FSU Basketball Looking to Carry Momentum into Matchup Against Sleepy Boston College

Valentine's Day was kind to the Florida State Seminoles, as they picked up their 5th win in the last 7 games with a road win over Virginia Tech. They single-handedly put the Hokies' NCAA Tournament chances on the edge of a cliff, and will likely fall off soon. It's now the second time in the last few weeks they've done that, as they did the same thing to Cal a few weeks ago.

They now have a chance to get back to .500 on the season as Boston College comes to Tallahassee. BC is one of the worst teams in the ACC, but FSU can't afford to lose focus now. This could be a real chance for FSU to jump near the mid-point of the league.

This game will be at 6 p.m. EST on the ACC Network from the Donald L. Tucker Center in Tallahassee, Florida.

Jan 3, 2026; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Boston College Eagles head coach Earl Grant coaches his team against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in the second half at McCamish Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Boston College Eagles Breakdown (9-16 Overall, 2-10 ACC)

Earl Grant is in his fifth season at Boston College, and he could be on the hot seat. He's only finished above .500 once in his tenure in BC, and they won't get there this year, barring a miraculous turnaround at the end of the season and in the ACC Tournament, if they make it.

But this is also the hardest job in the ACC, and arguably one of the hardest in power conference sports. BC just does not have the funding, in any sport, to be competitive. They have the lowest NIL funding in the ACC now that FSU has started to show some seriousness.

Boston College has one of the worst offenses in the country, only scoring 67.4 PPG. It's rare to see a power-conference team that is this poor on offense, but they're one of the 20 worst in the country in three-point shooting, one of the 10 worst in free-throw shooting, and in the bottom 100 in two-point shooting. They can't score, they don't get a lot of offensive rebounds, they don't get to the free-throw line, and they don't share the ball.

However, they do have a decent defense. For whatever reason, other teams just can't shoot free throws against them, but they're also holding teams to 31% from three, which is a good mark. They don't force turnovers, and with how slow they play, some of their defensive metrics are just from a lack of possessions, but it is a tough team to score on.

Jan 3, 2026; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Boston College Eagles guard Donald Hand Jr. (13) dribbles against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in the first half at McCamish Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

One thing that will make their offense even rougher is the loss of Donald Hand Jr., who went down with an injury last week against Stanford. He's out again for this matchup and has been their second-best scorer this season, averaging 13.8 PPG and 5.0 RPG. He'd been wildly inefficient from three, but he can still put the ball in the basket. He was also responsible for nearly 30% of the team's free-throw attempts and 33% of the team's makes.

With him out, that will put more emphasis on leading scorer Fred Payne, who has averaged 15 PPG this season. He shoots more than 6 threes per game, so he has to be respected at all levels. For as many shots as he takes, he rarely gets to the free-throw line, which is strange. He's also the team's best playmaker, barely, at 2.8 APG.

Center Boden Kapke has been a consistent threat at 9.8 PPG and 5.8 RPG, and he's also capable of stretching out to three. However, he is not a shot-blocker whatsoever.

Those responsibilities fall to Jayden Hastings, who is averaging 6.6 PPG, 5.8 RPG, and 1.7 BPG. He's not as able to stretch out to three, so it wouldn't be a surprise to see Alex Steen guard Hastings more when he's in the game.

Luka Toews has taken on more opportunities this season and is the team's most consistent three-point shooter at 45%, but he's only taking 2.5 per game. Chase Forte has stepped into the starting lineup with Hand out, who is another decent playmaker. Aidan Shaw is really the only other player who gets consistent playing time and can be a great rebounder. He started early in the season, but the spacing was too clunky when he was playing with Hastings.

Feb 14, 2026; Blacksburg, Virginia, USA; Florida State Seminoles head coach Luke Loucks gives his team instructions during the second half at Cassell Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Brian Bishop-Imagn Images | Brian Bishop-Imagn Images

Florida State Seminoles Breakdown (12-13 Overall, 5-7 ACC)

Florida State is coming off a major upset win on the road over Virginia Tech on Saturday, where they dominated the second half on both ends of the floor. They have now won 5 of the last 7, and are likely a few games away from at least locking into the ACC Tournament in March. Beating Boston College could go a long way to helping that, as it creates a little more distance from the botton of the league.

A big reason for that win on Saturday was Martin Somerville, who scored 18 points in the second half on a perfect 7/7 shooting. That was a huge step up from how he'd been playing in ACC play, as he'd mostly been struggling. But when FSU needed to create some separation on the scoreboard, it was a wonderful surprise to have someone do some on-ball creation that wasn't Robert McCray V.

But it wasn't just all on Somerville, as Chauncey Wiggins also had a really efficient game. He laid an egg against Virginia earlier in the week, as most of the team did, so it was good to see him get back on track with a solid performance.

With about three weeks left of ACC play, FSU is in a good position to at least get to Charlotte for the ACC Tournament. If they can get there with a near .500 record, there's at least a small chance at going to the NIT, which I think would do this staff and team wonders.

Projected Starters

Florida State

G: Robert McCray V
G: Lajae Jones
F: Thomas Bassong
F: Chauncey Wiggins
F: Alex Steen

Boston College

G: Luka Toews
G: Fred Payne
G: Chase Forte
F: Jayden Hastings
C: Boden Kapke

3 Keys to the Game

Don't Lose Defensive Focus, Defend Without Fouling

A big reason Florida State has been as successful as they've been recently is the improved defensive effort. They've completely changed their style of play on that end of the floor, and that's made them a much tougher team to play against. It can be easy to overlook a team like Boston College, but you have to take every ACC team seriously.

A big thing FSU can't do is let BC get to the free-throw line, or slow the game down even further with fouls. 6 of BC's 9 wins have come when their opponent commits at least 18 personal fouls. Don't let the Eagles get free points.

Limit Fred Payne

With Donald Hand out, a lot of the offensive responsibilities will fall on Fred Payne. He was already the team's leading scorer, but he and Hand were the only players averaging double-figure scoring. In the last game, the starting five scored pretty evenly, and BC still lost by double digits. Something is telling me Payne will try hero-ball early in this one.

Score 65 Points, Shoot 40% From the Floor

Boston College's offense is mostly putrid, but they do have a decent defense. When they keep their opponent below 65 points, they are 7-2 overall, including the win over Pittsburgh. But that scoring has to be a little efficient, as BC is also 7-2 when they hold their opponent below 40% shooting from the floor. This can't be like the Virginia game, where FSU is getting most of its points from the free-throw line.

Game Prediction

Florida State is favored by 10.5 points, with an over/under of 148.5, per FanDuel Sportsbook.

Florida State has been playing great basketball recently, and Boston College is without its second-leading scorer. That could actually lead to some better ball movement, but I still expect Florida State to run away with this game.

Florida State 74, Boston College 57

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