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Miller helps Florida State upend No. 10 VCU

Nov 22, 2013 - 4:32 AM San Juan, PR (SportsNetwork.com) - Ian Miller scored 22 points in a reserve role to pace Florida State to an 85-67 win over No. 10 VCU in the opening round of the Puerto Rico Tip-Off.

Devon Bookert tallied 18 points, Montay Brandon scored 14 with 11 rebounds and Okaro White netted 14 points to go with nine boards for the Seminoles (4-0), who shot a sizzling 53.7 percent from the field.

"I thought our effort tonight was a result of the healthy respect that we have for the VCU program," FSU coach Leonard Hamilton said. "They've done a tremendous job over the last four or five years - how they have branded themselves and how well they have played in tough situations. Evaluating them and trying to come up with a game plan, we knew we had to be at our very best in a lot of areas."

FSU will take on No. 14 Michigan Friday night. The Wolverines blew past Long Beach State, 85-61, earlier Thursday.

Treveon Graham had 14 points and Rob Brandenberg scored 10 for the Rams (3-1), who struggled at 29.3 percent shooting from the floor.

"We've got to get back to being more aggressive, but also playing with better discipline. We turned them over 25 times, which is great, but we did a very poor job of defending on all the other possessions," VCU coach Shaka Smart said. "That's something that we're going to work hard to address and get better at."

Terrance Shannon's jumper had the Rams within 19-18 with 11 minutes remaining in the first half, but the Seminoles scored the ensuing eight points. Miller capped the spurt by sinking two from the charity stripe.

The margin swelled to as high as 17 later in the half before Florida State settled for a 48-36 cushion at the break. Brandon's dunk in the closing seconds provided the 12-point difference.

VCU shot 11-of-40 in the second half and never made a threat. The Seminoles led by as many as 30 points.

Game Notes

Brandenberg took a hard spill late in the first half attempting to block Miller's shot. VCU was 5-of-23 from 3-point range ... Mo Alie-Cox had 11 rebounds for VCU ... The Rams won the previous matchup with Florida State 72-71 in overtime on their way to the Final Four in 2011.