Score: Florida State 76, VCU 71
Location: Atlanta, Ga. (Philips Arena)
Records: VCU 5-3, Florida State 5-2 

The Short Story: Senior Melvin Johnson exploded for 23 of his career-high 36 points in the second half – which tied the highest total by a Ram in 10 years - but Florida State held off hard-charging VCU 76-71 Sunday at Philips Arena.

OPENING TIP

• Johnson scored VCU's final 14 points, including a three with 51.1 seconds remaining to pull the Rams within 72-71.
• A transition dunk by Florida State's Terrance Mann with 23 seconds left provided the Seminoles with a three-point cushion, and Johnson's 3-point attempt from the wing with 15 seconds remaining wouldn't go down. A pair of Xavier Mayes-Rathan free throws provided the final margin.
• Johnson, who tied a career-high with eight 3-pointers (8-of-14), hit 9-of-13 shots in the second half as VCU overcame an 11-point halftime deficit.
• Senior Korey Billbury added 11 points and five rebounds for VCU, while Mo Alie-Cox buoyed VCU with 10 first half points.
• Mayes-Rathan sparked Florida State with 23 points and hit 4-of-5 three-point attempts.

• The Rams trailed by as many as 14 in the first half, but used an extended 29-11 run through the middle of the second period to take a 60-59 lead with 6:01 left. Johnson scored the final five in that salvo, including a steal and pull-up three to give the Rams their first lead since the 13:32 mark (11-9) of the first half.
• The Seminoles responded with back-to-back buckets, but Johnson buried another three to tie the game at 63-all with 4:20 left.
• Florida State quickly produced a 7-0 burst, including a go-ahead three by Mayes-Rathan, over the next 1:52. The Rams could get no closer than 72-71 the rest of the way. 

NOTABLE

• Johnson's 36 points are tied for the most by a Ram since Nick George dropped that many on William & Mary on Feb. 23, 2005. The last Ram with more was Willie Taylor, who scored 38 in a win over Hampton on Dec. 19, 2002.
• VCU shot 49 percent (16-of-33) in the second half, including 58 percent (7-of-12) from three.

QUOTABLE

• "Tough loss. I thought Mel was tremendous. I wish we would've had some other guys step up and help him out. Just overall, our first half just dug us too big a hole. We adjusted some to their length and how long they are – you know, some of the passes that are open in practice aren't open against them just because of their length. We had some trouble finishing down there. At halftime, we adjusted and we were certainly better, but it wasn't enough." – VCU Coach Will Wade. 

WHAT'S NEXT

• The Rams will take a nine-day break for finals week before they head back to Atlanta to face Georgia Tech on Dec. 15.