went out of bounds, and the officials couldn't tell who it went out on and called a tie-up, which favored SMU, and there was about a second left in that instance. So, SMU would go on to win, 83-80.

Florida State will be back at home on Wednesday to play Cal. Here are three takeaways from this tight loss to a good SMU team.

FINAL: FSU fights hard but loses on the road to a good SMU team, 83-80

Really fun game, but FSU falls just short

R McCray V 21 pts, 9 ast
L Jones 20 pts, 12 reb
A Steen 14 pts
M Somerville 13 pts

NEXT: vs. Cal on Wednesday #Noles pic.twitter.com/JtRRxanKxA
— Austin Veazey (@EasyVeazeyNG) January 24, 2026

1. Florida State's Midseason Defensive Shift Has Been Incredible

You may look at SMU scoring 83 points and say, "That's not a good defensive effort." But SMU has a really good offense, arguably the best in the ACC, and they shot just 44% from the floor, and Boopie Miller had his lowest scoring game of the season. Florida State has a few different defenses to go to, allowing a lot of different looks. It'll be interesting to see it morph as ACC play continues.

2. When Robert McCray V Has It Going Like This...

This is the kind of Robert McCray that Florida State needs moving forward. He was tremendous in the second half, putting up 17 points in those final 20 minutes. He was getting to the basket at will, and he wasn't really turning the ball over, which is the big thing with him. When he's playing that well, FSU can compete in every game.

3. Why the Game Ended the Way it Did

It's a strange way to end the game, but it did follow the rules, I guess. The ball went out of bounds, but the officials couldn't determine which team it went out on, and the possession arrow favored SMU. And because of a rule change this offseason, officials can't review plays in the final two minutes unless it's initiated by the coaches. It might've been FSU's ball, but they can't do anything about it. It's a shame to lose that way, but Florida State should be proud of the way they played.

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