Alondes Williams scored 23 points and Jake LaRavia barely missed a triple-double, finishing with 18 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists to lead Wake Forest to a 68-60 win over host Florida State in Atlantic Coast Conference play on Saturday afternoon in Tallahassee, Fla.
The Demon Deacons (19-5, 9-4 ACC) continued their turnaround season, winning for the sixth time in seven games and sweeping the season series against the short-handed Seminoles (13-9, 6-6), who suffered their fourth consecutive loss.
Florida State, which had three starters out and lost another during the course of Saturday’s game, pulled within a point with 3:51 left in the second half on a 3-pointer by Caleb Mills, who led the Seminoles with 15 points.
But Wake Forest closed the game on an 11-4 run as Isaiah Mucius, who finished with 10 points, and Damari Monsanto (nine points, eight rebounds) each hit key triples down the stretch.
The Demon Deacons went 8 for 22 from beyond the arc and shot 45.6 percent overall (26 of 57) and managed to hang on for the win despite committing a staggering 26 turnovers, which led to 19 points for the Seminoles. It was the most turnovers this season by a Florida State opponent.
Wake Forest outrebounded Florida State 46-37 and recorded 15 assists.
The depleted Seminoles had to rely on walk-on guard Harrison Prieto, who recorded a double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds.
But Florida State’s shooting struggles continued as it shot only 32.8 percent (22 for 67) from the field and went 4 for 19 (21.1 percent) from 3-point range.
The Seminoles, who already lost Malik Osborne for the season (ankle surgery) did not have Naheem McLeod (hand) or Anthony Polite (wrist) available against Wake Forest. Center Tanor Ngom went down early in the game when he collided knees with a Wake Forest player, but returned.
Forward John Butler played sparingly in the first half, went 0 for 4 from the field and did not return after halftime. Freshman Matthew Cleveland finished with 11 points and nine rebounds.
–Field Level Media
