Florida State comes up just short in upset bid against No. 4 Duke

Published Feb. 9, 2015 9:38 p.m. ET

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) -- Coach Leonard Hamilton has seen Florida State upset a top-10 Duke six times since 2003. The Seminoles just missed out on a seventh.

Quinn Cook scored a season-high 26 points and Jahlil Okafor was 5 of 5 from the floor in the second half and finished with 13 points as No. 4 Duke held off Florida State 73-70 on Monday night.

But this one came with some last-minute drama.

Florida State pulled within one at 70-69 as Xavier Rathan-Mayes drove the lane for a layup after dribbling under the basket with 11 seconds to go. The Seminoles, however, couldn't close the gap any further in the final seconds.

Devon Bookert scored a career-high 23 points for FSU (13-12, 5-7 ACC). Bookert shot 6 of 8 but was fouled twice in the closing seconds before he was able to get a shot off as Florida State trailed by 3.

Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski refused to have Bookert take a final 3-pointer that could have sent the game to overtime.

"Bookert had a sensational game," Krzyzewski said.

Bookert made just 1 of 4 free-throws in the final seconds, including a last attempt with 1.8 seconds left that he intentionally missed, but Cook rebounded.

"Like most great teams, they found a way to counter every surge that we made," Hamilton said. "They were extremely patient."

Florida State is still a young team, learning how to battle each night in the conference with Rathan-Mayes handling the scoring load and point-guard responsibilities. Rathan-Mayes, a freshman, struggled Monday with just one assist and six turnovers.

But Hamilton isn't willing to consider this loss to a top-5 opponent as a potential building block down the stretch.

"We're past the stage of moral victories," Hamilton said. "This is the new ACC. Every game is a dogfight."

The Seminoles kept Okafor in check in the first half, holding him to just two points on a pair of free throws in eight minutes. But then he broke out in the second half.

He had eight points in less than three minutes early in the second half, the last one an emphatic dunk to put Duke ahead 40-29 with 17:14 left in the game.

Duke shot 23 of 51 (45.1 percent) from the floor, bouncing back after opening 0 for 8 from the floor.

"We didn't start out well," Krzyzewski said. "Our guys are a little bit burned out. Thank goodness that they responded."

Montay Brandon added 12 points for FSU, all in the second half. The Seminoles shot 24 of 53 (45.3 percent) from the floor.

Michael Ojo had a career-high nine rebounds and three blocks for the Seminoles.

TIP INS

Duke: Amile Jefferson hurt his head in the opening minutes Monday and finished with just three rebounds.

Florida State: Rathan-Mayes scored three points on 1-of-5 shooting in the first half. He finished with five points.

A MOMENT TO REMEMBER

A moment of silence was held before Monday's game in honor of former University of North Carolina coach Dean Smith. The coach, who died Sunday at 83, was remembered for his class and his contributions to the ACC. Smith won 879 games overall and was the Tar Heels' coach from 1961-97, winning NCAA titles in 1982 and 1993.

UP NEXT

Duke: will play at Syracuse on Saturday.

Florida State: will travel to Georgia Tech on Saturday.