Florida State Seminoles
Overall Rank: #35
Conference Rank: #7 ACC
In each of the last six seasons, Florida State has not lost more than nine games. They have only missed the NCAA Tournament once since 2004. Coach Sue Semrau has turned the Seminoles into a consistent threat. That will not end this year, but FSU does lose their top three scorers. Kiah Gillespie, Nicki Ekhomu and Nausia Woolfolk were the only players on the team to average over six points per game. But this is Florida State and we can expect them to reload very quickly.
2019-20 Record: 24-8, 12-3
Coach: Sue Semrau
Coach Record: 475-257 at Florida State, 475-257 overall
Key Departed Players (starters in bold)
Kiah Gillespie, Forward, 15.6 ppg
Nicki Ekhomu, Guard, 14.9 ppg
Nausia Woolfolk, Guard, 14.2 ppg
London Clarkson, Forward, 1.2 ppg
Key Returning Players (starters in bold)
Morgan Jones, Junior, Guard, 5.8 ppg
Valencia Myers, Junior, Forward, 5.7 ppg
River Baldwin, Sophomore, Center, 5.7 ppg
Sammie Puisis, Sophomore, Guard, 5.5 ppg
Kourtney Weber, Junior, Guard, 4.7 ppg
Sayawni Lassiter, Junior, Guard, dnp last season
Key New Players
Tiana England, Senior, Guard, Grad Transfer from St. John’s
Erin Howard, Sophomore, Forward, Transfer from Auburn, not eligible
Bianca Jackson, Junior, Guard, Transfer from South Carolina
Izabela Nicoletti, Sophomore, Guard
Sara Bejedi, RS Freshman, Guard
Projection:
Florida State has plenty of options when it comes to finding new scorers. Morgan Jones and Valencia Myers were regular starters last season. Those two were in the starting lineup mostly for their rebounding and defense, but both can do some scoring around the basket. Sophomore center River Baldwin was the team’s top shot blocker as a freshman despite averaging just 15.1 minutes per game. Sammie Puisis spent her freshman campaign hoisting up a ton of three-pointers. She could emerge as more than just a sharp shooter off the bench as a sophomore. Kourtney Weber is a capable outside shooter and she will mix it up and get to the basket too. The return of Sayawni Lassiter, who missed all of last season with an injury, will add more depth to the perimeter. She averaged 13.0 minutes per game as a freshman back in 2018-2019. A couple of Division I transfers will be relied upon heavily to keep the Seminoles competitive in the ACC. Bianca Jackson comes from South Carolina where she was an SEC All-Freshman guard in 2017-2018. For the last three years, Tiana England has been the starting point guard at St. John’s. For one season she will fill the same role at Florida State. She is a solid scoring threat, but it is her ability to get her teammates involved that will be so important for the Seminoles.
Projected Postseason Tournament: NCAA
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 72.5 (39th in nation, 4th in conference)
Scoring Defense: 60.1 (76, 4)
Field-Goal Percentage: 44.9 (24, 2)
Field-Goal Defense: 37.9 (78, 4)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 6.4 (128, 5)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 33.6 (77, 4)
Free-Throw Percentage: 70.3 (155, 8)
Rebound Margin: 6.8 (30, 2)
Assists Per Game: 13.5 (131, 8)
Turnovers Per Game: 13.2 (30, 2)
