Game Preview: FSU Basketball vs. SMU Mustangs, Leonard Hamilton's finale

Saturday afternoon marks the final regular season game for the legendary career of Leonard Hamilton at Florida State. He'll have at least one ACC Tournament game before his FSU tenure ends, but he'd like to pick up his 200th ACC win before then. He'll have to beat his former assistant and a solid SMU team to get it done, though.

Andy Enfield was an assistant at Florida from 2006-2011. He went on a legendary run at Florida Gulf Coast before jumping to USC but took over as SMU's coach as they entered the ACC this season. They've had a successful first season under Enfield and have a chance to secure a double-bye in the ACC Tournament. But could he let his former boss get a win in his final game in the Tucker Center?

This game will be at 4 p.m. EST on ESPNU, live from the Donald L. Tucker Center in Tallahassee, Florida.

SMU Mustangs Breakdown (22-8 Overall, 13-6 ACC)

Mar 1, 2025; Stanford, California, USA; Southern Methodist Mustangs head coach Andy Enfield during the second half against the Stanford Cardinal at Maples Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Stan Szeto-Imagn Images | Stan Szeto-Imagn Images

SMU is a good basketball team in their first season under Andy Enfield. They're tied for 4th in the ACC with North Carolina, but both UNC and Wake Forest own the tiebreaker over SMU, meaning any tie with them knocks them down a peg. But UNC hosts Duke on Saturday night, and the Blue Devils have been a wagon this season. With a win, SMU could secure the 4th seed and get the coveted double-bye in the ACC Tournament next week. A loss could drop them all the way down to 6th.

They have six players averaging at least 10 PPG, led by the terrific guard tandem of Kevin 'Boopie' Miller (13.3 PPG, 5.7 APG) and Chuck Harris (13.0 PPG, 2.5 APG). Both of those names should be familiar to FSU fans, as Miller starred at Wake Forest last season, and Harris lit up the Seminoles in Tallahassee in non-conference play at SMU for 24 points and making five three-pointers.

Miller and Harris are one of the better backcourts in the ACC, as they bring speed, shooting, and playmaking. They can turn it over at a high rate if you catch them on the right night.

Another name that might be familiar to FSU fans is Matt Cross, who started his career at Miami, transferred to Louisville, and didn't really play at either, so he went to Temple and had a solid tenure there. He's finally living up to his potential as a good shooter, averaging 11.9 PPG while shooting 38.5% from three-point range. He's also an incredible rebounder, averaging nearly eight boards per game.

Starting in the backcourt alongside Miller and Harris is BJ Edwards, who has taken a massive step forward this season, and could be in consideration for ACC's Most Improved Player. He started nearly every game last season and averaged just 3.7 PPG, but he's up to 10.1 PPG this season. He just does a little bit of everything, averaging 4.5 RPG, 3.7 APG, and an absurd 2.3 SPG.

Samit Yigitoglu holds it down in the paint, averaging 10.6 PPG and 6.3 RPG. He and Matt Cross combine to average nearly five offensive boards per game, which could be a tough matchup for FSU.

The last major player is Kario Oquendo, an Oregon and Georgia transfer who has seen his three-point shot grow tremendously since last season, going from 33.3% on 2.0 3PA with the Ducks last season to 42.1% on 3.8 3PA this season. He's averaging 10.9 PPG, which is more reminiscent of his Georgia days.

Keon Ambrose-Hylton will reprieve Yigitoglu occasionally, and Yohan Traore adds some versatility in the frontcourt, but they like to stick to those first six guys as much as possible.

This is one of the best three-point shooting teams in the country at 38.4%, one of the best offensive-rebounding teams with an o-board rate of 37.6%, and one of the best two-point defenses in the country, holding teams to 46.5%. All of those are bad matchups for FSU. They're also scoring 81.5 PPG, one of the 30 best marks in the country.

Florida State Seminoles Breakdown (16-14 Overall, 7-12 ACC)

Florida State Seminoles head coach Leonard Hamilton celebrates his team's victory. The Florida State Seminoles beat the Boston College Eagles 80-62, Saturday, March 7, 2020. The Seminoles clinched the ACC regular season title. Fsu Final022 | Alicia Devine/Tallahassee Democrat / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

We could talk about the last loss to Virginia, but I'd rather focus on Leonard Hamilton. News broke on Friday that Luke Loucks plans to accept the head coaching job to succeed Coach Hamilton. That's not planning to go official until Sunday, but it's not surprising that a former play of Hamilton's is the next in line. But he has big shoes to fill.

Coach Hamilton is a legendary figure in the sport. He broke barriers, built programs from the bottom that weren't used to success, and continued to have success. When he took over Miami, they didn't win a single game in their first season in the Big East. By the end of his time there, they had made three straight NCAA Tournaments, including a Sweet 16.

Then he comes to Florida State and takes a program that had been to 10 NCAA Tournaments to another eight, and he's responsible for four of the program's seven Sweet 16 appearances, not even counting the 2019-20 team that very easily could've won a national championship if not for COVID-19. He continued to adapt his scheme, his personnel, and his recruiting tactics, and he always found a way to succeed. The NIL and transfer portal became a little too much to overcome finally, but as great of a career as Coach Hamilton has had, that's okay. He's the latest in a long list of ACC legends to step down recently, following in the footsteps of Coach K, Roy Williams, and Jim Boeheim.

It's a testament to Coach Hamilton and the incredible staffs he built that they won two ACC Championships with entirely different rosters. In 2012, it was a veteran-led, elite defensive team with guys like Loucks, Bernard James, and Michael Snaer. In 2020, it was a star-studded roster with future NBA talents like Devin Vassell, Patrick Williams, Trent Forrest, MJ Walker, and RaiQuan Gray. But the theme remained the same: Depth, family, and defense.

Not getting the NCAA Tournament will go down as one of the greatest what-ifs of Hamilton's career. That team truly was talented and deep enough to go toe-to-toe with anybody and had the veteran guard play needed to win in March. But if you ask Coach Hamilton, he wouldn't have any regrets about it.

What mattered the most to him about being a coach was becoming a developer of great men. He was constantly proud of his graduation rate since he took over the program, bringing it up almost whenever possible. He stayed in communication with all of his former players, making sure they were great husbands and fathers. That's a rare kind of leader, one that is fading away as college athletics have become the Wild West. Coach Hamilton has been one of a kind, and even if the last 3-4 years haven't been up to the standard we came to expect, it's hard to ask better of what Leonard Hamilton gave this program for 23 years.

Because it's senior day for Florida State, their starting lineup may look a little different than normal, though they'll sub quickly. Whether or not Malique Ewin will be available could be the biggest key in this game.

Projected Starters

Florida State

G: Jason Simpson
G: Bostyn Holt
G: Justin Thomas
F: Jamir Watkins
F: Malique Ewin/Alier Maluk

SMU

G: Kevin 'Boopie' Miller
G: Chuck Harris
G: BJ Edwards
F: Matt Cross
C: Samet Yigitoglu

Keys to the Game

Take Advantage of Turnovers

Kevin Miller is a fantastic player. But he is prone to turnovers. Of the 25 games he's played, he's had at least two turnovers in 15 of them and at least four turnovers in six games. Last year while he was at Wake Forest, he had five turnovers against the Seminoles, a big reason FSU was able to win that game.

But he's not the only one. Chuck Harris is coming off of no turnovers against Syracuse, but he had a combined 19 turnovers in the six games before that. If FSU can force turnovers and get out in transition, it'll help them keep pace with a lethal SMU offense.

Three-Point Shooting

Florida State has been a streaky three-point shooting team this season, and even in games. The Virginia game was a perfect example of that, as they went 2/9 from deep in the first half and 5/13 in the second half. That's not the only time this season that's happened, either. But they'll need to be shooting at a high level on Saturday.

SMU is 4-6 in games where their opponent shoots at least 40% from three. But FSU also has to do a good job of keeping one of the best three-point shooting teams in the country in check. SMU's 38.4% three-point shooting is one of the 20 best marks in the country. The target for FSU's defense should be 33.3% three-point shooting, as SMU is 5-6 in games where they shoot 33.3% from deep or worse.

Play With Pride

It's Coach Hamilton's last game at the Tuck. Play with some pride. Don't be the team that lost Ham's final game in Tallahassee. This game goes beyond your normal Senior Day. Former players will be coming in from all over the country to see Coach Hamilton. Put on a show, and make sure Coach Hamilton goes out with a win.

Game Prediction

SMU is favored by 1.5 points with an over/under of 158.5, per FanDuel Sportsbook.

I don't often make emotional decisions with my predictions. By all accounts, SMU should win: they crash the offensive glass at a high rate, they shoot the three well, and they have tremendous guard play. But college basketball is a magical sport. Send Ham out on a high.

Florida State 77, SMU 75

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