PITTSBURGH, PA - JANUARY 14: Mfiondu Kabengele #25 of the Florida State Seminoles and Kene Chukwuka #15 of the Pittsburgh Panthers battle for the ball at Petersen Events Center on January 14, 2019 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images)

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FSU basketball was in a must win predicament as they hosted Clemson Tuesday night. The Noles overcame a halftime deficit to put Clemson away 77-68.

FSU basketball (14-5, 2-4 ACC) may need to play the rest of the season unranked as that’s what it took for them to get back in the win column Tuesday night against Clemson (11-7, 1-4 ACC).

It didn’t start well for the Noles as they got dominated in the paint and on the offensive boards in the first half.

The Noles allowed Clemson to shoot 50 percent from the floor in the first half as they trailed 41-35 at the half.

The second half started with a Clemson bucket to push the lead to eight but that was their largest lead of the game. FSU basketball began to assert itself on the offensive boards and from beyond the arc.

It was the best shooting game for the Noles since they started ACC play as they shot 45.5 percent from the floor. However, they shot 10 of 22 from three-point land with David Nichols hitting on 4 of 4 from beyond the arc.

Mfiondu Kabengele led the Noles with 17 points with the aforementioned Nichols second on the team with 16 points respectively.

Terrance Mann chipped in with nine points and eight rebounds.

Three Takeaways

Three Point Shooting -This was a huge factor in the game as the Noles hadn’t shot the ball well at all from beyond the arc. They didn’t take as many three’s as usual (22) and made them at a higher percentage (45 percent).

-This was a huge factor in the game as the Noles hadn’t shot the ball well at all from beyond the arc. They didn’t take as many three’s as usual (22) and made them at a higher percentage (45 percent). Free Throw Shooting -The Noles continue to shoot the ball relatively well from the charity stripe compared to past years. They made 17 of 21 (81 percent) which is excellent and will be needed down the stretch in ACC play.

-The Noles continue to shoot the ball relatively well from the charity stripe compared to past years. They made 17 of 21 (81 percent) which is excellent and will be needed down the stretch in ACC play. Rebounding-The Noles did better in the second half but still lost the rebounding battle overall (-2) and (-1 offensive boards). It’s something they’ll need to improve upon as they have too much size and athleticism not to compete on the boards.

It was a much-needed win for the Noles as we had stressed the importance of winning games they were supposed to win.

This Clemson game was one of them. They’ll have another winnable game next time out when they travel to rival Miami Sunday for a 6 p.m. showdown on ESPNU.

The Noles beat the Canes for their only other ACC win a couple of weeks ago.