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MBB: Dawgs Face South Carolina in Columbia

Date: Saturday, January 10, 2026

Time: 2:00 p.m. ET

Venue: Colonial Life Arena (18,000)

Location: Columbia, S.C.

TV: ESPN2 (Roy Philpott, play-by-play; John Crispin, analyst)

Radio: Georgia Bulldog Network – Sirius 106 (Scott Howard, play-by-play; Chuck Dowdle, analyst; Adam Gillespie, producer)

The Starting Five

• Georgia – which entered January with the highest scoring average (99.0 ppg) of any D-I team in seven years (since 2019) – will face South Carolina on Saturday in its second road game this week.

• The Bulldogs are ranked No. 18 and No. 20 in this week’s AP and coaches polls, respectively, which is Georgia’s highest rankings since being No. 17 (AP) and No. 18 (coaches) on February 3, 2003. 

• Georgia entered the weekend ranked among the nation’s top-5 teams in six statistics, including No. 1 in scoring offense (97.9 ppg), fastbreak points (25.9 ppg) and blocks (7.9 bpg).

• As of Friday, the Dunkyard Dawgs were scoring a nation-leading 21.4 percent of their field goals on dunks this season. Individually, Somto Cyril’s 42 dunks led the SEC and ranked No. 2 nationally.

• Georgia topped the 100-point plateau in seven of its first 14 games, already breaking the program’s single-season record of five century mark tallies during the 1990-91 campaign. The Bulldogs have scored 40 or more points during 27 of 30 halves of basketball this season.

Keeping An Eye On…

Entering Today’s Game:

Among UGA’s Career Leaders

Blue Cain is…

• 3 3-pointers from No. 19 Sundiata Gaines

• 4 3-pointers from No. 18 Rashad Wright

• 8 3-pointers from No. 17 Turtle Jackson

• 4 3-point attempts from No. 19 Rashad Wright

Somto Cyril is…

• 4 blocks from No. 15 Rashaad Singleton

• 9 blocks from No. 14 Albert Jackson

Among UGA’s Season Leaders

Blue Cain is…

• 1 free throw from the minimum to qualify for UGA’s season leaders in FT pct. His current percentage of 90.4 would rank No. 2

Somto Cyril is…

• 4 blocks from co-No. 19s Terry Fair (‘83), Marcus Thornton (‘14) and Yante Maten (‘15)

• 6 blocks from No. 18 Charles Claxton (‘93)

• 7 blocks from No. 17 Charles Claxton (‘92)

The Opening Tip

The No. 18/20-ranked Georgia Bulldogs will trek down I-20 to Columbia, S.C., to face the South Carolina Gamecocks in a Saturday matinee.

Georgia’s current rankings are its highest since being No. 17 in the AP poll and No. 18 in the coaches poll on Feb. 3, 2003.

The Bulldogs are 13-2, matching their second-best 15-game record in 121 seasons of basketball. 

Georgia’s statistical start to the 2025-26 campaign has been equally impressive.

As of Friday, the Bulldogs were leading all 365 Division I teams in scoring offense (97.9 ppg), fastbreak points (25.9 ppg) and blocks (7.9 bpg). Among the 28 statistics tracked by the NCAA, Georgia ranked in the top 5 in six and in the top 25 in 13. 

Georgia has one of the nation’s deepest rotations, playing at a pace among the country’s quickest.

Eleven Bulldogs are averaging double-figure minutes, and according to the oft-used metric KenPom.com, Georgia entered this weekend ranked No. 2 nationally in adjusted tempo (75.9) and No. 3 in average offensive possession length (14.3 seconds).

Georgia’s depth extends beyond the numbers to its offensive production. 

Ten of the 11 Bulldogs playing double-digit minutes have scored 10+ points in a game, combining to record 65 double-figure scoring outputs this season. Jeremiah Wilkinson is averaging a team-high 17.2 ppg, while Blue Cain is contributing 15.1 ppg and Marcus “Smurf” Millender is chipping in 12.0 ppg.

Scouting The Gamecocks

South Carolina improved to 10-5 overall and 1-1 in SEC play with an impressive 78-68 win at LSU on Tuesday. The Gamecocks doubled up the Tigers 50-25 in the first half and withstood several second-half rallies by LSU.

Meechie Johnson tops a quartet of double-figure scorers for South Carolina at 14.0 ppg, while both Mike Sharavjamts and Elijah Strong are putting up 11.6 ppg, and Eli Ellis is posting 11.0 ppg.

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