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MBB: Dawgs Travel to College Station
Date: Tuesday, February 1, 2025
Time: 9:00 p.m. ET
Venue: Reed Arena (12,989)
Location: Bryan-College Station, Texas
TV: SEC Network (Dave Neal, play-by-play; Jon Sunvold, analyst)
Radio: Georgia Bulldog Network – Sirius 380 (Scott Howard, play-by-play; Chuck Dowdle, analyst; Adam Gillespie, producer)
The Starting Five
• Georgia treks to Texas A&M on Tuesday for a matchup against the No. 8/9 Aggies, who represent the Bulldogs’ sixth top-10 opponent in their 12th SEC game this season.
• Texas A&M will be Georgia’s 11th ranked and sixth top-10 opponent this season, both the most ever for the Bulldogs. The previous ranked foes record was 10 in 1981-82, 1997-98, 1999-2000, 2002-03 and 2006-07. Six top-10 opponents ties the 1980-81 and 1993-94 seasons as the most for UGA.
• Asa Newell, who was named a top-10 candidate for the Kareem Abdul-Jabar Award last Friday, was selected as SEC Freshman of the Week on Monday. Newell has been named FOTW four times, matching Anthony Edwards’ school record.
• Mike White has now led three programs with losing records the season before he arrived to top-25 AP rankings in less than three years…also doing so at Louisiana Tech and Florida.
• Georgia is the only SEC team that will play the four teams ranked in the top-10 throughout the entirety league play – Alabama, Auburn, Florida and Tennessee – in road games.
The Opening Tip
The Georgia Bulldogs will establish records for AP ranked and top-10 opponents in a single season on Tuesday night as soon as they tip off their contest at No. 8/9 Texas A&M on Tuesday night at Reed Arena.
The Aggies represent Georgia’s 11th ranked foe this season, breaking the previous high of 10 during the 1981-82, 1997-98, 1999-2000, 2002-03 and 2006-07 seasons. Texas A&M is the Bulldogs’ sixth contest versus a top-10 team, matching the 1980-81 and 1993-94 campaigns for the most ever.
Those facts highlight a grueling SEC slate for Georgia. After playing six of eight games against top-25 opponents in January, six of the Bulldogs’ seven contests in February are against teams ranked this week.
The Bulldogs are 16-8 overall and 4-7 in SEC play following last Saturday’s 76-75 loss to No. 22 Mississippi State. Georgia is projected as an NCAA Tournament team by virtually everyone predicting a bracket, including a No. 10 seed by ESPN.com on Friday. In fact as of Monday, bracketmatrix.com, which attempts to track every bracket prediction published, confirms that Georgia is currently part of all 86 active prognostications for “March Madness.”
Georgia’s balanced offense features seven players who have led the Bulldogs in one or more games. Two more players have posted double-figure scoring outputs. All told, those nine Bulldogs have produced 87 double-digit performances.
Asa Newell, who on Monday was named SEC Freshman of the Week for the fourth time to tie Anthony Edwards’ Georgia record of most SEC FOTW honors, leads a trio of Bulldogs averaging double figures at 15.3 ppg and also paces UGA on the boards at 6.8 rpg. Among league leaders, Newell is ranked No. 14 in scoring and No. 11 rebounding. Entering this week, he also was No. 3 in the SEC and No. 39 nationally in field goal percentage (.554).
Silas Demary Jr. and Dakota Leffew are scoring at double-digit paces of 11.5 ppg and 10.7 ppg, respectively, for the Bulldogs. Demary Jr. also sports team-high averages of 3.1 apg and 1.8 spg.
Scouting The Aggies
Texas A&M is currently 18-5 overall, including a 7-3 SEC mark, and ranked No. 8 and No. 9 in this week’s Associated Press and coaches polls, respectively.
Following back-to-back losses to No. 5 Alabama and at No. 8 Kentucky, the Aggies have won five of their last six outings, including a dramatic 67-64 decision at No. 15 Missouri last Saturday.
Wade Taylor IV and Zhuric Phelps provide the Aggies with a potent 1-2 scoring punch. Taylor is averaging 15.1 ppg, while Phelps is contributing 14.7.
Series History With A&M
Texas A&M owns a 9-5 edge in all-time matchups between the Bulldogs and the Aggies.
Last season on March 2 at Stegeman Coliseum, freshman Blue Cain scored a team-high 11 points – his third time leading Georgia offensively last season – in a 70-56 setback to Texas A&M.
Georgia trailed 60-56 following Cain’s floating jumper with 6:35 remaining before the Aggies closed out the day on a 10-0 surge.
In the Bulldogs’ last trip to Bryan-College Station on Feb. 4, 2023, Justin Hill scored a season-high 20; however, Georgia dropped an 82-57 decision to Texas A&M.
A&M started quickly, racing to a 15-2 lead and maintaining a significant distance throughout the rest of the evening.
Last Time Out
Despite career-high efforts of 23 points and seven assists from Silas Demary Jr., Georgia dropped a 76-75 decision to No. 22 Mississippi State last Saturday at Stegeman Coliseum.
Though State led for 32:19 of the contest, the score was separated by one or two possession for much of the evening. Georgia tied the game five times in the second half, lastly when Asa Newell scored five points in a span of nine seconds to make it 71-71 with 4:04 remaining.
The Bulldogs gained possession down one with just under eight seconds left but failed to score.
“This was a tough loss,” head coach Mike White said. “It could have gone either way. We did enough offensively. Our defense let us down tonight. Great opportunity, but not enough urgency in transition defense.”
Georgia’s Declaration of Schedule Difficulty
We know that a computer spit out the Southeastern Conference men’s basketball schedule using an almost unfathomable lengthy list of data qualifiers attempting to create an equal and equitable ledger for all 16 schools. However, it seems prudent to make the following declaration.
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all schedules are not created equal, that they are endowed by the league office with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness (as in an NCAA Tournament bid).”
• Georgia is the only team that has road games at each of the four SEC teams ranked in the top-10 throughout conference play – Alabama, Auburn, Florida and Tennessee. We’ve added a trip to No. 8/9 Texas A&M for good measure.
• Georgia is one of two teams that will play two of those top-10 programs twice – Auburn and Florida. Kentucky is the other – Alabama and Tennessee.
Asa Newell Named SEC Freshman of the Week
Georgia’s Asa Newell was named the Southeastern Conference’s Freshman of the Week on Monday after averaging 16.5 points while shooting 61.1 percent from the field, including 57.1 percent from 3-point range, and 77.8 percent at the line in the Bulldogs’ contests against LSU and No. 22 Mississippi State last week.
Newell has now won the accolade four times this season, equaling Anthony Edwards for the most SEC Freshman of the Week honors by a Bulldog.
Previously, Newell was recognized on Nov. 18 (after he averaged 13.5 points, 8.0 rebounds, 1.5 blocks and 1.5 assists in a pair of wins over Georgia Tech and North Florida) on Dec. 9 (after posting game-high tallies of 20 points and 11 rebounds in Georgia’s 69-48 victory over Notre Dame in the SEC/ACC Challenge) and on Jan. 13 (after he averaged 16.0 ppg and was Georgia’s leading scorer in wins over No. 6/7 Kentucky and No. 17/16 Oklahoma.)
Last week, Newell posted his 21st and 22nd double figure scoring outputs in 24 games played this season. He scored a game-high 17 points in the Bulldogs’ 81-62 victory over LSU by connecting on 6-of-10 shots from the field and 4-of-5 trips to the line. Newell put up 16 points and collected a career-high three steals in a career-most 34 minutes of action against No. 22 Mississippi State. He also knocked down a career-best three 3-pointers versus State.
Newell’s list of recognitions has grown recently.
Last Friday (Feb. 7), Newell was named a top-10 candidate for the 2025 Kareem Abdul-Jabar Award by the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. The award annually honors the top center in Division I men’s basketball.
On Jan. 29, Newell was featured on The Athletic’s Freshman All-America squad along with Duke’s Cooper Flagg, Rutgers’ Dylan Harper, Illinois’ Kasparas Jakucionis and Auburn’s Tahaad Pettiford.
Georgia returns to action on Tuesday when the Bulldogs will face No. 8/9 Texas A&M in College Station. The Bulldogs return home on Saturday to host No. 21/22 Missouri at Stegeman Coliseum at 3:30 p.m. ET.
Tickets all Georgia’s remaining home games are available at www.georgiadogs.com/mbbtix.
WTEN: No. 1 Dawgs Sweep Virginia, Lock ITA National Team Indoor Championship Finals Slot
The No. 1 Georgia women’s tennis team secured its spot in the ITA National Team Indoor Championship finals, securing a 4-0 sweep over No. 5 Virginia in the semifinal at the Combe Tennis Center on Monday.
Fast Facts
- The Bulldogs have advanced to the ITA National Team Indoor final for the second time in the last three seasons, where they will play for a chance to win their seventh national championship and fifth indoor title in program history.
- Georgia now leads the all-time series 7-1 against Virginia.
- In doubles, the tandem of Dasha Vidmanova and Mell Reasco struck first with a dominant 6-0 victory over Melodie Collard and Karolina Kozakova on court one. Within minutes, the duo of Guillermina Grant and Anastasiia Lopata secured the doubles point with a 6-2 win over #23 Annabelle Xu and Martina Genis Salas on court two.
- In singles, Sofia Rojas continued her stellar run with a convincing 6-2, 6-0 victory over Blanca Pico Navarro on court six to give the Bulldogs a 2-0 lead. Rojas has now tallied a singles victory in each round at the ITA National Team Indoors, extending her winning streak to six matches this season.
- #90 Grant followed suit as she took control early and never looked back, taking a 6-0, 6-3 win over #64 Collard on court five to put Georgia one point away from a clinch.
- #75 Aysegul Mert raced to the finish, securing the clinch and the sweep with a 6-3, 6-2 win over Genis Salas on court four. The win extends her winning streak to five matches in singles play.
Results
Doubles:
1. Dasha Vidmanova/Mell Reasco (UGA) def. Melodie Collard/Karolina Kozakova (UVA), 6-0
2. Guillermina Grant/Anastasiia Lopata (UGA) def. #23 Annabelle Xu/Martina Genis Salas (UVA), 6-2
3. #57 Aysegul Mert/Hayden Mulberry (UGA) vs #73 Sara Ziodato/Margaret Navarro (UVA), 4-4, unfinished
Singles:
1. #1 Dasha Vidmanova (UGA) vs #27 Annabelle Xu (UVA), 6-1, 5-2, unfinished
2. #37 Anastasiia Lopata (UGA) vs #33 Sara Ziodato (UVA), 6-4, 2-2, unfinished
3. Mell Reasco (UGA) vs Isabelle Lacy (UVA), 6(5)-7, 1-2, unfinished
4. #75 Aysegul Mert (UGA) def. Martina Genis Salas (UVA), 6-3, 6-2
5. #90 Guillermina Grant (UGA) def. #64 Melodie Collard (UVA), 6-0, 6-3
6. Sofia Rojas (UGA) def. Blanca Pico Navarro (UVA), 6-2, 6-0
Order of finish: Doubles (1, 2); Singles (6,5,4)
Up Next
The No. 1 Bulldogs will face the winner between No. 2 Texas A&M and No. 12 Oklahoma in the ITA National Team Indoor Championships Final on Tuesday, Feb. 11 at 7:30 p.m. ET at the Combe Tennis Center in Evanston, Ill.
Match 8 – No. 1 Georgia vs No. 2 Texas A&M/No. 12 Oklahoma
Date: Tuesday,Feb. 11, 2025
Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
Location: Evanston, Ill.
Site: Combe Tennis Center
Live Video/Scoring: https://gado.gs/ckn
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