Shon Abaev tied his career high with 20 points, grabbed seven rebounds and dished a game-best six assists as Florida State defeated Troy 91-68 on Friday night in Tallahassee, Fla.
Abaev had that previous 20-point game last season for Cincinnati. He posted a four-point play early in Friday’s game after he was fouled on a deep shot coming off a screen, part of a 12-2 start for the Seminoles.
Sebastian Rancik, who scored 25 points in his Florida State debut on Monday, scored in double figures again with 18.
Marcis Ponder, Florida’s State 7-foot, 285-pound freshman, had 10 points and a game-high 10 rebounds, and Kam Taylor scored 15 points.
For Ponder, he now has two double-doubles in his two college games.
The Seminoles (2-0) avenged a 79-72 loss to Troy in 2022, which was the last time these teams had played prior to Friday. Florida State now leads the all-time series, 10-2.
Troy (0-2) was led by Sam Walters and Caden Diggs, each with 11 points. Robert Davis Jr. added nine points.
Donovan Oday, who had 21 points and 12 rebounds in Troy’s opener, was held to seven points and two rebounds.
Florida State led by as many as 14 points in the first half after its fast start.
However, Troy cut its deficit to 17-12 at the 10-minute mark of the first half. At that point, Florida State was shooting just 30.8% from the floor.
By halftime, Florida State led 37-26. Both teams shot 32.1% from the floor, but the Seminoles held a 25-10 edge on rebounds. Free throws also kept the Seminoles on top as they made 15 of 18 while Troy made precious few trips to the line (4-of-5).
Rancik led all first-half scorers with 10 points, and Abaev had eight.
Troy made the first shot of the second half, a 3-pointer by Davis that cut the Seminoles’ lead to 37-29.
That was as close as the Trojans got to Florida State the rest of the way.
For the game, Florida State dominated the boards, 46-21, including 18-5 on the offensive glass. Florida State also made 34 of 39 free throws while Troy made 13 of 21.
Those stats were the difference as both teams shot under 44 percent from the floor.