National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Valparaiso 81, Florida St. 69
When: 7:00 PM ET, Thursday, March 17, 2016
Where: Athletics-Recreation Center, Valparaiso, Indiana
Officials: # Randy Heimerman, # Steve McJunkins, # Kelly Pfeifer
Attendance: 4991
By The Sports Xchange

Alec Peters poured in 26 points and grabbed nine rebounds, and Valparaiso rolled to a 81-69 win over Florida State in the second round of the NIT on Thursday in Valparaiso, Ind.

The top-seeded Crusaders (28-6) raced out to a 39-29 halftime and never relented on their home floor, where they improved to 16-1 this season.

The Crusaders will face either second-seeded Saint Mary's or third-seeded Georgia at a time, date and location to be determined in the third round of the NIT.

Valparaiso, the Horizon League champ, also got big games from guards Shane Hammink, who scored 18 points, and Keith Carter, who added 13 points and six assists.

The fourth-seeded Seminoles (20-14) saw their up-and-down season end. Florida State scored Top 25 wins over Virginia -- a No. 1 NCAA Tournament seed -- and Notre Dame before winding up in the NIT.

Xavier Rathan-Mayes led Florida State with 19 points, while the nation's highest-scoring freshman duo of Dwayne Bacon and Malik Beasley (averaging a combined 33 points a game) had a bit of an off night. The duo combined for just 28 points one game after dropping a combined 44 in Florida State's first-round win Tuesday against Davidson.

Beasley and Bacon each finished with 14 points, and backup guard Terance Mann added 10 points and six rebounds in the loss.

Horizon League Defensive Player of the Year Vashil Fernandez -- the nation's leading shot blocker -- recorded one block, two points and six boards for the Crusaders. Valparaiso forward Jubril Adekoya notched 11 points off the bench.

The Crusaders outrebounded the Seminoles 36-32, and both teams committed 12 turnovers. Florida State had eight steals as a team -- three by Bacon.
Top Game Performances
 
Florida St.   Valparaiso
Xavier Rathan-Mayes 19 Scoring Alec Peters 26
Dwayne Bacon 4 Assists Keith Carter 6
Dwayne Bacon 6 Rebounds Alec Peters 9
Xavier Rathan-Mayes 5 Free Throws Made Keith Carter 6
Dwayne Bacon 3 Steals Jubril Adekoya 2
Jarquez Smith 2 Blocks Vashil Fernandez 1
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Florida St. 69 40.7 3-15 18-26 12 24 5 8 12
Valparaiso 81 47.3 7-16 22-27 19 31 2 4 12