Thornton leads Seminoles over #8 Duke

Florida State 68 Duke 67 - Forward Al Thornton is making the most of his senior year at Florida State. He's scored in double figures in all 23 games this season, scored 20 or more 12 times, and has 3 double-doubles. But yesterday was possibly his best as his 21 points, 8 rebounds and floor leadership helped the Seminoles upset #8 Duke at Cameron Arena. Florida State had lost their 15 previous trips to Duke, but this time Thornton and his teammates were determined not to leave without a win.

Greg Paulus scored 23 for Duke, but Florida State held the Blue Devils scoreless in the final minute to seal the 1-point victory. Afterwards, Seminole players danced and celebrated on Duke's home court.

With the win, Florida State improved to 16-7 on the season and into a tie with Duke for 5th place in the topsy-turvy ACC at 5-4. The road victory virtually ensured that the Seminoles would receive an invitation to the NCAA Tournament, though they must still play well down the stretch and in the ACC tourney. The Seminoles advanced to 3-4 against ranked teams, the two other wins coming against Florida and Virginia Tech.

Just one game involves Top 25 teams tonight, but it's a good one. #22 Texas invades #10 Texas A&M at 9:00 EST. By the time these two tip, their rankings will almost certainly have changed. On Saturday, Texas lost at home to Kansas State, while the Aggies won at #6 Kansas.

One other game of note is in the Big East. Syracuse plays at UConn. Both teams are perennial tournament fixtures, but have fallen on lean times this season, especially the Huskies, who are 3-6 in the conference and 14-8 overall. Syracuse is 5-4 in the Big East and 16-7 overall. A win tonight by Boeheim's boys could send Calhoun's kids home early this season.