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ON ECHEFU: Will be a starter for Florida State for the third consecutive season as a senior who will need to continue his improvement for the Seminoles to be successful during the 2008-09 season...has started 68 of the last 69 games in the last two seasons and has played in 98 games during his three-year Seminole career...has played in 98 of 99 career games and will play in his 100th career game during the early part of his senior season...with 98 career games played he has a very real shot at eclipsing the current school record of 129 career games played...the current games played record of 129 is held by Jason Rich (2005-08) and Andrew Wilson (2001-06)...One of the all-time leaders in school history in blocked shots with 56 - he is in 19th place in school history entering the 2008-09 season...44 blocked shots will allow him to reach the 100 milestone for his career and become only the 10th player in school history with 100 or more blocked shots...also one of the top free throw shooters in school history with a .774 mark for his career including a career-high 814 percentage during his junior season...he is ranked tied for 16th in school history in free throw shooting percentage...one of the most improved free throw shooters in school history - after shooting .545 from the line during his freshman season, he shot .799 from the line during his sophomore and junior seasons...finished his junior season ranked seventh in the ACC in free throw shooting with his career-high .814 mark...led the Seminoles with six double-doubles as a junior and has seven for his career entering his senior season...only 27 players in school history have earned 10 or more double-doubles in school history...saw his plying time and statistics soar during his sophomore season and should he realize that same type of improvement during his junior season he will be well on his way to achieving elite status among the players in the ACC and in the nation...one of the most heralded players in the Leonard Hamilton era, Echefu selected Florida State over North Carolina, Maryland and Duke in a recruiting battle that came down to the last day of the national signing period during the spring of 2005...ranked as the 11th best power forward and the 37th best overall high school player in the nation by Dave Telep... the No. 2 center prospect and the No. 45 overall prospect in the nation by Rivals.com...ranked as the No. 1 power forward prospect in the state of Maryland his senior season...a four-star prospect and rated the 34th best prep player in the nation by scout.com...named the Gatorade Player of the Year in the state of Maryland....earned All-Met First-Team honors by the Washington Post...has a good perimeter jumper, the ability to go inside and play the power game, runs the floor well and is extremely competitive....earned the Tip of the Spear Award from the Seminole coaching staff at the team's annual honor banquet in 2006...the award represented his true passion for the game and his dedication to improving his game each and every day in practice...earned three awards at the 2008 men's basketball honors banquet: Most Improved Academic Student Athlete, Dave Cowens Chairman of the Boards at the Seminoles' top rebounder and the Unsung Hero Award from the coaching staff...
AS A JUNIOR (2008): Averaged a career-high 10.0 points (fifth on the team), a career-high 7.3 rebounds (first), a career-high 1.0 blocked shots (first) while shooting a career-high 460 from the field and a career-high .814 from the free throw line...with 651 career points scored he his only 349 points from joining the Seminoles' all-time 1,000 career points scored list...he would become the 42nd overall player in school history to reach the mark...averaged 8.7 points and 8.0 rebounds in nine games against five teams who played in the NCAA Tournament...averaged 10.1 points and 7.3 rebounds in seven games against seven teams that played in the NIT...shot .909 from the free throw line (30-of-33) against the Seminoles' 2007-08 opponents who played in the NIT...led the Seminoles in rebounding an incredible 23 times including 12 times against ACC competition...his career-high six double-doubles ranked him as the team leader while his three double-doubles against ACC competition was more than any other Seminole had during the entire season...he has recorded seven double-doubles during his career through his junior season...the Seminoles top free throw shooter during the course of the entire 2007-08 season...he shot .814 from the line in 34 games as he made a career-high 105 free throws in a career-high 129 attempts...ranked seventh in the ACC in free throw shooting percentage...he was a perfect 11of-11 from the line in the Seminoles' come from behind victory over La Salle (Jan. 5)...his perfect performance from the free throw line against the Explorers allowed Florida State to take an 81-76 victory in its final regular non-conference home game of the season...he made seven-of-seven free throws in the second half in scoring 19 points and leading Florida State back from as much as a nine-point deficit in the second half...he was a perfect four-of four in the final seven minutes after Florida State had fallen behind by a 65-56 margin...Florida State outscored La Salle, 25-15, in the final seven minutes of the game to gain the victory...was also a perfect seven-of-seven from the free throw line in the Seminoles' victory over NC State on Feb. 27 in Raleigh...made nine free throws against Cleveland State (Nov. 17), in the Seminoles' victory over Minnesota (Nov. 27) and totaled eight free throws as Florida State rallied to defeat the College of Charleston (Dec. 18)...ranked fourth on the team with two 20 point scoring games...he scored 24 vs. Clemson (Jan. 12) and 20 vs. Akron (March 18)...led the Seminoles with seven games of 10 rebounds or more and ranked third on the team with six games as the Seminoles' leading scorer...Florida State's leading rebounder in an incredible 23 games...(vs. Boston College): scored eight points and pulled down five rebounds in 29 minutes of play in Florida State's only game of the season against Boston College...the Seminoles defeated the Eagles, 66-63, in the game that was played in Tallahassee (Feb. 23)...Echefu turned in one of the biggest plays of the season as he earned a steal off of Boston College point guard Tyrese Rice with 12 seconds remaining in the game and the Seminoles up by four at 64-60...following Echefu's steal the ball was passed to Florida State's Toney Douglas who was fouled put on the line for two free throws...he made the free throws to essential secure the victory for Florida State...he scored six points in the second half to help the Seminoles keep the lead throughout the final 20 minutes and gain the victory...he scored the first basket of the game to give Florida State the 2-0 lead - the Seminoles never trailed after that point and won the game for their first victory over Boston College in four tries since the Eagles joined the ACC...(vs. Clemson): averaged a near double-double of 14.5 points and 9.0 rebounds in two games against NCAA Tournament participant Clemson...shot well from the field (.558 / 10-of-18) and the free throw line (.938 / 15-of-16) and averaged 38.0 minutes as the Seminoles and the Tigers split the two game series with each team winning on their home court...first career ACC double-double of 24 points and 12 rebounds as the Seminoles battled the Tigers into double overtime in on the road in Clemson (Jan. 12)...the 24 points ranks as Echefu's career-high scoring total for a single game...was Florida State's leading scorer in the first half with 15 points and then paced Florida State in the overtime periods with nine points as the Tigers sent the game into the first overtime with prayer of a shot to tie the game at 67 and again sent the game into overtime with a gift of a basket to tie the game at 78...his 12 rebounds against the Tigers ranked as the most rebounds in a single game for the Seminoles during the season...put the Seminoles ahead in the second overtime at 78-76 with a 3-point shot with 15 second left in the first extra session...the Tigers tied the game on a tip-in by James Mays to tie the game at 78 and force a second extra session...Scored five points and pulled down six rebounds as the Seminoles defeated the Tigers in Tallahassee (Feb. 19)...his two points in the first half helped the Seminoles jump to a nearly insurmountable 35-17 lead at the intermission...scored three points on an old fashioned three point play to give Florida State its largest lead of the second half at 43-26 (+17)...(vs. Duke): scored six points, pulled down seven rebounds and blocked a career-high tying three shots in Florida State's only game against NCAA Tournament participant Duke during his junior season...Echefu's seven rebounds marked one of 23 times he led the Seminoles in rebounding as the Blue Devils won, 70-57, in Tallahassee (Jan. 16)...also earned two steals against the Blue Devils...(vs. Georgia Tech): scored 11 points and pulled down eight rebounds as the Seminoles traveled to play at Georgia Tech (Dec. 30)...his play helped elevate the shorthanded Seminoles to the 66-64 conference opening victory over the Yellow Jackets on the road...the bulk of his scoring damage was done in the first half when he totaled nine points to help Florida State to a 40-34 advantage at the intermission...began the Seminoles' comeback fro 10 points down after only three minutes played...he made a 3-point shot to trim the deficit to seven (12-7 / 16:33 mark) and added a traditional 3-point play at the 13:24 mark to slice the lead to five at 19-14...beginning with Echefu's 3-point shot at the 16:33 mark, the Seminoles outscored Georgia Tech 38-22 to take the halftime lead...his only two points of the second half help the Seminoles increase their lead to four at 48-44 with 12:29 remaining in the game...the Seminoles won the game on a late jumper by Jason Rich to take the 66-64 win...Echefu was the Seminoles' tallest player available in the game as sophomore Ryan Reid missed the game due to a suspension because of a violation of team rules and freshmen Julian Vaughn and Solomon Alabi missed the game because of injuries...(vs. Maryland): scored two points and pulled down five rebounds in the Seminoles only game against NIT participant Maryland during the 2007-08 season...he also blocked two shots as the Terps defeated the Seminoles, 82-72, in College Park (Feb. 16)...(vs. Miami): averaged 5.0 points and a team-leading 8.0 rebounds in two games against NCAA Tournament participant Miami as the Seminoles swept the season series against the Hurricanes for the second consecutive season...The Seminoles won 62-55 in Coral Gables and defeated the Hurricanes 75-72 in overtime in Tallahassee...scored 10 points and pulled down eight rebounds as the Seminoles rallied to defeat Miami on the road for their second ACC road victory of the season (Feb. 6)...scored six second half points including two free throws that ultimately proved to be the game winning points...after he was fouled by Brian Asbury, he made his first free throw to tie the game at 37 and his second to put Florida State up 38-37 with 12:09 left in the game...a jumper with only 1:01 left in the game essentially put the game out of the Hurricanes' reach at 57-50 and led Florida State to the victory...scored zero points but pulled down eight rebounds in the Seminoles' 75-72 overtime victory over Miami in Tallahassee (March 8)...the game was on senior day as was his only non-starting assignment of the season...despite not scoring a point he pulled down a team-high tying eight rebounds and blocked one shot...four of his rebounds came after halftime with one coming in the overtime period to help push Florida State to the season sweep...(vs. North Carolina): averaged 8.7 points and 6.3 rebounds in three games against NCAA Tournament No. 1 overall seed and ACC Tournament champion North Carolina...scored nine points and totaled seven rebounds and two steals as the Seminoles played host to North Carolina in Tallahassee (Feb. 3)...scored seven of his nine points in the second half as the Seminoles rallied from a second half deficit to tie the game and send it into overtime...his dunk at the 17:29 mark gave the Seminoles a 37-36 lead and his lay-up at the 15:00 mark tied the game at 41-41...the Seminoles sent the game into overtime on a last second 3-point shot at the end of the second half before falling 84-73...scored 14 points and pulled down three rebounds as the Seminoles traveled to play at Chapel Hill (March 4)...was very active offensively in the first half as he led both teams with 12 points on four-of-five shooting from the field...scored the first two points of the games and helped the Seminoles jump out to an early 7-0 lead with only 1:38 elapsed in the game...helped the Seminoles hold the lead for the first 10 minutes of the second half against the No. 1 ranked Tar Heels...scored three points and pulled down nine rebounds as the Seminoles faced the Tar Heels in the quarterfinal round of the ACC Tournament at the Charlotte Bobcats Arena (March 14)...North Carolina pulled away in the second half for the 82-70 win...(vs. NC State): averaged a near double-double of 13.0 points and 8.0 rebounds in two games against NC State...was a perfect nine-of-nine from the free throw line in the two games against the Wolfpack with each team winning on the other teams home court...was one of five Seminole players to average in double figure scoring against NC State as the teams split the two-game series...scored 14 points and pulled down six rebounds as the Seminoles played host to NC State in Tallahassee (Jan. 26)...eight points early in the second half helped Florida State jump to as much as a 12-point first half lead...totaled two 3-point shots and a jumper for eight points to move the Seminoles to a 20-14 lead with just over nine minutes remaining in the first half...six second half points - including the first four of the second half - helped the Seminoles get back into the game after trailing 36-31 at the half...NC State held on to earn the ACC road victory by a 69-63 margin...a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds helped the Seminoles to the 72-62 victory in Raleigh (Feb. 27) for Florida State's third ACC road victory of the season...totaled eight points on two-of-two shooting from the field and three-of -three shooting from the free throw line to help Florida State to a 32-24 halftime advantage...scored six of Florida State's first eight points as the Seminoles jumped out to a 12-0 advantage in the first five minutes of the game...he added two free throws to give Florida State a 17-point lead at 23-6 with 8:49 remaining in the first half...a perfect four-of-four from the free throw line in the final 46 seconds of the game gave Florida State its final margin of victory and the win on the road in conference play...(vs. Virginia): scored four points and pulled down five rebounds in the Seminoles' only game against Virginia during his junior season...also blocked one shot in 32 minutes of play as Florida State defeated the Cavaliers, 69-67, in Tallahassee (Jan. 23)...scored two first half points to push Florida State to a 31-28 lead at the intermission and totaled two points in the second half to help Florida State to the two point victory...his first half points counted as the first basket and points of the game to give Florida State a 2-0 lead...the Seminoles recovered from as much as a 10-point first half deficit to hold a three point lead at the intermission...a second half lay-up with 17:35 left in the game gave Florida State a 37-32 lead as the Seminoles once again rallied from as much as a 10-point deficit to take the lead and win the game...(vs. Virginia Tech): scored five points and pulled down a team-leading seven rebounds as the Seminoles traveled to play Virginia Tech in the road in the only meeting between the two teams during the 2007-08 season...was three of four from the free throw line and blocked one shot as the Hokies won at home 89-80 (Jan. 29)...all five of his points came in the second half as the Seminoles mounted their best second half comeback of the season...Florida State outscored Virginia Tech, 56-47, and got back into a game that they were seemingly out of at halftime...the Seminoles shot a lowly 38 percent in the first half and trailed, 42-24, at the intermission...Florida State's 56 points in the second half marked a season-high for the Seminoles...(vs. Wake Forest): averaged 7.0 points and 9.0 rebounds in two games against Wake Forest...a double-double of 13 points and 11 rebounds as the Seminoles traveled to play at Wake Forest (Jan. 20)...his 11 rebounds allowed to earn game-high honors as the Seminoles fell to the Demon Deacons 74-57 in Winston-Salem...all 13 of his points came in the first half to help Florida State to a 31-28 halftime advantage...scored six consecutive points for the Seminoles as they to a 17-10 lead at the halfway mark of the first half... Echefu scored on two free throws, a jumper and a lay-up in a 36 second span to boost Florida State to the early lead...he added a 3-pointer at the 6:58 mark to extend the Seminoles lead to nine at 23-14...two late first half free throws helped Florida State the three point lead into the locker room at halftime...scored two points and pulled down eight rebounds as the Seminoles played host to Wake Forest in Tallahassee (Feb. 14)...his eight rebounds allowed him to earn team-high honors for the Seminoles...(vs. Akron in the NIT): a double-double of 20 points and 10 rebounds as Florida State played host to Akron in the first round of the NIT in Tallahassee (March 18)...he earned team-high honors with his 20 points and tied for team and game high honors with his 10 rebounds...the Zips won the game in overtime, 65-60...helped keep Florida State in the game in the first half with eight points, five rebounds and one blocked shot...began the Seminoles' first half comeback with five points in a 30 second span to begin a 21-7 Seminole spurt to close the half...with the Seminoles behind 20-5 (-15 points) at the 10:55 mark, Echefu hit a 3-pointer at the 10:35 mark (20-8) and flushed home a slam dunk at the 10:05 mark to make the score 20-10...Florida State recovered from the 20-5 deficit at the 10:55 mark to lead by one at the 2:44 mark on a 3-point shot by Jordan DeMercy...DeMercy's 3-point shot made the score 26-25 in favor the Seminoles...championed the Seminoles' comeback in the second half with seven points including a jumper at the 13:58 mark to give the Seminoles at 38-36 advantage and an old fashioned three-point play to pull Florida State to within three at 50-47 with 2:57 left in regulation...his three-point play jettisoned the Seminoles to a 7-1 regulation ending run which enabled them to send the game into overtime with the score tied 51-51...scored five of the Seminoles' nine points in overtime...(vs. Florida): scored 10 points and pulled down six rebounds as Florida State defeated Florida, 65-51, in Gainesville (Nov. 23)...scored the first six points of the game as Florida State jumped on the Gators quickly to take control of the game...he scored the first points of the game on two free throws, was true on a lay-up and hit two more free throws in the first 2:29 of the game to put the Seminoles up 6-2 before the Gators knew what hit them...added a jumper at the 5:38 mark of the first half to give the Seminoles a commanding 31-12 lead...his only two points of the second half gave Florida State at 40-25 lead with 16:52 left in the game...the victory was Florida State's second consecutive over the Gators...
AS A SOPHOMORE (2007): Averaged 6.9 points (fifth on the team), 4.3 rebounds (second), 0.6 blocked shots per game (second) and 0.8 steals (seventh) while shooting .773 (fourth) as started all 35 games for the Seminoles...was one of only two Seminoles (he was joined by only All-American Al Thornton) who started every game during the 2006-07 season...also saw his conference production go up as he averaged 7.2 points and 4.7 rebounds in 16 ACC games during the season...earned single-season career-high statistics for games played (35), games started (35), 3-point field goals made (25), 3-point field goals attempted (76), assists (20), steals (29)...ranked fifth on the team with a single-season career-high 10 double figure scoring games...he scored in double figures five times during the ACC schedule and once in the NIT (against Michigan)...scored his ACC season-high of 13 points at Georgia Tech (Jan. 13), at home vs. Miami (Jan. 20) and at home against NC State (Feb. 24) while his ACC season-high for rebounds of 10 came at Maryland (Feb. 21)...led the team in rebounding only three times in ranking second on the team in rebounds for the season...led the Seminoles in rebounds against High Point (Dec. 18) and against North Carolina in the ACC Tournament (March 9) and tied for team lead against Coastal Carolina (Dec. 21)...double figure rebounding came for the first two times in his career with 12 against High Point and 10 at Maryland (Feb. 21)...pulled down at least five rebounds in 16 different games...second on the team in blocked shots with 20 and blocked at least one shot in 13 different games...two blocked shots in seven different games including one ACC regular season game (at Virginia), in one ACC Tournament game (vs. North Carolina) and in one of the Seminoles' three NIT games (vs. Michigan)...shot 773 from the free throw line to help the Seminoles finish ninth in the nation in free throw shooting with a .758 team free throw shooting percentage...he improved his free throw shooting statistics by nearly 23 percentage points as he made 46 free throws more and attempted 53 more free throws as a sophomore as compared to his freshman season...made his season-high of eight free throws and attempted his season-high of 10 free throws in the Seminoles' victory at Stetson (Dec. 5)...was perfect from the free throw line at Pittsburgh (four-of-four), at Wisconsin (four-of-four)and at Georgia Tech (six-of-six) as he dramatically improved his ability to help the team from the free throw line...finished tied for fifth on the team with a single-season career-high 25 3-point field goals made including his career-high of three against both Pittsburgh (Nov. 24) and Miami (Jan. 20)...he made four shots from the bonusphere as a freshman and upped his total to 25 as a sophomore...played 734 minutes and averaged 21.0 minutes per game to rank fifth on the team in minutes played...he played at least 20 minutes in 23 of the Seminoles' 35 games and played his career-high of 37 minutes against North Carolina in the ACC Tournament...at least 30 minutes played came against Virginia on the road (Feb. 17, 31 minutes) and against North Carolina (March 9, 37 minutes)...fewest minutes played in a game was 13 as a sophomore as compared to his average of 7.4 minutes played per game as a freshman...(vs. Boston College): averaged 6.5 points and 3.5 rebounds in two games against NCAA Tournament participant Boston College...one of five Seminoles in double-figure scoring with 10 points as Florida State traveled to play at Chestnut Hill (Jan. 23)...scored six points in the second half - both on 3-point shots - as the Seminoles attempted to gain the ACC win on the road...both shots from the bonushpere in the second half came within 48 seconds of each other...his first pulled the Seminoles to within two at 46-48 with 17:55 left in the game and the second put Florida State up by one at 49-48 with 17:07 remaining...Boston College gained the win as Sean Marshall hit a buzzer-beating 3-point shot to give the Eagles the 85-82 victory...held to three points in 21 minutes of action as the Seminoles played host to Boston College in Tallahassee (Feb. 11)...all three points in the first half to help the Seminoles to a 37-33 halftime lead...the Eagles recovered to win that game on a jumper by Tyrelle Blair with five seconds left in the game to win 68-67...(vs. Clemson): averaged 4.7 points and 3.0 rebounds in three games against NIT Participant Clemson...earned four steals in the three-game series to earn an average of 1.3 steals per game...totaled seven points and three rebounds as Florida State played host to Clemson in Tallahassee (Jan. 3)...five of his seven points came in the first half and helped Florida State climb out of as much as a 12-point deficit to trail by only five at halftime...scored the Seminoles final three points of the first half on a traditional 3-point play with 47 seconds left before the intermission to draw the Seminoles to within 36-41...his three-point play helped Florida State score the final seven points of the half to take a 12-point deficit with 2:12 to a working five-point margin with 47 seconds lefts and allowed them not to fall any further behind in the remaining seconds of the half...Clemson regrouped to win the game, 68-66, on a last-second lay-up by Cliff Hammonds...scored one point on one of two free throws in 17 minutes of play as Florida State traveled to play at Clemson (Feb. 4)...the Tigers won the game 71-58...totaled six points, one rebound and two steals in 20 minutes to help the Seminoles past the Tigers in the first round of the ACC Tournament at the St. Pete Times Forum (March 8)...four points in the first half and two in the second as the Seminoles won 67-66...Florida State won the game on a free throw with one second remaining by All-American Al Thornton to advance to the quarterfinals of the tournament...(vs. Duke): scored 12 points and pulled down six rebounds in the Seminoles only game of the season against NCAA Tournament participant Duke...he was the Seminoles' third highest scorer with 12 points and ranked second on the team with six rebounds as Florida State won in Durham for the first time in school history...shot the basketball well from the field as he made four of his six field goal attempts including two of three from long range...was the biggest of the Seminoles in the first half as he scored all 12 of his points in 16 minutes of playing time...his 12 points helped Florida State nearly erase a 17-point deficit, gin the momentum of the game, and earn the victory over the No. 8 ranked Blue Devils in Durham (Feb. 4)...scored eight of Florida State's final 11 points of the first half as the Seminoles went from down 20-29 with 5:50 left before the intermission to down 33-36 at the halftime buzzer...totaled 10 of his 12 points for the game in the final 8:17 of the first half after the Seminoles had fallen behind by as many as 17 (10-27 at the 9:47 mark)...scored on a lay-up with 8:17 remaining to bring the Seminoles to within 27-14 and start a 19-6 half-ending run...in addition to his 10 points, he earned two rebounds that led to three free throws (for two points of his own) one assist on a thunderous dunk by All-American Al Thornton as the Seminoles gained one of the most improbable and exciting victories in school history...played only four second half minutes but contributed two important rebounds as Florida State outscored Duke 35-31 in the second half to win the game...(vs. Georgia Tech): averaged 7.5 points and 4.0 rebounds in two games against NCAA Tournament participant Georgia Tech...shot .875 from the free throw line as he made six of seven free throw attempts against the Yellow Jackets...one of three Seminoles in double figures with 13 points and four rebounds as the Seminoles traveled to play Georgia Tech in Atlanta (Jan. 13)...nine of his 13 points came in the second half as the Seminoles worked to dig themselves out of a seven-point halftime deficit...was a perfect six-of-six from the free throw line in the second half as the Seminoles were outscored by only one point as the Yellow Jackets took the 88-80 win...scored two points and pulled down four rebounds as the Seminoles played host to Georgia Tech in Tallahassee (Feb. 13)...scored two points on a first-half lay-up to help the Seminoles move out to a 35-30 halftime lead...the Seminoles were limited to 22 second half points and fell at home, 63-57...(vs. Maryland): averaged 6.0 points and 7.5 rebounds in two games against NCAA Tournament participant Maryland...pulled down more rebounds (15) than he scored points (12) as the Seminoles and the Terps split the two-game regular season series...scored five points and added five rebounds as Florida State defeated Maryland in Tallahassee, 96-79 (Jan. 30)...all five points in the first half - on a dunk and a 3-point shot - as the Seminoles ran out early and led for virtually the entire game...his dunk at the 16:02 mark gave the Seminoles a 12-8 lead and his 3-point shot put the Seminoles up four (42-38) with 4:47 left before halftime...both of his baskets extended the Seminoles lead and allowed them to lead, 49-46, at halftime...recorded three rebounds in only four minutes of play as the Seminoles won going away to even their record at 4-4 in the ACC...totaled seven points and pulled down his ACC career-high of 10 rebounds as Florida State traveled to College Park to play the Terps (Feb. 21)...his 10 rebounds ranked second on the team and second-highest for the game as All-American Al Thornton led both teams with 15 rebounds...(vs. Miami): averaged 10.5 points and 3.0 rebounds in two games against Miami...was the Seminoles' third leading of four double figure scorers as Florida State took both games of the regular season home-and-home series against the Hurricanes...shot the ball well from the field as he made better than 61 percent of his shots (eight-of-13) in the two games...led the Seminoles in blocked shots with three as Florida State swept the season series from Miami for the first time as ACC foes...totaled 13 points to rank as one of four Seminoles in double figure scoring as Florida State defeated Miami in Tallahassee 86-67 (Jan. 20)...three first half points on a 3-point shots and a team-high 10 points in the second half as the Seminoles ran away from the Hurricanes...his early 3-point shot sent Florida State in its way with a 16-8 lead less than five minutes into the game...his 10 second half points allowed the Seminoles to outscore the Hurricanes by 19 to gain the ACC win at home...scored eight points, pulled down three rebounds and was credited with two steals in 26 minutes of play as Florida State defeated Miami in Coral Gables, 98-90, in overtime to win their regular season final and go into the postseason with an overall record of 19-11 and an ACC record of 7-9...was solid in the overtime period with a made lay-up, a rebound that led directly to a pair of free throws by All-American Al Thornton and a steal that led to a dunk by Thornton as the Seminoles outscored Miami, 16-8 in the extra session to earn the win...four points in the second half on two free throws and a dunk may have been his most important of the game...his second half points allowed Florida State to erase a 37-33 halftime deficit and outscore Miami 49-45 in the second half to tie the game at 82 and send into overtime where the Seminoles took control and won the game...(vs. North Carolina): averaged 5.0 points and 7.0 rebounds in two games against NCAA Tournament participant North Carolina...second on the team in rebounding with 14 total in the two game series and had four blocked shots for a 2.0 blocked shots per game average against the Tar Heels...scored one point and pulled down six rebounds as the Seminoles played at North Carolina (Jan. 7)...scored nine points and pulled down a team-high eight rebounds against North Carolina in the quarterfinal round of the ACC Tournament at the St. Pete Times Forum (March 9)...tied his career-high with three steals against the Tar Heels...(vs. NC State): scored 13 points and pulled down a team-high seven rebounds in Florida State's only game of the season against NIT participant NC State...led the Seminoles in rebounding with seven as Florida State outrebounded the Wolfpack, 33-23, in earning the win on Senior Day in Tallahassee...one of four Seminoles in double figures as Florida State defeated NC State, 78-52, on Senior Day in Tallahassee (Feb. 24)...13 points tied his ACC career-high...four first half points helped Florida State lead wire-to-wire and nine points in the second half helped the Seminoles run out to their largest victory over an ACC team during the 2006-07 season...(vs. Virginia): scored eight points and pulled down nine rebounds in earning a near double-double in the Seminoles' only game against NCAA Tournament participant Virginia...played 31 minutes - the second highest single-game total of his career...was instrumental in the Seminoles second-half comeback to return and nearly win the game in Florida State's first visit to the Cavaliers new home - the John Paul Jones Arena...after trailing by as many as 12 in the second half the Seminoles closed the deficit to one with 12:31 left in the game...it was two free throws by Echefu that drew the Seminoles to within 45-46 at the 12:31 mark...Florida State was unable to catch the Cavaliers and fell on the road, 73-70...six rebounds in the second half allowed Florida State to outrebound the home standing Cavaliers 41-40 for the game...(vs. Virginia Tech): scored six points and pulled down two rebounds in Florida State's only game of the season against NCAA Tournament participant Virginia Tech...his six points came on four shots - he was perfect (one-of-one) from the 3-point line and perfect (three-of-three) from the free throw line as the Seminoles earned the victory at home (Jan. 17)...scored the first three points of the game on three free throws after he was fouled by the Hokies' Coleman Collins on a 3-point shot with less than one minute elapsed in the game...his three free throws allowed the Seminoles never to trail in the game...Virginia Tech tied the game on a 3-point shot by Zabian Dowdell less than 30 seconds after Echefu's free throws but never took the lead...he added three points the easy way - on a 3-point shot to give the Seminoles an 8-3 lead and they never looked back...his points were important once again as Virginia Tech pulled to within one at 51-52 with 9:35 remaining but were unable to tie the game or take the lead...(vs. Wake Forest): scored six points and pulled down one rebound in Florida State's only game against Wake Forest during the 2006-07 season...continued his streak of scoring important points with four second half points against the Demon Deacons to help Florida State rally from as much as an eight-point first half deficit and a 30-32 halftime disadvantage to win in Tallahassee, 74-66 (Jan. 27)...put Florida State up for the first time in the game, 34-32, with a lay-up at the 19:17 mark of the second half...gave the Seminoles another lead, 38-36, with another lay-up at the 18:19 mark...the Seminoles led for virtually the entire remainder of the game and won their third conference game of the season...(vs. Toledo, Michigan and Mississippi State in the NIT): averaged 3.7 points and 2.7 rebounds in three games against Toledo, Michigan and Mississippi State in the 2007 MasterCard NIT...was tied for second on the team with two blocked shots as the Seminoles advanced to the quarterfinals of the event with victories over Toledo and Michigan...scored four points and added two rebounds and two steals in 13 minutes of play as Florida State defeated Toledo in the first round of the 2007 MasterCard NIT in Tallahassee (March 13)...all four points in the second half as the Seminoles took the first round game, 77-61, by 16 of the Rockets of the Mid-American Conference...one of a season-high six Seminoles in double figures with 11 and two steals in 20 minutes to help Florida State passed Michigan, 87-66, in the second round of the NIT in Tallahassee (March 15)...two free throws started a 13-4 first half ending run that allowed Florida State to take a commanding 41-30 halftime lead...Echefu hit two free throws at the 2:49 mark to lift the Seminoles to a 30-26 lead and closed out the half with a 3-pointer with three seconds left before the intermission to put Florida State up 41-30...scored five points in the second half to help Florida State outscore Michigan by 10 to take the victory...zero points, five rebounds and one assist as the Seminoles traveled to play at Mississippi State in the quarterfinals of the NIT...the Bulldogs defeated the Seminoles, 86-71...(vs. Florida): scored three points and pulled down three rebounds in 20 minutes of play in the Seminoles' victory over NCAA Tournament participant Florida...blocked two shots for the first time in his career and earned one steal as Florida State gained one of its biggest wins of the season over the Gators...three points in the first half to lead the Seminoles to the 36-31 lead in their monumental 70-66 victory over the No. 4 ranked Gators...the loss was one of five on the entire season for Florida...
AS A FRESHMAN (2006): Averaged 2.3 points (11th on the team) and 1.4 rebounds (tied for ninth) while playing in 29 of the Seminoles' 30 games....saw action in 15 of the Seminoles' 16 ACC games and in both of Florida State's games in the NIT...began the season on fire as he averaged 4.8 points and 15.4 minutes played in each of the first five games of the season...earned a season-high of 20 minutes in his first career game against Jacksonville (Nov. 19)...scored four points, pulled down four rebounds and added one steal in 20 minutes of play against the Dolphins...played in each of Florida State's first 10 (all of the non-conference games) games as the Seminoles ran out to a 9-1 record...included in those victories were wins over Purdue in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, Bowling Green in the Coors Classic and Nebraska in the Orange Bowl Classic...scored his season-high of eight points and added three rebounds and one blocked shot against Purdue in Tallahassee (Nov. 29)...he made a season-high three field goals and a career-high tying two free throws in the win over the Boilermakers...five of his eight points came in the second half as the Seminoles ran away with the game and earned a Challenge record for margin of victory in winning the game 97-57 (+40 points)...scored four points and pulled down three rebounds as the Seminoles defeated Bowling Green (Dec. 17) in a game played in Mobile, Ala...all four points came in the first half and helped Florida State take a 30-28 halftime lead in a 71-60 victory over the Falcons...was productive against Nebraska (Dec. 31) with two assists, one rebound and one steal in 11 minutes of playing time in the 74-60 win over the Cornhuskers...(vs. Boston College): scored 0 points and pulled down two rebounds as the Seminoles played one game against NCAA Tournament participant Boston College...his two rebounds came in three minutes as Florida State traveled to play at Boston College for the first time in school history (Jan. 14)...his two rebounds sparked the Seminoles to a 38-34 halftime lead...both rebounds came during a 41 second span as Florida State worked to build a 19-14 advantage in the first 11 minutes of the game...the Eagles earned the ACC victory as they outscored the Seminoles, 56-49 in the second half to gain the hard fought 90-87 win...(vs. Clemson): averaged 2.0 points and 0.5 rebounds in two games against NIT participant Clemson...totaled 0 points and 0 rebounds in one minute of play as Florida State traveled to play at Clemson (Jan. 4) in Echefu's first career ACC game...with four points he was instrumental in the Seminoles' victory over Clemson in Tallahassee (Feb. 1)...two points in each half helped lead the Seminoles' to the 69-59 victory...made two free throws with 12:24 remaining in the game to give the Seminoles a 39-37 lead and break the fifth and final tie of the game...his free throws turned out to be the points that put Florida State ahead for good...the two free throws began a 32-22 game-ending run that gave Florida State its fourth ACC win of the season and allowed it to come up with a .500 record through the first half of the conference schedule...(vs. Duke): averaged 0.0 points and 0.0 rebounds in two games against NCAA Tournament participant Duke...played in both games against the Blue Devils with two minutes of playing time coming in each game...two first half minutes to help Florida State build a 45-43 halftime lead before falling in overtime to the No. 2 Blue Devils, 97-96, in Durham (Feb. 4)...two first half minutes included one steal in two minutes of play as the Seminoles defeated the No. 1 ranked Blue Devils in Tallahassee (March 1)...his first half steal help Florida State's momentum and helped the Seminoles earn a 36-35 halftime lead in their thrilling 79-74 victory...(vs. Georgia Tech): scored five points and earned two steals in Florida State's only game against Georgia Tech during the 2006-07 season...helped keep the Seminoles in the game early with five points in eight minutes of playing time in the first half as the Seminoles played host to the Yellow Jackets in Tallahassee (Feb. 9)...scored all five points in a 1:05 span of the first half to help carry Florida State back from the brink of elimination in the game...a lay-up with 4:41 left in the first half pulled the Seminoles to within five at 22-27 and an old fashioned 3-point play with 3:36 remaining again cut the lead to five...Echefu made a driving lay-up and made the ensuing free throw after being fouled by Tech's Anthony Morrow...two steals in the first half led directly to five Seminole points on a 3-pointer by Andrew Wilson and a lay-up by Casaan Breeden making Echefu directly responsible for 10 of the Seminoles' 39 points...Florida State trailed by as many as eight in the first half, and with Echefu's timely scoring and defense, trailed by only four (39-43) at the intermission...the Seminoles rallied in the second half and won the game, 80-79, on a 3-point shot by Andrew Wilson with 1:32 left on the clock...(vs. Maryland): scored three points and pulled down two rebounds in Florida State's only game against NIT participant Maryland...earned his ACC career-high of 10 minutes played in leading the Seminoles to the 71-60 victory over the Terps in Tallahassee (Feb. 22)...also added one blocked shot, one assist and one steal in the Seminoles' seventh ACC win of the season...his three points came on a 3-point shot in the first half to give Florida State a 26-18 lead with 8:43 remaining in the first half...his one assist came on a 3-point shot by Jerel Allen in the first half and helped the Seminoles spring to a 37-27 halftime lead...Florida State led during the final 38 minutes of the game and earned the victory...(vs. Miami): averaged 1.5 points and 0.5 rebounds in two games against NIT participant Miami...scored 0 points and pulled down 0 rebounds in four minutes of play as Florida State played host to Miami in Tallahassee (Jan. 29)...the Hurricanes and Seminoles battled into overtime with the visiting Canes taking the 84-78 win...added three important points and pulled down one rebound as the Seminoles defeated Miami in Coral Gables (March 5) 67-64...gave Florida State a 15-14 lead with a 3-pointer at the 11:25 mark of the first half...earned an assist on an Andrew Wilson 3-point shot at the 9:36 mark to put the Seminoles up 20-18...The Seminoles led 35-30 at the intermission and won the game by the margin of his first half 3-point shot to finish the ACC schedule with a 9-7 mark and a fifth place finish in the ACC standings - their best since the 1992-93 season...(vs. North Carolina): scored two points and pulled down two rebounds in six minutes of playing time in the Seminoles only game of the season against NCAA Tournament participant North Carolina...North Carolina recovered from as much as a 13-point deficit to win the game, 81-80, in the final minute of regulation...two points on a first half jumper put the Seminoles up 19-11 at the 13:21 mark of the first half...(vs. NC State): scored six points and pulled down one rebound in the Seminoles only game of the season against NCAA Tournament participant NC State...scored his ACC career-high of six points as Florida State traveled to Raleigh to play the Wolfpack (Feb. 15)...all six points came in the first half on a 3-point shot and a perfect three-of-three performance from the free throw line...was one of three ACC games in which he made a 3-point shot and his perfection from the line against the Wolfpack marked his career-high in free throws made, free throws attempted and free throw shooting percentage in a single game...(vs. Virginia): averaged 1.0 point and 0.5 rebounds in two games against NIT participant Virginia...scored zero points and pulled down zero rebounds in two minutes of play as Florida State traveled to Charlottesville to play the Cavaliers (Jan. 11)...Florida State earned the overtime victory against the Cavaliers, 87-82, for their second ACC win of the season...contributed two points and one rebound as Florida State defeated Virginia in Tallahassee (Feb. 18)...two first half points on a lay-up at the 12:01 mark gave Florida State a commanding 18-5 lead...the Seminoles never trailed in the game and earned its largest lead of the first half (+13) on Echefu's basket...the Seminoles earned the victory at home, 76-62, to win its sixth ACC game and even its ACC record at 6-6...(vs. Virginia Tech): scored four points and pulled down three rebounds in one game played against Virginia Tech...did not play in the Seminoles' victory over the Hokies in Tallahassee (Feb. 18)...was the only game of the season in which he did not earn playing time...Florida State won the game, 74-68, to earn its first ACC victory of the season...seven minutes of playing time and earned four points and three rebounds as Florida State traveled to play in Blacksburg (Feb. 25)...all four points in the first half helped the Seminoles forge a 27-27 tie at the intermission...scored all four points consecutively for the Seminoles in a span of 1:01 in the first half...a lay-up at the 14:01 mark drew the Seminoles to within four at 4-8 and a second lay-up at the 12:59 mark drew the Seminoles even close at 6-8...the Seminoles tied the game later in the first half but were never able to take the lead and fell to the Hokies, 72-61...(vs. Wake Forest): averaged 2.0 points and 1.5 rebound in two games against NIT participant Wake Forest...scored two points and pulled down two rebounds as the Seminoles win in Winston-Salem (Jan. 24)...a dunk at the 9:34 mark of the second half gave Florida State a 12-point lead at 62-50...his dunk grew increasingly important as Wake Forest closed its deficit to a few a three in the closing minutes of the game...The Seminoles win the game going away...scored two points and pulled down one rebound in seven minutes of play against Wake Forest (March 9) in the ACC Tournament...two first half points came as part of the Seminoles' offensive output that helped them take a 40-32 lead at the intermission...a jumper at the 8:30 mark put Florida State up, 23-15...Wake Forest recovered and won the game, 78-66, to advance to the second round of the tournament...(vs. Butler and South Carolina in the NIT): averaged 0.0 points and 1.0 rebounds against Butler and South Carolina in two games during the NIT...scored zero points and pulled down two rebounds in four minutes played against Butler in the first round of the NIT in Tallahassee (March 17)...two first half rebounds helped the Seminoles hold the Bulldogs to .294 percent shooting in the first 20 minutes as Florida State took a 33-30 lead at the intermission...Florida State won the game, 67-63 as it scored the final six points of the game to take the 67-63 victory...scored zero points and pulled down zero rebounds in three minutes of playing time against South Carolina in the second round of the NIT in Tallahassee (march 21)...the Gamecocks earned a 69-68 victory in overtime and went on to win the NIT championship two weeks later...(vs. Florida): scored five points and had one steal in 12 minutes of playing time against Florida...was playing against a ranked team on the road for the first time in his career as the Seminoles traveled to play in Gainesville (Nov. 25).
AT MONTROSE CHRISTIAN: Graduated from Montrose Christian School with a GPA of 3.4 in 2005...as a senior, averaged 21.2 points, 9 rebounds, and 2 steals per game...shooting 60 percent from the field and 84 percent from the free throw line...helped Montrose to a 23-3 record in 2005 and a cumulative record of 68-8 (.895 winning percentage) during his three-year career under renowned Head Coach Stu Vetter...earned Most Valuable Player honors for his team at the 32nd annual Capital Classic in 2005 as he scored 18 points and pulling down seven rebounds...made eight of his 11 shots from the field (.727) in the nation's oldest and most respected All-Star game...pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds in a game during the Derby Festival Classic All-Star game following his senior season...named the Washington, D.C/suburban area Player of the Year by the Gazette Newspaper chain in 2005...averaged 14.3 points, 7.8 rebounds and 1.3 blocked shots as a junior...solidified his national stock as he earned three awards at the Five-Star camp and was one of the standout players at the Nike Camp during the summer of 2004...is well traveled as the Montrose Christian team played in Oregon, Hawaii, Texas, Virginia and North Carolina during his three-year career at the Rockville, Md., based school...
PERSONAL: Born Feb. 11, 1986...Uche is the son of Betty and Wilfred Echefu...grew up in Nigeria playing soccer...was a striker in soccer...started playing organized basketball only four years ago...moved to the United States three years ago to attend high school...planning to major in business administration...played in the Junior World Championship this summer for Nigeria...Nigeria earned its way into the tournament as it won the All-Africa Games during the summer of 2004...the event was played in Argentina...selected Florida State over North Carolina, Kentucky, Duke and Maryland...selected Florida State over North Carolina late in the spring signing period in 2005 and was a recruiting coup for head coach Leonard Hamilton and his staff.
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