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Florida State men’s basketball to be shorthanded when it takes on No. 2 Purdue

Florida State’s men’s basketball team is about to take on its biggest challenge of the young 2021-22 season.

And it will have to do so without three key players.

The Seminoles (5-1) will put their four-game winning streak to the test in West Lafayette, Indiana when they take on second-ranked Purdue (6-0) at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday night as part of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.

An even bigger challenge for Florida State will be trying to beat the Boilermakers without starting point guard RayQuan Evans, starting 7-2 center Tanor Ngom and 7-4 reserve center Naheem McLeod.

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Evans won’t be with the team as he attends the funeral of his brother, Tye Oldelk Lafranier in Montana. Lafranier lost his battle with a rare and aggressive form of leukemia known as Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocystosis on November 20th.

Florida State Seminoles forward Malik Osborne (10) struggles to keep possession of the ball with two defenders covering him. The Florida State Seminoles narrowly defeated the Tulane Green Wave 59-54 Wednesday, Nov. 17, 2021.
Florida State Seminoles forward Malik Osborne (10) struggles to keep possession of the ball with two defenders covering him. The Florida State Seminoles narrowly defeated the Tulane Green Wave 59-54 Wednesday, Nov. 17, 2021.

Evans recorded six assists in 16 minutes to help FSU beat Missouri 81-58 to secure the championship of the inaugural Jacksonville Classic last Monday and played in both games of that event last week. Evans did not play in FSU’s 81-80 overtime victory over Boston University this past Wednesday.

“Our thoughts are with RayQuan as he goes through this period of grieving with his family,” FSU coach Leonard Hamilton said. “Both Tanor and Naheem will work with our medical staff on a daily basis to return to the court when they are healthy.”

Ngom, who already missed the first two games of the season, suffered a right knee strain during practice on Saturday and is expected to miss the remainder of the games on the Seminoles’ non-conference schedule with the hope that he could return when the team begins its full ACC slate on December 29th.

McLeod suffered a mild ankle sprain prior to Wednesday’s game and is considered day-to-day.

The setbacks will make the matchup against Purdue even more difficult as the Seminoles try to contain a strong Boilermakers’ frontcourt led by 7-foot-4 sophomore center Zach Edey and 6-10 senior forward Trevion Williams.

Edey is averaging 17.7 points and 7.7 rebounds while shooting 75 percent from the field. Williams is averaging 13 points, 7.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game.

Purdue’s backcourt is led by 6-4 sophomore guard Jaden Ivey (15 points, 6.3 rebounds, 4.2 assists per game) and 6-5 senior guard Sasha Stefanovic (13.2 points, 4.3 assists per game), who is shooting 47 percent from 3-point range.

Purdue center Zach Edey (15) reacts after a dunk against Indiana State during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in West Lafayette, Ind., Friday, Nov. 12, 2021. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
Purdue center Zach Edey (15) reacts after a dunk against Indiana State during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in West Lafayette, Ind., Friday, Nov. 12, 2021. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

The Boilermakers rank second in the nation in points per game (92.3) and their 53.7 field goal percentage ranks third nationally. Purdue’s 43.5 shooting percentage from 3-point range ranks fifth nationally and it is also ranked 11th in assists per game (19.2) and 12th in rebounds per game (43.7).

Senior forward Malik Osborne, the Most Outstanding Player of the Duval bracket of the Jacksonville Classic, leads FSU with 12.5 points and 7.7 rebounds per game while shooting 63.9 percent from the field. Freshman Matthew Cleveland and sophomore transfer guard Caleb Mills are averaging 10.8 and 10.5 points per game respectively.

FSU has won its two previous games against Purdue in the Challenge, winning the most recent meeting 73-72 in Tallahassee in 2018. The Seminoles lead the all-time series 4-0 beating Purdue 63-60 in overtime in the championship game of the Emerald Coast Classic.

FSU men's basketball at Purdue

When/where: 7:30 p.m., Mackey Arena, West Lafayette, Ind.

TV/Radio: ESPN/101.5 FM.

Reach Andre Fernandez at afernandez@tallahassee.com or follow him on Twitter @FernandezAndreC.

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This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: FSU Seminoles will be down 3 players when it faces Purdue Boilermakers