National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Florida St. 118, Nicholls State 63
When: 9:00 PM ET, Thursday, December 8, 2016
Where: Donald L. Tucker Center, Tallahassee, Florida
Officials: # Keith Kimble, # Jamie Luckie, # Brian O'Connell
Attendance: 4807

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Florida State is headed to a showdown with No. 21 Florida on Sunday after its fifth straight win, a 118-63 rout of Nicholls State on Thursday at the Donald L. Tucker Center.

Behind a team-high 18 points from guard PJ Savoy Jr., the Seminoles (9-1) raced out to a 61-24 halftime lead and never looked back. Florida State is off to its best start since the 2007-08 season, and the Seminoles improved to 7-0 at home this season.

Nicholls State (4-5) fell behind 22-2 and never had a chance. Forward Ja'Dante' Frye led the Colonels with a game-high 20 points. Guard Jahvaughn Powell finished with 14 points, and guard Johnathan Bell added 12 points and a team-high seven boards.

Savoy, who is on fire as of late after scoring a career-high 27 points Sunday in a win against Southern Miss, was one of seven Seminoles who scored in double figures.

Florida State guards Dwayne Bacon and Xavier Rathan-Mayes each scored 16 points. Bacon added five rebounds and four assists and Rathan-Mayes notched a team-high seven assists. Guard Braian Angola-Rodas chipped in 14 points and five assists. Center Michael Ojo was 5 of 5 from the field and finished with 10 points.

Coming in late and pouring in buckets were guards Trent Forrest with 13 points and Brandon Allen with 11 points.

Florida State played its third game in five days, but the Seminoles won't have much rest before facing No. 21 Florida.

Thursday's game marked the second consecutive season and fourth time in school history the schools met in basketball. Florida State opened its 2014-15 regular season with a 109-62 victory -- its largest margin of victory during the season -- over the Colonels in Tallahassee.

Nicholls State, which lost its second straight Thursday, will try to rebound Sunday against Thomas University of Georgia.
Top Game Performances
 
Nicholls State   Florida St.
Ja'Dante' Frye 20 Scoring PJ Savoy 18
Jahvaughn Powell 5 Assists Xavier Rathan-Mayes 7
Johnathan Bell 7 Rebounds Xavier Rathan-Mayes 7
Ja'Dante' Frye 9 Free Throws Made Braian Angola-Rodas 4
Johnathan Bell 1 Steals Xavier Rathan-Mayes 3
Liam Thomas 2 Blocks Christ Koumadje 3
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Nicholls State 63 33.9 4-23 17-22 11 26 5 4 20
Florida St. 118 62.5 17-32 11-12 32 34 7 10 11