Associated Press

FSU's Xavier Gibson (1) is fouled by Virginia's Assane Sene (5) on Wednesday.

Associated Press

Virginia guard Jeff Jones (23) battles Florida State guard Toney Douglas (22) for a lose ball in the Cavaliers' 69-50 loss to the Seminoles on Wednesday night in Charlottesville.

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- With their periodic boos and early exodus, the spectators at John Paul Jones Arena seemed to be making a statement Wednesday night.

The honeymoon period for this year's Virginia men's basketball team, and maybe even its first-year coach, has come to an end.

Briefly tied for first place in the ACC after their first seven conference games, the Cavaliers suffered their fourth consecutive loss Wednesday night and were beaten in ignominious fashion for the second time in three days.

Visiting Florida State led by as many as 23 points and coasted to a 69-50 victory, its fifth in a row over the Cavaliers.

Virginia (14-10 overall, 5-6 ACC) was coming off an 85-66 loss Monday night at Maryland, where the Cavaliers trailed by as many as 29.

"You can't lose your heart," Bennett said, "and I think that was taken from us again tonight."

Virginia shot 37.5 percent from the field, marking its fourth consecutive game under 38 percent, and could not keep Florida State under 50 percent (28-of-56).

Maryland had shot 56.3 percent against the Cavaliers.

"Florida State's points in the paint [38] were astronomical," Bennett said.

The Seminoles (19-7, 7-5) feature 7-foot sophomore Solomon Alabi, whom Virginia was trying to guard with 6-8 Jerome Meyinsse, but it wasn't Alabi who victimized the Cavaliers. Alabi registered three of FSU's five blocks but finished with only six points and one rebound in 18 minutes.

Virginia would have taken those numbers from Alabi before the game and it wasn't any single Seminole who picked up the slack. Sophomore Chris Singleton led Florida State with 12 points but was only 4-of-13 from the field.

The Seminoles had a potent inside-outside game that included six players contributing at least one 3-pointer to a 7-for-14 night from behind the arc. And, if Florida State had converted its free throws, it could have had as many as six "old-fashioned" three-point plays.

Bennett went with a new starting lineup that included junior Jeff Jones, who had 16 points off the bench at Maryland and contributed a game-high 13 points Wednesday. The other new starter was senior Calvin Baker, who made both of his shots from the field, but had zero assists and three turnovers while serving as point guard.

After Florida State took a 33-24 halftime lead, Baker scored the first basket of the second half to cut the deficit to seven but had a turnover -- his second in three possessions -- on UVa's next trip down the floor.

When the Cavaliers dropped a 61-55 decision Saturday at Virginia Tech, Bennett said the Cavaliers were "searching" for a third scorer to support Mike Scott and Sylven Landesberg, who combined for 39 points against the Hokies.

But, as soon as Jones started making some shots, Landesberg went cold. He was 2-for-8 from the field Wednesday night and finished with a season-low four points.

"We'd been hearing a lot about that third scorer," Jones said, "but it's definitely deeper than that."

Athletic-department spokesman Rich Murray said he would not entertain media requests to speak to Landesberg.

Bennett substituted for Landesberg with 14:27 remaining in the second half, at which point the Cavaliers trailed 46-30. Landesberg returned with 7:40 left and the Seminoles ahead 54-35.

The only time he had sat for that length of time was when he picked up two first-half fouls at Wake Forest.

"We didn't have any answers," Bennett said. "I said, 'Let's get some guys with some fresh legs.' He looked sluggish tonight, as did everybody. It looked like we were stuck in mud."

The Cavaliers, who entered Wednesday night's game as a one-point favorite, lost for the third time in their last four home games and fourth time overall at JPJ. The first three losses had all gone down to the wire.

"The schedule set up favorably in the early part of the ACC [schedule] and now, with the postponement of the Maryland game, it's been more challenging," said Bennett, whose team was playing for the third time in five days.

"Being in there at Virginia Tech and against Wake at home and not coming away with those wins, I don't know what that does to the psyche. If you can battle against those teams, that's got to be the mentality every time out."

FLORIDA ST. (19-7)

Singleton 4-13 3-5 12, Reid 5-7 0-2 10, Alabi 3-5 0-0 6, Snaer 2-5 0-1 4, Kitchen 3-7 0-0 7, Jordan 0-1 0-0 0, Gibson 4-7 1-1 10, Loucks 4-4 2-3 11, Dulkys 2-4 0-0 6, Shannon 0-0 0-0 0, Rutledge 0-1 0-0 0, Yawn 0-1 0-0 0, Moreau 1-1 0-0 3. Totals 28-56 6-12 69.

VIRGINIA (14-10)

Scott 4-10 2-2 10, Meyinsse 0-2 2-4 2, Baker 2-2 0-0 5, Landesberg 2-8 0-0 4, Jones 4-6 3-4 13, Evans 0-2 0-0 0, Farrakhan 1-3 1-2 4, Sene 1-1 0-0 2, Zeglinski 2-7 0-0 5, Sherrill 0-2 0-0 0, Spurlock 2-5 1-1 5. Totals 18-48 9-13 50.

Halftime--Florida St. 33-24. 3-Point Goals--Florida St. 7-14 (Dulkys 2-4, Loucks 1-1, Moreau 1-1, Gibson 1-1, Kitchen 1-2, Singleton 1-3, Snaer 0-2), Virginia 5-18 (Jones 2-3, Baker 1-1, Farrakhan 1-2, Zeglinski 1-5, Evans 0-1, Sherrill 0-2, Landesberg 0-2, Spurlock 0-2). Fouled Out--None. Rebounds--Florida St. 34 (Kitchen, Singleton 8), Virginia 31 (Scott 6). Assists--Florida St. 15 (Loucks 4), Virginia 10 (Landesberg 4). Total Fouls--Florida St. 16, Virginia 15. A--10,365.