Big home game for Dogs tonight; big road turnaround this season
Big basketball game in Athens tonight, Georgia vs. Vanderbilt at 7 p.m. It’s big for Georgia because:
- A win over a team with Vanderbilt’s RPI (15) would be helpful come Selection Sunday.
- A win would put the Bulldogs, who have finished fifth or sixth in the SEC East for seven consecutive seasons, in sole possession of second place in the division with five games to go.
- A win at home would be well-advised and well-timed, what with the Bulldogs’ next two games at Tennessee and Florida.
- A win would achieve a split of the season series against Vanderbilt, which beat Georgia 73-66 in Nashville.
———-
Lost in the shuffle of Saturday’s crazy game at South Carolina is that the victory assured Georgia a winning road record — a feat that definitely should be noted in the context of recent history.
Georgia is 6-2 on the road this season — a dramatic turnaround from its 0-11 road record last season, 2-28 over the past three seasons and 8-63 over the past seven seasons.
Georgia hasn’t had a winning record on the road since the 2002 team went 6-5. This season’s three remaining road games are Saturday at Tennessee, Feb. 24 at Florida and March 5 at Alabama.
———-
Vanderbilt shooting guard John Jenkins was the SEC Player of the Week after averaging 26 points in two games last week, including a career-high 32 in Saturday’s victory over Kentucky.
Asked Tuesday how the Bulldogs would defend Jenkins, coach Mark Fox said: “Oh, my gosh, guard him with six guys?”
Jenkins, a sophomore, is the SEC’s leading scorer at 19.8 points per game.
“He’s terrific, having a phenomenal year,” Fox said.
———-
And if you missed it, here’s a story I wrote for today’s paper sizing up Georgia’s position on the NCAA tournament bubble, which isn’t a bad place to be after the past few years.
– Tim Tucker, UGA Blog
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139 comments Add your comment
DawginLex
February 16th, 2011
1:21 pm
Buckeye,
Just some friendly jabbing…………….
Buckeye
February 16th, 2011
1:26 pm
DawgiLex,
You won that hand!
Dr. Morpheus
February 16th, 2011
1:36 pm
You know, with all this talk about the bubble, it’s possible with everyone healthy Georgia gets hot and finishes with some big wins… not so far-fetched, when you look at the Tennessee and Florida losses at home and see how close we’ve been to a huge season…
Alabama | MrSEC.com
February 16th, 2011
1:50 pm
[...] tourney-wise. The Dawgs are currently 6-4.5. The stretch run starts tonight with a key home game against Vanderbilt.6. MSU’s Rick Stansbury dared Kentucky’s Darius Miller to shoot last night… and [...]
Who Cares
February 16th, 2011
2:38 pm
Dream on Dawgnlex. You are a legend in your own mind, and your answers prove it. You seem to have a problem comprehending what you read. You can’t believe somebody would challenge your pitiful basketball I.Q., which seems to be about as high as UGA’s winning percentage against top 50 RPI ranked teams. Why is so hard for you to comprehend that last year’s team had a better record against quality opponents, and they had a better record at home against quality opponents, and just because they have a winning record this year will mean nothing because they have but one quality win. You forget they still have 4 of their hardest games coming up, and 3 are on the road. Just so you can understand with your high basketball I.Q, last year’s team beat 5 teams with RPI ranking in top 50, this year’s team has beaten 2, and lost to 5, with 4 more coming up. after they lose those 4, they will have a combined record of 2 wins and 9 losses against top 50 opponents. You are a complete idiot if you think this year’s team is better. The only thing this team has going for it is it’s weakass nonconference schedule. Come back in 2 weeks and brag about your basketball I.Q., because like UGA’s tournament chances it will have gone down.
ATLSN
February 16th, 2011
2:42 pm
If you’re an Atlanta/Georgia Sports fan and want to talk with other fans, check out our NEW message board.
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We have team forums for the Falcons, Bulldogs, Hawks, Braves, Yellow Jackets, Thrashers, etc. Please register and post! Be apart of a huge site in the early days of existence. See ya there! We’re looking for posters, moderators, bloggers/writers. Join up if interested.
DawginLex
February 16th, 2011
2:46 pm
Now I am laughing at Who Cares
Can you not read? Click the link on the gator basketball team and read what the guy wrote about UGA, their strength of schedule and their worst loss being to an RPI # 34.
What a joke.
I abused you.
DawginLex
February 16th, 2011
2:48 pm
Who Cares delusional world
14-17 is greater than 17-7
No postseason is better than NIT or NCAA bid
0′fer on the road is better than 6-2
Abused
Buckeye
February 16th, 2011
2:48 pm
Who Cares seems to…………
DawginLex
February 16th, 2011
2:49 pm
RPI of 100+ is greater than RPI of 39
Bracketology-2010 nowhere to be found
Bracketology-2011 projected #9 seed
Even if the Dawgs lose several games, they will still go to the NIT which is a far cry from previous years, including 2010.
Abused.
Pago Pago Dawg
February 16th, 2011
2:50 pm
We agree with you, it does seem a little strange that no other schools are after our football coaches!!
mike bobo garbage play calling
February 16th, 2011
3:46 pm
Come out and play consistant need this one dawgs Keep the ball out of prices and robinsons hands in crunch time go dawgs
UGASlobberknocker
February 16th, 2011
4:06 pm
Raleigh Dawg, you could nitpick every game from every coach if you wanted to. Has there ever been a game that the coach or any player did everything right?. If all Fox has done wrong all year are your nit picky complaints..then its been a good year.
Marseilles Mutt
February 16th, 2011
4:09 pm
Uh, just tuned in…re the tip. Guy’s name is Mark, right? Heck, he ALWAYS defers to the second half doesn’t he?
…and how many days until kick-off?
Marseilles Mutt
February 16th, 2011
4:16 pm
….but Mark Fox is one hell of a coach, appears to be a gentleman, can recruit and has the program headed in the right direction. I couldn’t ask for more…’cept maybe a dog blowout tonite maybe!
Go dawgs!
AltamahaDawg
February 16th, 2011
5:03 pm
With the possession arrow, who gives a damn about winning the tip off?
Paul in RDU
February 16th, 2011
5:06 pm
AltamahaDawg
February 16th, 2011
5:03 pm
With the possession arrow, who gives a damn about winning the tip off?
——————————
Best post of the day. Only time it really counts is in OT
Festus
February 16th, 2011
7:50 pm
Aw shucks I thanks thait Festus kid is gpnna come out in the 2nd hailf and start swartin them thare bawls lykes flys.
LLUGA
February 16th, 2011
8:51 pm
Same ole spit…a UGA team chokes…losers
Timmy
February 16th, 2011
8:54 pm
I figured it was over when I turned the game on and saw that UGA only had a 10 point lead at 53-43. Nice run to end the game.
Floundering Fox Hounds Batman !
February 16th, 2011
8:55 pm
OOPS…. turn out the lights the party is over !
Festus
February 16th, 2011
8:56 pm
I told yer thait Festus Kid was gonna swart them thare bawls lyke flys.
wilt chamberlain
February 16th, 2011
8:57 pm
Dawgs need to recruit basketball players that know how to win – refuse to lose – understand the game is about winning not about them. This bunch is not good – a couple of athletes and a bunch of hacks. Only one PG which is another problem. Fox isn’t the problem – the inability to get kids who can play to come to Athens is. Hopefully this years freshman class and the incoming freshman (i.e. Caldwell) can turn this mess around.
Pathetic
February 16th, 2011
8:57 pm
Name says it all. How terrible. Looks like football.
Sid
February 16th, 2011
8:58 pm
what a joke…the team, the program. They should not get a NCAA bid.
Michael
February 16th, 2011
8:59 pm
as much as I love Mark Fox, the players on the team, and think Fox is a great long term option at UGA…..
….this team could take a 50 point lead into halftime and lose the game. theyve had some weird curse for the past two years.
look at the game tonight. vandy followed every uga three with a three. they had the luckiest bounces on balls…and made some wild shots…
I knew when we were up 13 that we would let them back in the game.
you figured after so many times the collapses would stop…but nope. this team blows leads like they are worth less than a piece of gum. they don’t look NCAA tournament ready. they’ve let the officiating get in the way of their focus towards the end of nearly every game this year…win or lose
Dawg Fan
February 16th, 2011
9:03 pm
It has just become the norm now for us to get a game stolen by some piece of crap SEC refs. You would expect this type crap from a game away from home but this is about the 4th game this year at home that we just got bent over by the refs. SEC REFS SUCK
Snoop Dawg
February 16th, 2011
9:04 pm
After watching tonight’s sorry excuse for a basketball, I believe the basketball team has come down with Richtitis. Absolutely no motivation. They ran out of steam about halfway through the second half–conditioning? Absolutely dumb play calling and execution. Very lazy defense. Too lazy for any offensive rebounds.
Fox came in with goodwill to burn. He’s recruited well, but if this is all he’s got, we need to put out another recruitement action.
The Bulldog Nation needs to put some pressure on the Board of Regents at this point. Our entire athletics program is in a steep decline. We can’t hang with the better half of the SEC anymore in anything.
If the Bulldog Nation does not demand better coaching across the board, they will not get it with that used car salesman Michael Adams. He has infested the univerisity like a boll weevil.
Where is the anger.
Tonight’s game was a disgrace. Every single player on the team should be too ashamed to go to class tomorrow.
Cuz
February 16th, 2011
9:06 pm
turrible, just turrible.
How long before Spring football practice?
Snoop Dawg
February 16th, 2011
9:11 pm
Those lazy UGA basketball players do not deserve to get to go to classes for free with performance like that.
AustinDave
February 16th, 2011
9:15 pm
No heart. No hustle. Just disgusting. No team that looks this disinterested to grab a loose ball at home – or anywhere – deserves an NCAA bid.
ldh
February 16th, 2011
9:16 pm
Thompkins had a 6′1″ guy guarding him the whole second half and didnt get any touches.And Robinson sucks!
Meltdowns and Beatdowns Galore
February 16th, 2011
9:19 pm
This is UGA sport teams !
Cuz
February 16th, 2011
9:22 pm
Time to realize it is just basketball. No big freakin deal.
Snoop Dawg
February 16th, 2011
9:24 pm
How does Michael Adams get away with such incompetence? Nobody cares… Everybody is defending these million-dollar loser excuses for coaches at UGA these days. Suzanne Yoculan retired in disgust. Now that is a winner. What does it say about UGA that they effectively ran such a world champ off so that the mafia bubbas can rule us into loserdom? Anyone defending this bs is a loser too and should have their diplomas taken back–IF they actually graduated from UGA…
Buzz2010
February 16th, 2011
10:18 pm
Uh Oh!!!Looking for the Dawgs to come out of that SEC basketball cellar, but no
field goals in the final 10 minutes sounds like what “choke”? Bring back, what was
that pro coach, Harrick??? Loser Dawgs!!
Runnin With The Dawgs
February 17th, 2011
10:12 am
Vandy just has a stronger more experienced team than UGA this year. Not to whine though! You don’t hear Vandy whining when UGA stomps them on the football field.
Chief1
February 17th, 2011
11:07 am
Is there not any white Boys in GA that can play college Basketball at GEORGIA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.
jc_dawgs
February 18th, 2011
9:57 am
Too many 3 star recruits on this team right now. But….the 2011 recruiting class looks good with 5 star Pope. Prior to 2011 however….I am sick of UGA getting out recruited. We lost a tough game to Vanderbilt….but they out recruited us over the last 4 years…just look at the rivals numbers.
three 4 star players for us and no 5 stars…..Vanderbilt on the other hand…..about six 4 star players and one 5-star player.
I know Thompkins is great and Leslie is good and underrated. But I for one am sick of getting out recruited by KY…FL…Tenn and Vandy. Is it really the venue that is holding us back? I know the Steg is a small venue.
2011 class looks good…..Fox has got to keep it up and corner the market once and for all with the top talent coming out of Atlanta.