Georgia Basketball Game Notes
Georgia (9-2) vs. No. 16/15 Kentucky (10-2)
Sunday, December 31 at 6:00 p.m. ET
Rupp Arena (23,500) in Lexington, Ky.
Listen: Georgia Bulldog Sports Network. (Cabell Philpott, play-by-play; Mark Slonaker, analyst); (Flagship: WSB AM 750 Atlanta)
Watch: ESPN (Kevin Brown, play-by-play; Sean Farnham, analyst)
The Starting 5…
• UGA’s 9-2 start matches the Dogs’ best beginning during Mark Fox’s tenure in Athens.
• Yante Maten joined UGA’s career top-10 rebounders vs. GT and career top-10 scorers vs. Temple.
• Turtle Jackson had four career-best scoring outputs in the first five games – 11, 13, 16 & 17 points.
• Juwan Parker, the only DI MBB player with a master’s, is 4th on UGA’s career FT pct. leaders list.
• Yante Maten was ranked as one of the nation’s top-25 players by CBS (22), ESPN (23) and NBC (24).
Bulldogs To Open SEC Play At Kentucky
The Georgia Bulldogs will end the 2017 portion of their schedule and begin their SEC slate with a New Year’s Eve matchup with No. 16 Kentucky at Rupp Arena on Sunday.
Georgia is 9-2 on the year, which equals the Bulldogs’ 2010-11 NCAA Tournament team for the best 11-game start during Mark Fox’s tenure. The Bulldogs’ win tally includes victories against a trio of 2017 NCAA Tournament teams – No. 21 Saint Mary’s on Nov. 26, Marquette on Dec. 2 and Winthrop on Dec. 4 – and a decisive decisions over Georgia Tech and Temple just prior to the holiday break.
Yante Maten, a National Player of the Year candidate, preseason SEC Player of the Year honoree and reigning SEC Player of the Week, leads Georgia with averages of 20.2 points and 9.3 rebounds per game. Those efforts ranks second and first, respectively, among league leaders.
Maten has been a picture of consistency for the Bulldogs since the beginning of his sophomore year. Over the 74 games during that span, Maten has produced 67 double-digit scoring performances, with 28 20-point and five 30-point outings and 20 double-doubles.
In Georgia’s three outings since an 11-day break for Final Exams, Maten is averaging 24.7 points.
Turtle Jackson provides a second a double-figure scoring average at 12.1 ppg. Jackson entered the season with two double-digit productions in 66 games but has scored 10-plus points in nine of Georgia’s first 11 outings. He also upped his career high four times in the first five games, from 10 points entering the season to 11 to 13 to 15 to 17 points against San Diego State.
Kentucky arrives at league play with a 10-2 record, most recently besting Louisville.
Hamidou Diallo tops a quintet of double-digit scoring averages for the Wildcats at 15.3 points per game. Nick Richards in collecting a team-high 6.5 rebounds per game, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander leads UK in both assists (4.2 apg) and steals (2.3 spg).
Entering Today’s Game Among UGA’s Career Leaders
Yante Maten is...
• 20 points from No. 9 Terry Fair
• 45 points from No. 8 Shandon Anderson
• 31 rebounds from No. 8 Carlos Strong
• 60 FTs from No. 4 J.J. Frazier
• 14 FTAs from co-No. 6 Vern Fleming and J.J. Frazier
• 37 FTAs from No. 5 Charles Claxton
• 6 blocks from No. 3 Terrell Bell
• 85 blocks from No. 2 Charles Claxton
Series History With The Cats
Kentucky leads the all-time series with Georgia 124-26, including a 60-5 edge here in Lexington.
The last meeting came in the quarterfinals of the 2017 SEC Tournament when Kentucky topped the Bulldogs, 71-60.
J.J. Frazier and Yante Maten led the Bulldogs with 15 and 12 points, respectively. Derek Ogbeide matched his career-high rebounding mark with 15 boards.
The Wildcats started the game making three of their first four shots, including two 3-pointers, to build an early 10-2 advantage.
Kentucky led by as many as 13 points in the first half, but Georgia cut into the deficit with an 8-1 run. Isaiah Briscoe hit a jumper in the closing seconds of the half to send the Wildcats into the intermission up 32-25.
Kentucky opened the second half much like the first, with six straight points to extend its lead to 13. Georgia got as close as 10 with two minutes remaining, but the Wildcats continued to match the Bulldogs bucket for bucket.
In a second meeting last Jan. 31 at Rupp Arena, Georgia took No. 8 Kentucky to the wire but ultimately fell 90-81 in overtime.
Frazier and Maten led the Bulldogs’ attack with 23 and 22 points, respectively. Ogbeide notched his second career double-double with a career-high 18 points and 13 rebounds.
Malik Monk poured in 37 points for UK, 31 of them in the second half and overtime.
In the first half, Georgia jumped on the Wildcats quickly as the Bulldogs scored the game’s first 12 points and connected on their first six field goal attempts. However, Kentucky erased the gap to tie the game at 29-29 at halftime.
The Wildcats obtained their first lead early in the second half and built that to as high as eight on several occasions, but Georgia kept fighting back.
Frazier eventually tied game at 70-70 with a layup. With 1:46 left in regulation, Georgia grabbed a 73-71 advantage on a Jordan Harris 3-pointer.
A jumper by Monk with eight seconds remaining sent the game into overtime.
The Wildcats started extra time with a layup and a three, which paced them in outscoring the Bulldogs 14-5 in OT.
Last Time out
Yante Maten and Nicolas Claxton powered Georgia to a resounding 84-66 win against Temple at Stegeman Coliseum on Dec. 22.
Maten logged his fifth double-double of 2017-18 with a season-high 30 points, his first 30-point game on the year and fifth of his career. Claxton notched career highs with 14 points and nine rebounds.
The Owls entered the game at No. 12 in the NCAA RPI, with the nation’s No. 4 strength of schedule to boot.
Locked in a stalemate at 7-7 after the first six minutes, Georgia’s interior players kicked into gear. Maten scored a tip in and drilled a jumper to give the Bulldogs their first lead of the contest. Those buckets spurred a 14-2 run in the middle of the first half as Maten heated up for 15 first half points.
Claxton closed out the period with a gentle tip-in as the buzzer sounded for a 42-23 lead, and the Bulldogs never allowed the Owls closer than 14 points thereafter.
Ratin’ Maten A Popular Task
Preseason recognition was consistent and plentiful for Yante Maten.
Maten was ranked as one of the nation’s top-25 players by three different online ledgers. CBSsports.com put him at No. 22, ESPN.com listed him at No. 23 and NBCsports.com tabbed him at No. 24.
Maten was tabbed preseason SEC Player of the Year by the Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook and a panel of SEC and national media. The media named Maten, Texas A&M’s Robert Williams and Missouri’s Michael Porter, Jr. as co-player of the year.
Maten was included on watch lists for the Wooden Award, Oscar Robertson Trophy and the Naismith Trophy. In addition, he was on the list for the Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year Award and the Lute Olson Award, which is awarded to the top Division I player who has played at least two seasons.
He also received preseason All-America recognition. Jay Bilas, in an obvious plot to prove he’s the wisest college hoops analyst in the nation, included Maten on his first-team All-America ledger. Among others, Maten also earned All-America props from the Blue Ribbon Yearbook (third team), www.collegesportsmadness.com (fourth team) and NBCsports.com (honorable mention).
The Dogs On Day 365
New Year’s Eve outings are nothing new for the Bulldogs. Georgia is 5-2 in games played on Dec. 31 during the 2000s.
Most recently, the Bulldogs won at Kansas State, 50-46, in 2014.
One of Georgia’s biggest regular-season victories ever also was on New Year’s Eve, a 79-67 win over No. 2 Pitt in 2002.
I Know That Guy
Georgia’s Isaac Kante and Kentucky’s Hamidou Diallo were teammates at Putnam Science Academy in the fall of 2016 before Diallo joined the Wildcats mid-year and redshirted last season.
This Turtle Starting Quickly
William “Turtle” Jackson entered the season with two double-digit scoring performances in 66 games played at Georgia.
He has done so in nine of the Bulldogs’ first 11 outings of 2017-18.
Jackson produced a quartet of career-high scoring outputs in the first five games of the season (from 11 to 13 to 16 to 17 points). In fact, he reached double figures in the scoring column in the first half alone of the first two games.
Jackson had 11 points – all in the first half – against Bryant. That bettered his previous best performances of 10 points versus Oakland and Belmont last year.
Against USC Upstate, Jackson scored first-half 10 points and added three more following the break.
That mark lasted two games until Jackson knocked down 16 points versus Cal State Fullerton in the Wooden Legacy...and then topped that with 17 points less than 24 hours later against San Diego State.
While his scoring has increased from 2.8 ppg entering the season to 12.1 ppg, Jackson continues to do much of his damage from behind the 3-point arc.
This season, 24 of his 43 made field goals (55.8 percent) have been 3-pointers. For his career, 57.7 percent (60-of-104) of Jackson’s makes from the floor have been 3s.
Maten Earns SEC Accolade
Yante Maten was named the Southeastern Conference Player of the Week on Dec. 26, after leading Georgia to a pair of decisive victories over Georgia Tech and Temple the previous week.
The senior forward from Pontiac, Mich., averaged 27.0 points and 9.0 rebounds while connecting on 56.7 percent of his shots from the floor in those contests.
Those performances also had historic implications. Maten joined Georgia’s top-10 career rebounding leaders in the outing against Tech and then ascended into the Bulldogs’ top-10 career scoring leaders versus the Owls. Maten is one of only four players included on both of UGA’s top-10 ledgers for points and rebounds.
The performance against Temple represented Maten’s third 30-point, 10+ rebound outing of his career. Since 1996-97, Bulldogs have posted six such performances – three by Maten and one each by Trey Thompkins, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Jumaine Jones.
The SEC Player of the Week recognition is Maten’s second of his career. He also was honored on Jan. 2 last season.
Bulldogs’ Bench Producing
Last season, Georgia’s bench outscored its opponents’ reserves nine times in 34 games. This season, the Bulldogs’ non-starters have produced more points than their counterparts in eight of 11 outings.
Georgia’s bench finished 2016-17 with a -95 scoring margin. This year, the Bulldogs are at +55, including a massive +33 combined advantage against Tech and Temple.
Crump’s Career Night Lifts Dogs
Tyree Crump’s career-high 17 points against No. 21 Saint Mary’s all came during the second half and overtime.
Crump had struggled mightily up until that point, connecting on just 8-of-32 (.250) shots from the floor and 5-of-24 (.208) from 3-point range through the first five and a half games.
Crump knocked down back-to-back 3s in a 37-second span early in the second half and went on to connect on 6-of-10 shots overall and 4-of-6 3-pointers the rest of the way.
“Tyree had been struggling,” Mark Fox said following the win over the Gaels. “He struggled at the start last season. But when it starts going in, it goes in often.”
Much like Turtle Jackson, Crump does most of his damage from 3-point range.
This season, 15 of his 21 makes (71.4 percent) from the floor have been 3s. In his career at Georgia, 34-of-54 field goals (63.0 percent) are trifectas.
#TechWrecked...Again
Georgia has won the last three editions of basketball’s version of “Clean Old-Fashioned Hate” by an average of 17.3 points per game.
This year’s 21-point margin topped last season’s 17-point win – the most decisive road victory over the Jackets since 1909 – and a 14-point “W” two years ago.
The last time the Bulldogs had three-consecutive double-digit wins in a row over Tech was in 1913-14.
Dogs Go Viral...In A Bad Way
Georgia played through a stomach ailment that plagued 11 of 15 players on the Bulldogs’ roster during the Wooden Legacy.
The illness originally hit around 2:00 a.m. PT on Friday, Nov. 24 following the win over Cal State Fullerton. About half the team, including multiple starters, were among the original group. Even more became ill after the San Diego State game.
Georgia entered its matchup with Saint Mary’s with five unaffected players; however, Turtle Jackson, one of those, became ill in the first half and was forced to the locker room.
Still, the Bulldogs battled to force overtime against the Gaels and eventually win.
“It was a team win,” Mark Fox said. “We’ve had a tough couple of days. We had 10 guys get the stomach flu up until tip time today, and we turn around in the first half and our point guard, who hadn’t had it, gets sick. To battle through that the last couple of days and to compete tonight like a unit like we did and beat a very good Saint Mary’s team, I’m extremely proud of our players.”
Parker Heats Up In Cali
Redshirt senior Juwan Parker put together three solid outings at the Wooden Legacy.
In Georgia’s first three games of the season, Parker averaged just 2.3 points, 1.7 rebounds and 12.0 minutes while shooting 20.0 percent from the floor.
In California, Parker averaged 12.0 points, 3.3 boards and 20.3 minutes and connected on 52.6 percent of his field goal attempts.
Parker, who started 31 of 32 games played last season, moved back into Georgia’s starting five against No. 21 Saint Mary’s. He got the nod at the ‘2’ after E’Torrion Wilridge was hindered by a stomach ailment and remained there for five games until Wilridge was on the floor for the opening tip against Temple.
Hammonds Gets Nod For Opener
Rayshaun Hammonds became the first freshman to start the opener for Georgia since Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in 2011-12.
Hammonds was expected to do so after he got the nod for both of the Bulldogs’ exhibitions, including a double-double of 17 points and 11 rebounds versus Valdosta State.
Hammonds also enjoyed an impressive “official” debut versus Bryant, scoring 17 points on 7-of-9 shooting from the floor and grabbing seven rebounds.
\
That was the highest output by a UGA freshman in an opener in a decade and a day – since Jeremy Price scored 18 points against Jacksonville State on Nov. 9, 2007.
FYI, Caldwell-Pope, who signed an $18-million contract to play for the Lakers this season, had 15 points to lead Georgia to victory over Wofford in his debut on Nov. 11, 2011.
While Hammonds became the first freshman to start an opener in six years, freshman starters is nothing new under Mark Fox.
Six members of 10 returning letterwinners also started as freshmen – seniors Yante Maten and Juwan Parker; juniors Mike Edwards and Derek Ogbeide; and sophomores Tyree Crump and Jordan Harris.
Dogs Flip Script With Starting 5
Four-guard lineups are a relatively common fixture in college basketball. Georgia utilized a four-forward starting quintet for the first five games of the season.
Turtle Jackson was the only starter in that span with a “G” by his name on the roster.
In addition, Georgia started 6-6 E’Torrion Wilridge at the ‘2,’ 6-8 Rayshaun Hammonds at the ‘3,’ 6-8 Yante Maten at the ‘4’ and 6-8 Derek Ogbeide at the ‘5.’
SEC Hoops Moving Forward
The SEC has certainly continued its upwardly trending reputation. That increased respect was front and center last March.
The SEC received five bids to the 2017 NCAA Tournament, the fifth-most of any conference. The league then proceeded to tie the ACC (which received nine bids) for the most wins during “March Madness” with 11.
Three league schools reached the “Elite Eight” round of the tournament, including an All-SEC East Regional final between South Carolina and Florida.
In the Dec. 29 edition of the NCAA RPI, five SEC teams were featured in the top 15 and 10 were included in the top 80.
Foxes Donate Almost $20K
Head coach Mark Fox and his wife Cindy donated $1 to charity for every fan who attended the Bulldogs’ three November home games. The amount was split equally between the Boys and Girls Club of Athens and the Clarke County Mentor Program.
The Foxes contributed $18,976 to those groups ($9,488 to each). Georgia drew 7,387 fans for the opener against Bryant – UGA’s biggest crowd for a season opener in a decade – as well as 5,369 for the Upstate date and 6,220 against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
Mark Fox announced their effort in an Oct. 12 tweet and was later asked about his decision to make the donations.
“Those groups are working to try and make the next generation better and to make society better,” Mark Fox said. “If we can give them a little help, that’s great.”
Cindy Fox is on the board for Clarke Mentors, which recruits community volunteers to mentor children who attend the Clarke County School District. Derrick Floyd, director of operations for the Athens Boys and Girls Club, was a letterwinner for UGA from 1980-83 and today serves as the official scorer for Georgia games and the SEC Tourney.
Bulldogs Are HomeGrown
More than half of Georgia’s roster played high school hoops in the Peach State – Tyree Crump (Bainbridge HS), Rayshaun Hammonds (Norcross HS), Jordan Harris (Seminole County HS), Christian Harrison (Woodward Academy), Teshaun Hightower (Collins Hill HS), “Turtle” Jackson (Athens Christian), Connor O’Neill (Blessed Trinity HS) and Derek Ogbeide (Pebblebrook HS).
More In-State Dogs On The Way
Amanze Ngumezi and JoJo Toppin signed letters-of-intent to play for Georgia, Mark Fox announced on Thursday, Nov. 16.
Ngumezi (pronounced “Uh-mahn-zay In-goo-meh-zay), a 6-9, 235-pound power forward from Savannah, averaged a double-double of 12.8 points and 11.6 rebounds last season for the Johnson High Atom Smashers.
Toppin, a 6-6, 180-pound small forward from Norcross, averaged 10.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 2.0 steals per game as a junior at Norcross High where he played with current Bulldog freshman Rayshaun Hammonds.
Dogs Debut Renewed Stegeman
Stegeman has undergone thorough renovations in the last few years, receiving a 21st Century face lift of at a cost of more than $20-million.
This summer, the arena received a massive center-hung scoreboard, new black seats, an improved LED lighting system, a state-of-the-art sound system and graphics above the horseshoe end celebrating past teams and retired jerseys. All told, the Coliseum went from having roughly 1,000-square feet of HD/LED signage to more than 4,000-square feet as broken out below.
The renovations in 2017 followed work in the summer of 2016 which provided a dramatic mural covering the Coliseum’s distinctive end wall.
“Obviously, we’re extremely excited about Stegeman not only for our fans, but also for our players,” head coach Mark Fox said. “This is going to have a tremendous impact on our program and our university. It’s beautiful inside. It’s very well done. I have to compliment the architects and the construction companies. They did a terrific job. I think it will change the energy in the building because we have more tools to create atmosphere. I was in there with Dominique Wilkins and his statement was pretty good. This is now an arena, and it feels like an arena.”
In 2010, Stegeman’s concourses received a similar makeover, upgrading the graphics, enhancing spectator access to concessions and restrooms and adding 5,000-square feet of concourse space on each side of the arena. That work won awards from the American Institute of Architects and the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America.
Center-hung scoreboard
• 1008 square feet of HD video
• 1054 square feet of LED sections
Additional LED features
• 800 square feet on 3 ribbon boards
• 500 square feet over the 12 entry portals
• 50 square feet over 2 tunnels
• 375 square feet on 1 auxiliary board
Additional HD video
• 275 square feet on pre-existing board
Georgia (9-2) vs. No. 16/15 Kentucky (10-2)
Sunday, December 31 at 6:00 p.m. ET
Rupp Arena (23,500) in Lexington, Ky.
Listen: Georgia Bulldog Sports Network. (Cabell Philpott, play-by-play; Mark Slonaker, analyst); (Flagship: WSB AM 750 Atlanta)
Watch: ESPN (Kevin Brown, play-by-play; Sean Farnham, analyst)
The Starting 5…
• UGA’s 9-2 start matches the Dogs’ best beginning during Mark Fox’s tenure in Athens.
• Yante Maten joined UGA’s career top-10 rebounders vs. GT and career top-10 scorers vs. Temple.
• Turtle Jackson had four career-best scoring outputs in the first five games – 11, 13, 16 & 17 points.
• Juwan Parker, the only DI MBB player with a master’s, is 4th on UGA’s career FT pct. leaders list.
• Yante Maten was ranked as one of the nation’s top-25 players by CBS (22), ESPN (23) and NBC (24).
Bulldogs To Open SEC Play At Kentucky
The Georgia Bulldogs will end the 2017 portion of their schedule and begin their SEC slate with a New Year’s Eve matchup with No. 16 Kentucky at Rupp Arena on Sunday.
Georgia is 9-2 on the year, which equals the Bulldogs’ 2010-11 NCAA Tournament team for the best 11-game start during Mark Fox’s tenure. The Bulldogs’ win tally includes victories against a trio of 2017 NCAA Tournament teams – No. 21 Saint Mary’s on Nov. 26, Marquette on Dec. 2 and Winthrop on Dec. 4 – and a decisive decisions over Georgia Tech and Temple just prior to the holiday break.
Yante Maten, a National Player of the Year candidate, preseason SEC Player of the Year honoree and reigning SEC Player of the Week, leads Georgia with averages of 20.2 points and 9.3 rebounds per game. Those efforts ranks second and first, respectively, among league leaders.
Maten has been a picture of consistency for the Bulldogs since the beginning of his sophomore year. Over the 74 games during that span, Maten has produced 67 double-digit scoring performances, with 28 20-point and five 30-point outings and 20 double-doubles.
In Georgia’s three outings since an 11-day break for Final Exams, Maten is averaging 24.7 points.
Turtle Jackson provides a second a double-figure scoring average at 12.1 ppg. Jackson entered the season with two double-digit productions in 66 games but has scored 10-plus points in nine of Georgia’s first 11 outings. He also upped his career high four times in the first five games, from 10 points entering the season to 11 to 13 to 15 to 17 points against San Diego State.
Kentucky arrives at league play with a 10-2 record, most recently besting Louisville.
Hamidou Diallo tops a quintet of double-digit scoring averages for the Wildcats at 15.3 points per game. Nick Richards in collecting a team-high 6.5 rebounds per game, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander leads UK in both assists (4.2 apg) and steals (2.3 spg).
Entering Today’s Game Among UGA’s Career Leaders
Yante Maten is...
• 20 points from No. 9 Terry Fair
• 45 points from No. 8 Shandon Anderson
• 31 rebounds from No. 8 Carlos Strong
• 60 FTs from No. 4 J.J. Frazier
• 14 FTAs from co-No. 6 Vern Fleming and J.J. Frazier
• 37 FTAs from No. 5 Charles Claxton
• 6 blocks from No. 3 Terrell Bell
• 85 blocks from No. 2 Charles Claxton
Series History With The Cats
Kentucky leads the all-time series with Georgia 124-26, including a 60-5 edge here in Lexington.
The last meeting came in the quarterfinals of the 2017 SEC Tournament when Kentucky topped the Bulldogs, 71-60.
J.J. Frazier and Yante Maten led the Bulldogs with 15 and 12 points, respectively. Derek Ogbeide matched his career-high rebounding mark with 15 boards.
The Wildcats started the game making three of their first four shots, including two 3-pointers, to build an early 10-2 advantage.
Kentucky led by as many as 13 points in the first half, but Georgia cut into the deficit with an 8-1 run. Isaiah Briscoe hit a jumper in the closing seconds of the half to send the Wildcats into the intermission up 32-25.
Kentucky opened the second half much like the first, with six straight points to extend its lead to 13. Georgia got as close as 10 with two minutes remaining, but the Wildcats continued to match the Bulldogs bucket for bucket.
In a second meeting last Jan. 31 at Rupp Arena, Georgia took No. 8 Kentucky to the wire but ultimately fell 90-81 in overtime.
Frazier and Maten led the Bulldogs’ attack with 23 and 22 points, respectively. Ogbeide notched his second career double-double with a career-high 18 points and 13 rebounds.
Malik Monk poured in 37 points for UK, 31 of them in the second half and overtime.
In the first half, Georgia jumped on the Wildcats quickly as the Bulldogs scored the game’s first 12 points and connected on their first six field goal attempts. However, Kentucky erased the gap to tie the game at 29-29 at halftime.
The Wildcats obtained their first lead early in the second half and built that to as high as eight on several occasions, but Georgia kept fighting back.
Frazier eventually tied game at 70-70 with a layup. With 1:46 left in regulation, Georgia grabbed a 73-71 advantage on a Jordan Harris 3-pointer.
A jumper by Monk with eight seconds remaining sent the game into overtime.
The Wildcats started extra time with a layup and a three, which paced them in outscoring the Bulldogs 14-5 in OT.
Last Time out
Yante Maten and Nicolas Claxton powered Georgia to a resounding 84-66 win against Temple at Stegeman Coliseum on Dec. 22.
Maten logged his fifth double-double of 2017-18 with a season-high 30 points, his first 30-point game on the year and fifth of his career. Claxton notched career highs with 14 points and nine rebounds.
The Owls entered the game at No. 12 in the NCAA RPI, with the nation’s No. 4 strength of schedule to boot.
Locked in a stalemate at 7-7 after the first six minutes, Georgia’s interior players kicked into gear. Maten scored a tip in and drilled a jumper to give the Bulldogs their first lead of the contest. Those buckets spurred a 14-2 run in the middle of the first half as Maten heated up for 15 first half points.
Claxton closed out the period with a gentle tip-in as the buzzer sounded for a 42-23 lead, and the Bulldogs never allowed the Owls closer than 14 points thereafter.
Ratin’ Maten A Popular Task
Preseason recognition was consistent and plentiful for Yante Maten.
Maten was ranked as one of the nation’s top-25 players by three different online ledgers. CBSsports.com put him at No. 22, ESPN.com listed him at No. 23 and NBCsports.com tabbed him at No. 24.
Maten was tabbed preseason SEC Player of the Year by the Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook and a panel of SEC and national media. The media named Maten, Texas A&M’s Robert Williams and Missouri’s Michael Porter, Jr. as co-player of the year.
Maten was included on watch lists for the Wooden Award, Oscar Robertson Trophy and the Naismith Trophy. In addition, he was on the list for the Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year Award and the Lute Olson Award, which is awarded to the top Division I player who has played at least two seasons.
He also received preseason All-America recognition. Jay Bilas, in an obvious plot to prove he’s the wisest college hoops analyst in the nation, included Maten on his first-team All-America ledger. Among others, Maten also earned All-America props from the Blue Ribbon Yearbook (third team), www.collegesportsmadness.com (fourth team) and NBCsports.com (honorable mention).
The Dogs On Day 365
New Year’s Eve outings are nothing new for the Bulldogs. Georgia is 5-2 in games played on Dec. 31 during the 2000s.
Most recently, the Bulldogs won at Kansas State, 50-46, in 2014.
One of Georgia’s biggest regular-season victories ever also was on New Year’s Eve, a 79-67 win over No. 2 Pitt in 2002.
I Know That Guy
Georgia’s Isaac Kante and Kentucky’s Hamidou Diallo were teammates at Putnam Science Academy in the fall of 2016 before Diallo joined the Wildcats mid-year and redshirted last season.
This Turtle Starting Quickly
William “Turtle” Jackson entered the season with two double-digit scoring performances in 66 games played at Georgia.
He has done so in nine of the Bulldogs’ first 11 outings of 2017-18.
Jackson produced a quartet of career-high scoring outputs in the first five games of the season (from 11 to 13 to 16 to 17 points). In fact, he reached double figures in the scoring column in the first half alone of the first two games.
Jackson had 11 points – all in the first half – against Bryant. That bettered his previous best performances of 10 points versus Oakland and Belmont last year.
Against USC Upstate, Jackson scored first-half 10 points and added three more following the break.
That mark lasted two games until Jackson knocked down 16 points versus Cal State Fullerton in the Wooden Legacy...and then topped that with 17 points less than 24 hours later against San Diego State.
While his scoring has increased from 2.8 ppg entering the season to 12.1 ppg, Jackson continues to do much of his damage from behind the 3-point arc.
This season, 24 of his 43 made field goals (55.8 percent) have been 3-pointers. For his career, 57.7 percent (60-of-104) of Jackson’s makes from the floor have been 3s.
Maten Earns SEC Accolade
Yante Maten was named the Southeastern Conference Player of the Week on Dec. 26, after leading Georgia to a pair of decisive victories over Georgia Tech and Temple the previous week.
The senior forward from Pontiac, Mich., averaged 27.0 points and 9.0 rebounds while connecting on 56.7 percent of his shots from the floor in those contests.
Those performances also had historic implications. Maten joined Georgia’s top-10 career rebounding leaders in the outing against Tech and then ascended into the Bulldogs’ top-10 career scoring leaders versus the Owls. Maten is one of only four players included on both of UGA’s top-10 ledgers for points and rebounds.
The performance against Temple represented Maten’s third 30-point, 10+ rebound outing of his career. Since 1996-97, Bulldogs have posted six such performances – three by Maten and one each by Trey Thompkins, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Jumaine Jones.
The SEC Player of the Week recognition is Maten’s second of his career. He also was honored on Jan. 2 last season.
Bulldogs’ Bench Producing
Last season, Georgia’s bench outscored its opponents’ reserves nine times in 34 games. This season, the Bulldogs’ non-starters have produced more points than their counterparts in eight of 11 outings.
Georgia’s bench finished 2016-17 with a -95 scoring margin. This year, the Bulldogs are at +55, including a massive +33 combined advantage against Tech and Temple.
Crump’s Career Night Lifts Dogs
Tyree Crump’s career-high 17 points against No. 21 Saint Mary’s all came during the second half and overtime.
Crump had struggled mightily up until that point, connecting on just 8-of-32 (.250) shots from the floor and 5-of-24 (.208) from 3-point range through the first five and a half games.
Crump knocked down back-to-back 3s in a 37-second span early in the second half and went on to connect on 6-of-10 shots overall and 4-of-6 3-pointers the rest of the way.
“Tyree had been struggling,” Mark Fox said following the win over the Gaels. “He struggled at the start last season. But when it starts going in, it goes in often.”
Much like Turtle Jackson, Crump does most of his damage from 3-point range.
This season, 15 of his 21 makes (71.4 percent) from the floor have been 3s. In his career at Georgia, 34-of-54 field goals (63.0 percent) are trifectas.
#TechWrecked...Again
Georgia has won the last three editions of basketball’s version of “Clean Old-Fashioned Hate” by an average of 17.3 points per game.
This year’s 21-point margin topped last season’s 17-point win – the most decisive road victory over the Jackets since 1909 – and a 14-point “W” two years ago.
The last time the Bulldogs had three-consecutive double-digit wins in a row over Tech was in 1913-14.
Dogs Go Viral...In A Bad Way
Georgia played through a stomach ailment that plagued 11 of 15 players on the Bulldogs’ roster during the Wooden Legacy.
The illness originally hit around 2:00 a.m. PT on Friday, Nov. 24 following the win over Cal State Fullerton. About half the team, including multiple starters, were among the original group. Even more became ill after the San Diego State game.
Georgia entered its matchup with Saint Mary’s with five unaffected players; however, Turtle Jackson, one of those, became ill in the first half and was forced to the locker room.
Still, the Bulldogs battled to force overtime against the Gaels and eventually win.
“It was a team win,” Mark Fox said. “We’ve had a tough couple of days. We had 10 guys get the stomach flu up until tip time today, and we turn around in the first half and our point guard, who hadn’t had it, gets sick. To battle through that the last couple of days and to compete tonight like a unit like we did and beat a very good Saint Mary’s team, I’m extremely proud of our players.”
Parker Heats Up In Cali
Redshirt senior Juwan Parker put together three solid outings at the Wooden Legacy.
In Georgia’s first three games of the season, Parker averaged just 2.3 points, 1.7 rebounds and 12.0 minutes while shooting 20.0 percent from the floor.
In California, Parker averaged 12.0 points, 3.3 boards and 20.3 minutes and connected on 52.6 percent of his field goal attempts.
Parker, who started 31 of 32 games played last season, moved back into Georgia’s starting five against No. 21 Saint Mary’s. He got the nod at the ‘2’ after E’Torrion Wilridge was hindered by a stomach ailment and remained there for five games until Wilridge was on the floor for the opening tip against Temple.
Hammonds Gets Nod For Opener
Rayshaun Hammonds became the first freshman to start the opener for Georgia since Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in 2011-12.
Hammonds was expected to do so after he got the nod for both of the Bulldogs’ exhibitions, including a double-double of 17 points and 11 rebounds versus Valdosta State.
Hammonds also enjoyed an impressive “official” debut versus Bryant, scoring 17 points on 7-of-9 shooting from the floor and grabbing seven rebounds.
\
That was the highest output by a UGA freshman in an opener in a decade and a day – since Jeremy Price scored 18 points against Jacksonville State on Nov. 9, 2007.
FYI, Caldwell-Pope, who signed an $18-million contract to play for the Lakers this season, had 15 points to lead Georgia to victory over Wofford in his debut on Nov. 11, 2011.
While Hammonds became the first freshman to start an opener in six years, freshman starters is nothing new under Mark Fox.
Six members of 10 returning letterwinners also started as freshmen – seniors Yante Maten and Juwan Parker; juniors Mike Edwards and Derek Ogbeide; and sophomores Tyree Crump and Jordan Harris.
Dogs Flip Script With Starting 5
Four-guard lineups are a relatively common fixture in college basketball. Georgia utilized a four-forward starting quintet for the first five games of the season.
Turtle Jackson was the only starter in that span with a “G” by his name on the roster.
In addition, Georgia started 6-6 E’Torrion Wilridge at the ‘2,’ 6-8 Rayshaun Hammonds at the ‘3,’ 6-8 Yante Maten at the ‘4’ and 6-8 Derek Ogbeide at the ‘5.’
SEC Hoops Moving Forward
The SEC has certainly continued its upwardly trending reputation. That increased respect was front and center last March.
The SEC received five bids to the 2017 NCAA Tournament, the fifth-most of any conference. The league then proceeded to tie the ACC (which received nine bids) for the most wins during “March Madness” with 11.
Three league schools reached the “Elite Eight” round of the tournament, including an All-SEC East Regional final between South Carolina and Florida.
In the Dec. 29 edition of the NCAA RPI, five SEC teams were featured in the top 15 and 10 were included in the top 80.
Foxes Donate Almost $20K
Head coach Mark Fox and his wife Cindy donated $1 to charity for every fan who attended the Bulldogs’ three November home games. The amount was split equally between the Boys and Girls Club of Athens and the Clarke County Mentor Program.
The Foxes contributed $18,976 to those groups ($9,488 to each). Georgia drew 7,387 fans for the opener against Bryant – UGA’s biggest crowd for a season opener in a decade – as well as 5,369 for the Upstate date and 6,220 against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
Mark Fox announced their effort in an Oct. 12 tweet and was later asked about his decision to make the donations.
“Those groups are working to try and make the next generation better and to make society better,” Mark Fox said. “If we can give them a little help, that’s great.”
Cindy Fox is on the board for Clarke Mentors, which recruits community volunteers to mentor children who attend the Clarke County School District. Derrick Floyd, director of operations for the Athens Boys and Girls Club, was a letterwinner for UGA from 1980-83 and today serves as the official scorer for Georgia games and the SEC Tourney.
Bulldogs Are HomeGrown
More than half of Georgia’s roster played high school hoops in the Peach State – Tyree Crump (Bainbridge HS), Rayshaun Hammonds (Norcross HS), Jordan Harris (Seminole County HS), Christian Harrison (Woodward Academy), Teshaun Hightower (Collins Hill HS), “Turtle” Jackson (Athens Christian), Connor O’Neill (Blessed Trinity HS) and Derek Ogbeide (Pebblebrook HS).
More In-State Dogs On The Way
Amanze Ngumezi and JoJo Toppin signed letters-of-intent to play for Georgia, Mark Fox announced on Thursday, Nov. 16.
Ngumezi (pronounced “Uh-mahn-zay In-goo-meh-zay), a 6-9, 235-pound power forward from Savannah, averaged a double-double of 12.8 points and 11.6 rebounds last season for the Johnson High Atom Smashers.
Toppin, a 6-6, 180-pound small forward from Norcross, averaged 10.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 2.0 steals per game as a junior at Norcross High where he played with current Bulldog freshman Rayshaun Hammonds.
Dogs Debut Renewed Stegeman
Stegeman has undergone thorough renovations in the last few years, receiving a 21st Century face lift of at a cost of more than $20-million.
This summer, the arena received a massive center-hung scoreboard, new black seats, an improved LED lighting system, a state-of-the-art sound system and graphics above the horseshoe end celebrating past teams and retired jerseys. All told, the Coliseum went from having roughly 1,000-square feet of HD/LED signage to more than 4,000-square feet as broken out below.
The renovations in 2017 followed work in the summer of 2016 which provided a dramatic mural covering the Coliseum’s distinctive end wall.
“Obviously, we’re extremely excited about Stegeman not only for our fans, but also for our players,” head coach Mark Fox said. “This is going to have a tremendous impact on our program and our university. It’s beautiful inside. It’s very well done. I have to compliment the architects and the construction companies. They did a terrific job. I think it will change the energy in the building because we have more tools to create atmosphere. I was in there with Dominique Wilkins and his statement was pretty good. This is now an arena, and it feels like an arena.”
In 2010, Stegeman’s concourses received a similar makeover, upgrading the graphics, enhancing spectator access to concessions and restrooms and adding 5,000-square feet of concourse space on each side of the arena. That work won awards from the American Institute of Architects and the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America.
Center-hung scoreboard
• 1008 square feet of HD video
• 1054 square feet of LED sections
Additional LED features
• 800 square feet on 3 ribbon boards
• 500 square feet over the 12 entry portals
• 50 square feet over 2 tunnels
• 375 square feet on 1 auxiliary board
Additional HD video
• 275 square feet on pre-existing board
