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Seminoles Cruise To Win Over Georgia Southern

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By MICHAEL McGUFFEE Tribune correspondent

Published: November 13, 2007

TALLAHASSEE - Once again it was senior guard Isaiah Swann who proved to be the spark plug the Seminoles needed to run away with another win Monday night at the Donald L. Tucker Center. Swann finished with 25 points and Toney Douglas added 18, as FSU cruised to a 92-67 win over visiting Georgia Southern.
Freshman center Solomon Alabi saw his first action in the win, and was greeted warmly by Seminole fans as he entered the game with six minutes left to play. Alabi wore a large protective brace to protect a stress fracture in his right shin, but seemed only slightly hindered on his way to four points in four minutes, including a two-handed dunk.

Hamilton was adamant after last Friday's game that he would not rush Alabi back from injury, but that the freshman was making steady progress. Monday night was the first time that Alabi dressed and participated in warm-ups with the team.

The Eagles kept it close for a majority of the first half, but Swann hit back-to-back 3-pointers and the Noles responded with a 13-2 run to build a double-digit cushion that they would not relinquish.

Senior Ralph Mims started at point guard and elevated his level of play in the process, adding 13 points, while freshman forward Julian Vaughn contributed a career-high 12 points and three blocks.

FSU finished with eight blocks for the game, with Ryan Reid and Uche Echefu recording two apiece, and FSU shot 91 percent from the free-throw line. Swann finished 8-for-8 from the line and Vaughn 6-for-6.

The Seminoles struggled on the boards in the first half, but made a more consistent effort in the second, and finished with a 44-34 advantage over the Eagles. Echefu led the way with nine rebounds, while Swann added seven.

In the closing minutes of the game, a freshman-to-freshman alley-oop from Jordan DeMercy to Vaughn got the crowd going and the cheers continued with Alabi's dunk and first score as a Seminole a few possessions later.

Alabi scored again on the following possession, hitting a turn-around bank shot from 15 feet out. The 7-foot-1 freshman also committed two fouls in his four minutes on the court.

Florida State will play in the Glenn Wilkes Classic on Friday, taking on the UAB Blazers at the Ocean Center in Daytona Beach at 8:15 p.m. The Seminoles also will play Cleveland State on Saturday and USF on Sunday as part of the eight-team tournament.

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