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Swann Finds His Shot In 2nd Half

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By RANDY RORRER, Tribune correspondent

Published: November 17, 2007

DAYTONA BEACH - Florida State senior Isaiah Swann struggled to find his shooting range in the first half of Friday's game against the University of Alabama-Birmingham.

Swann, the Seminoles' leading scorer, made only one of six field-goal attempts for three points.

Swann found his shot in the second half, scoring 25 of his 28 points to lead the Seminoles (3-0) to a 78-70 victory over the Blazers (2-1) in the second day of the Glenn Wilkes Classic.

Swann's 3-pointer with 11:47 left in the game gave FSU a 55-52 lead. The Blazers answered with a 3-pointer to tie it, but Swann drilled two consecutive shots from long range to give the Seminoles the lead for good at 61-55.

"To be honest with you, I came in at halftime and I challenged everybody," said Swann, who hit eight of nine second-half shots. "I told them we need to be aggressive. They looked for me, and they found me. I'm glad I was able to knock down the shots."

Swann made five of six 3-pointers in the second half. His only miss came with 5:32 left as the Seminoles led 70-66.

FSU coach Leonard Hamilton said he wasn't surprised to learn Swann urged his teammates on during the half.

"They're always challenging each other," Hamilton said. "Zeke has been around, and his personality is to be more outspoken. I'm sure he had his say and the guys responded and came out with more energy in the second half."

Joining Swann in double figures for FSU were Toney Douglas (11), Uche Echefu (10) and Jason Rich (10).

"In the second half, we just moved the ball a lot better from side to side," Swann said. "Once I hit my first shot, I knew it was on."

Lawrence Kinnard led the Blazers with 19 points, Robert Vaden had 17 and Paul Delaney scored 12.

"I think UAB is going to be an NCAA Tournament team," Hamilton said. "I think we're going to look back on this as a very important win for us."

The first half featured six lead changes, and the biggest lead either team managed was five points when UAB led 20-15 almost midway through the first period. The Blazers took a 35-33 advantage to the locker room.

The Seminoles struggled from long range in the first half, hitting only one of nine 3-point attempts.

FSU GETS COMMITMENT: The Seminoles received a signed letter-of-intent Friday from Findlay (Nev.) Prep shooting guard Deividas Dulkys, the fifth member of Hamilton's 2008 recruiting class to sign.

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