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MBB: Georgia Opens NCAA Tournament Play with Saint Louis
Date: Thursday, March 19, 2026
Time: 9:45 p.m. ET
Venue: KeyBank Center (19,070)
Location: Buffalo, N.Y..
TV: CBS (Brian Anderson, play-by-play; Jim Jackson, analyst; Allie LaForce, sideline reporter)
National Radio: Westwood One (Jason Benetti, play-by-play; Sarah Kustok, analyst)
Georgia Radio: Georgia Bulldog Network (Scott Howard, play-by-play; Chuck Dowdle, analyst; Adam Gillespie, producer)
The Starting Five
• The winningest and highest-scoring Georgia Bulldogs ever will open play in the 2026 NCAA Tournament on Thursday when they face Saint Louis in the Round of 64 at 9:45 p.m. ET in Buffalo, N.Y.
• Georgia’s 22 regular-season victories are the most ever by the Bulldogs in 121 seasons of competition and is two shy of UGA’s most overall wins in a season – 24 in 1982-83 and 1996-97.
• The Dogs have scored 2,874 points in 32 games, passing UGA’s previous mark of 2,764 points in 37 outings in 2023-24. Georgia is averaging 89.8 ppg, 7.1 ppg over its current record – 82.7 ppg in 1989-90.
• Georgia has earned a second straight NCAA bid for just the fourth time in program history. The Bulldogs also appeared in back-to-back editions of March Madness in 1990-91, 1996-97 and 2001-02.
• The “Dunkyard Dawgs” lead the nation in percentage of field goals that are dunks at 19.0 percent (198 of 988 FGs). Individually, Somto Cyril tops all D-I players in dunks with 83 rim rattlers.
Entering Today’s Game:
Among UGA’s Career Leaders
Blue Cain is…
• 1 point from No. 43 Bob Schloss
• 11 points from No. 42 Chris Daniels
• 14 points from No. 41 Jarvis Hayes
• 18 points from No. 40 Gerald Crosby
• 47 points from No. 39 Rashad Wright
• 2 3-point FGs from co-No. 13s Ty Wilson and Ray Harrison
• 8 3-point FGs from No. 12 Kentavious Caldwell-Pope
• 3 3-point FGAs from No. 12 Ray Harrison
• 15 3-point FGAs from No. 11 Kentavious Caldwell-Pope
Somto Cyril is…
• 11 blocks from No. 6 Donte Williams
Among UGA’s Season Leaders
Somto Cyril is…
• 2 blocks from No. 6 Lavon Mercer (‘80)
• 7 blocks from No. 5 Nicolas Claxton (‘19)
Justin Abson is…
• 1 block from No. 14 Trey Thompkins (‘11)
• 2 blocks from co-No. 12s Somto Cyril (‘25) & Donte’ Williams (12)
Jeremiah Wilkinson is…
• 6 points from 1,000 career points
• 3 3FGs from No. 11 D.A. Layne (‘99)
• 4 3FGs from No. 10 J.J. Frazier (‘16)
• 5 3FGs from No. 9 Ezra Williams (‘03)
• 8 3FGAs from No. 7 Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (‘12)
Kanon Catchings is…
• 1 3FG from No. 15 Jody Patton (‘91)
• 4 3FGs from co-No. 14s Anthony Edwards (‘20) & Levi Stukes (‘06)
Smurf Millender is…
• 4 assists from co-No. 18s Gerald Robinson (‘11) & Litterial Green (‘89)
The Opening Tip
The 2025-26 Georgia Bulldogs – already UGA’s winningest and highest-scoring team in 121 seasons of intercollegiate competition – begin play in the NCAA Tournament on Thursday at 9:45 p.m. ET. The No. 8-seeded Bulldogs face No. 9 seed Saint Louis for the right to take on the winner of a date between top-seeded Michigan and either UMBC or Howard.
With its 102-96 win at Mississippi State on March 7, Georgia notched its 22nd win of the season. That tally is the most ever by the Bulldogs during the regular season, surpassing 21 victories by teams in both the 1930-31 and 1996-97. Georgia is looking to inch closer to the program record of 24 overall wins in a single season set in 1982-83 and 1996-97.
Also in Starkville, the Bulldogs upped their season scoring total to 2,802 points in 31 games (now 2,874 points in 32 outings). That topped the Georgia record for points in a season of 2,764 in 37 games of the 2023-24 campaign that culminated with a trip to the NIT semifinals.
Those results have Georgia returning to the NCAA Tournament for a second straight year, just the fourth time the Bulldogs have earned back-to-back bids to March Madness following 1990-91, 1996-97 and 2001-02.
Georgia’s statistical resume for the 2025-26 campaign is quite impressive.
As of Monday, the Bulldogs led all 365 Division I programs in fastbreak points (19.9 ppg) and also were ranked among the top-10 nationally in blocks (No. 2 at 6.1), scoring (No. 5 at 89.8 ppg) and bench points (No. 6 at 34.1 ppg).
Georgia has a deep rotation playing at a pace among the country’s quickest.
Eleven Bulldogs are logging double-figure minutes, and they have combined to record 130 double-figure scoring outputs this season.
Jeremiah Wilkinson is averaging a team-high 17.0 ppg, while Blue Cain is contributing 13.3 ppg, Kanon Catchings is adding 12.0 ppg and Marcus “Smurf” Millender is chipping in 11.9 ppg.
Somto Cyril, an SEC All-Defensive selection by league coaches, is averaging 9.6 ppg and leads the Bulldogs in rebounding (5.6 rpg), blocks (2.3 bpg) and field goal percentage (.764).
UGA’s NCAA Tournament History
Officially, the Bulldogs are making their 12th appearance in the NCAA Tournament and their first back-to-back appearances since 1996 and 1997. Georgia has participated in two more editions of March Madness, including consecutive bids in 2001 and 2002; however, results from tourneys in 1985 and 2002 were lated vacated due to NCAA sanctions.
The Bulldogs’ first invitation to the “Big Dance” was their most memorable.
After finishing 9-9 in league play and entering the 1983 SEC Tournament as the No. 6 seed, the Bulldogs won three games in as many days to earn their first SEC title and NCAA bid.
A No. 4 seed, Georgia beat VCU on a last-second James Banks jumper to advance to the East Regional in Syracuse. There, the Bulldogs shocked the basketball universe by upsetting top-seeded St. John’s (led by Chris Mullin) in the “Sweet 16” before besting North Carolina (and Michael Jordan) in the ‘Elite Eight.”
Georgia was the “other Cinderella” at the 1983 Final Four Albuquerque, falling to eventual champion N.C. State (and Jim Valvano), 67-60, in the semifinal round.
Ironically, the Bulldogs’ second-most successful NCAA run began in Albuquerque.
In 1996, Tubby Smith’s first season in Athens, Georgia, defeated Clemson and upset top-seeded Purdue at The Pit in the first two rounds to advance to the “Sweet 16.” The Bulldogs then lost to Syracuse, which advanced to the 1996 national championship game, in overtime in the West Regional semifinals in Denver.
Scouting The Billikens
Saint Louis enters the NCAA Tournament with a 28-5 record. The Billikens finished 15-3 and tied for first in the Atlantic 10 standings with VCU, but earned the No. 1 seed for the conference tournament by virtue of sweeping the season series with the Rams.
The Billikens were eliminated from the A-10 tourney in a wild finish with Dayton that included three buckets and three lead changes in the final 14.3 seconds.
The matchup between the Bulldogs and the Billikens is the only Round of 64 date featuring two teams ranked among the nation’s top 10 in scoring offense. As of Monday, Georgia was the No. 5 point producer in the country at 89.8 points per game, while Saint Louis was No. 10 at 87.2 ppg.
Saint Louis sports an incredibly balanced offensive attack, with a septet of Billikens averaging between 9.1-12.9 points per game. A 10 Player of the Year Robbie Avila leads that group at 12.9 ppg, followed by Dion Brown and Trey Green both at 11.1 ppg, Amari McCottry at 10.3 ppg, Kellen Thames at 9.9 ppg, Quentin Jones at 9.2 ppg and Isham Sharm at 9.1 ppg.
Series History With Saint Louis
Georgia won the only two previous meetings between the Bulldogs and Billikens, sweeping both ends of a home-and-home series in the 2009-10 and 2010-11 seasons.
On Dec. 2, 2009 in Athens, Dustin Ware’s 17 points led five Bulldogs in double figures in a 64-56 victory. Georgia led wire-to-wire with the largest lead of 40-20 with 17:01 remaining.
On Nov. 20, 2010, in St. Louis, Travis Leslie scored 19 points to lead Georgia in a 61-59 win over SLU. The Billikens never trailed until a Leslie jumper made it 59-57 with 40 seconds left in the game. Saint Louis tied the contest before a Jeremy Price layup at the buzzer sealed the victory.
Last Time Out
Georgia rallied from 23 points down early in the second half to pull within one possession four times in the final 7:35, but could not complete the comeback in a 76-72 loss to Ole Miss in the second round of the SEC Tournament last Thursday at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn.
The Bulldogs scored a season-low 20 first-half points and trailed 55-32 with 12:59 remaining before embarking on a 22-2 run over the next 5:14 to pull within 57-54. Georgia closed the gap to one possession three more times but could not get over that hump.
In Several Ways, These Are Already The Best Bulldogs Ever
Georgia’s school-record 22 regular-season wins is just the tip of the iceberg for what the 2025-26 Bulldogs have accomplished. Additional record-setting numbers include:
• Broke the school record for points in a season at Mississippi State on March 7. The Bulldogs scored 2,802 points in 31 regular-season games (and now have 2,874 points), bettering the previous record for most points of 2,764 in 37 games during the 2023-24 season.
• Broke the school record for blocks in a season at Vanderbilt on Feb. 25. The Bulldogs have now blocked 195 shots in 32 games, bettering the previous record for most rejections of 175 in 34 games during the 2015-16 season.
• Broke the school record for 3-pointers at Mississippi State on March 7. The Bulldogs now have made 314 3-pointers in 32 games, bettering the previous record for most 3-pointers of 300 in 37 games during the 2023-24 season.
• Tied the school record for 3-point attempts at Mississippi State on March 7. The Bulldogs now have attempted 921 3-pointers in 32 games, bettering the record of 883 attempts in 37 games during the 2023-24 season.
• Broke the school record for 100-point games with a sixth outing over the century mark against West Georgia on Dec. 22, the 12th game of the season. The Bulldogs now have eight 100-point outings, bettering the previous record of five during the 1990-91 season.
The Bulldogs also could better marks for:
• Georgia is two wins shy of its record of 24 victories during the 1982-83 and 1996-97 seasons.
• Georgia is averaging 89.8 ppg, 7.1 ppg better than the current record of 82.7 ppg in 1989-90.
• Georgia is shooting 75.4 percent from the free-throw line, just shy of the current record of 75.9 percent in 1996-97.
• Georgia has made 988 field goals, just nine shy of the current record of 997 in 1982-83.
BSB: Georgia Storms The Citadel, 8-5
A three-run home run from Kolby Branch elevated the No. 6 Georgia Bulldogs past The Citadel, 8-5, in a walk-off to cap a comeback Tuesday at Foley Field.
Fast Facts
- Junior Zach Brown started for Georgia (18-4, 2-1 SEC), throwing two innings and striking out one batter. Junior Caleb Jameson (1-0) was credited with the win after striking out the side in the ninth. The Citadel’s Zane Davis (0-1) received the loss.
- The Citadel grabbed an early 5-0 lead through the first six innings.
- Junior Daniel Jackson extended his hitting streak to 19-straight games with a double at the bottom of the sixth.
- Back-to-back home runs by Branch and junior Tre Phelps put the Bulldogs on the board in the seventh. This was the ninth home run of the season for both hitters.
- In the eighth inning, the Bulldogs put three more runs on the board. A ground out RBI scored freshman Ty Peeples, and an RBI single from junior Jack Arcamone plated senior Brennan Hudson. With two outs and bases loaded, junior Scott Newman was sent home after Jackson was hit by a pitch to tie the game 5-5.
- With two outs and two runners on base in the bottom of the ninth, Branch clinched the win for the Bulldogs with a three-run home run to left field.
Key Quotes
Ike Cousins Head Baseball Coach Wes Johnson
On midweek games…
“It was an emotional Sunday and the weather flipped, it’s cold now. I’ve been on them since this morning. I knew we were going to be in for a dog fight today. This team is a really, really good team. The Citadel is a quality club. They’ve already beat South Carolina and played Kentucky and Florida State. We weren’t going to scare them. I knew they were going to come at us and play a different style of ball. They run, bunt, do a lot of things on the base pass when they get on.”
#9 Kolby Branch | SS. | Sr.
On keeping team morale high…
“I don’t vocalize a lot of stuff, but when it has to be said, it has to be said. I’m pacing the dugout saying over and over, ‘We’re going to win this game. We’re going to win this game.’ You say it to speak it into existence and good things happen.”
#14 Kenny Ishikawa | LHP/OF | So.
On being back after injury (started in LF after starting Sunday on the mound). . .
“It’s been fun being back on the field and able to play, but I think I have to prove myself again. It’s a fresh start.”
On the difference between getting ready to hit versus pitch . . .
“Not much of a difference, to be honest. The first outing I had since my injury was kind of weird because I usually hit batting practice and then get ready. I did have a lot of time before my first outing after my injury. It was kind of weird because I didn’t have extra time, but today was pretty normal for me.”
Up Next
Georgia heads to College Station for its first road SEC series against No. 21 Texas A&M (16-2, 1-2 SEC). The first pitch of the series will be on Friday at 7 p.m. ET. The game will be available to stream on SEC Network+ and the Georgia Bulldogs Sports Network.
ICYMI: Coach Smart Opens Spring Drills with Presser
Georgia Head Coach Kirby Smart
On injury updates…
“We’ve got a couple guys that are obviously out for spring dealing with injuries. Drew Bobo will be out for the spring. He should get back to work sometime over the summer. Jordan Hall, from his injury during the season, is out for the spring. He’s running and doing some things, but he won’t be able to participate. Gabe [Harris Jr.] had the turf toe surgery at the end of the season. He’s out for the duration of the spring. Kyron [Jones] is still dealing with his ankle injury. Carter Luckie, who we got from high school, had knee surgery in high school and will be out for the spring. Then, Zayden Walker had a labral repair at the end of the season, and those typically are out for spring. He might be able to do some stuff at the end of spring. We’ve got several others that have injuries they’re coming back from, maybe in or out a couple days of practice, but those are the guys that are out for the majority of practices.”
On what they are working on in spring…
“I’m excited about spring. We’ve got a lot of areas to work on. I know I’ve seen a lot of things
said or written about guys coming back, a number of starters. We have the least number of starters coming back we’ve ever had in terms of competition for positions. I think a lot of people look at it, ‘This guy started three games. This guy started four games.’ When I look out there on the field, or when I look at the pro day tomorrow, there’s some good players leaving the program with a lot of experience. As these fifth- and sixth-year guys leave, our team always seems younger because we do not have many fifth-year players ever again in the program. It’s just more and more rare to have a guy in fifth year, so a lot of new faces. Our goals for the spring are really simple. We want to grow the bottom of the roster to the top, and we want to get our top of the roster better. You can only do that through hard work and preparation. These guys have had a good six, seven-week offseason program. We put more into the offseason program. We went six days at 6 a.m. and tried to create a little more competition and culture among the guys, and they bought into that piece. We’re excited to get started at spring ball today. We’ll try to follow the same model we always have, Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, unless the weather gets us somewhere, and we can adjust.”
On Phil Rauscher and Larry Knight…
“Phil [Rauscher] has been with us. He brought a lot of identity to our offense last year and a lot of energy to that room, specifically. I’m excited about what Phil brought last year. He’ll continue to do that. He and Stacy [Searels] are both working with the offensive line. Warren [Ericson] and Edmond [Kugbila] both help out with that. I think on the offensive line it’s probably the position that has the most need for coaches and eyes because it’s a developmental position. Guys do not come in here ready to play, so we need a lot of guys to help with those units to get them better. I know Phil will do that. He’s got great experience in the National Football League. He’s got a lot of good ideas for us offensively, especially in the run game. He’s been a joy to work with, so I’m excited about that. Larry [Knight] has come in and done a great job really quickly. He interviewed. We thought he did an outstanding job. Very detailed in terms of things he believes in. He’s worked with some really good coaches, and he’s getting to know the guys, still. He’s been in workouts with them for a couple weeks now. Getting on the grass should be fun for him to get to coach those guys and get to know them. He’s been around defenses similar to ours, and he’s very intelligent. He’ll pick up on the defense quickly and do a great job helping our unit perform.”
On Gunner Stockton with starting experience…
“We’ve got to be more explosive offensively. That does not fall solely on Gunner, but that does fall partially with him. We have to be able to be more explosive in the run game which some of that is blocking downfield or making people miss. Same thing in the pass game. We ran the ball better last year, so if we run the ball better, our play actions should be more explosive and more effective than they were. That comes from decision-making for him. That comes from protection from the front and making plays vertical down the field for the other guys. His steps are to grow, to get better. All the studies we did, a lot of our explosives came on unscheduled downs, unscheduled play; plays that maybe broke down, or something happened. Then, he was able to scramble and make a play down the field. We’ve got to simulate those more for him and allow him to grow to make those plays. I think the number one step for him is take what the defense gives you, use the skill set of the players around you, and be more explosive.”
On wide receiver Isiah Canion and running back Dante Dowdell…
“Isiah [Canion] is a guy we knew about in high school and someone we knew a lot of. I remember Coach Bobo going down and watching him practice, and he made a couple really acrobatic catches. He was in the back of our mind all along. Of course, we got to play against him last year, and he made some plays against us last year in that game. The more familiar you are with someone through recruiting, the more success we’ve had. He’s a good football player. He’s an even better person, and he played with several guys on our team, so there’s a
relationship there. We know him, so we’re excited about him. Dante [Dowdell], we did play against, as well. For us, it became about physicality, having a back that was big, physical, played in our league, knows what it takes to win at this level. He’s done nothing but come in and bust his butt and work hard.”
On the difficulty that transfer and freshmen experience in spring practice…
“Practices are hard here for everybody, so they’re meant to be tough. They’re meant to be hard because the game is supposed to be easier. In terms of the defensive back room, we’ve got some additions and we’ve got some subtractions. We’re trying to figure out where we are and grow those guys. It’s a transient position. There in receiver, you typically have guys go in the portal. You typically get guys out of the portal. It usually has something to do with the mindset of their belief and confidence that they should be playing. A lot of those guys that came in think they should have been playing more where they were, and they’re going to have an opportunity to prove that here. Some of the guys that left here probably felt they should have been playing more, and maybe we didn’t. Then, the guys we signed certainly all believe they can play here, and time is going to tell whether they’re ready to or not. Our job is to get the best five or six defensive backs out there we can put out there. I’m excited with the group we have. I don’t know that I’m ready to say where they are because we haven’t seen them do anything.
On whether there are plans to alter the format of G-Day…
“No, G-Day will stay similar, assuming since it’s a long way off. Assuming that we’re healthy and we have the number of guys we need to be able to play, G-Day would be a very similar format. As far as overarching things, we have to run the ball and stop the run. That’s not ever going to change, and I think that was driven home really hard last year. That’s not going to change. I can’t change that because when you get down to the end of a game, to win the game, you have to run the ball, or you have to stop the run to get the ball back. It’s just what football is, so that’s not going anywhere. We do have to be more explosive, and we do have to be more disruptive on defense. Those two things are going to always be there. They don’t go away, so I don’t know if I can say it’s exactly this. It’s much clearer that last year in terms we didn’t achieve those things. We did achieve much better this past year at running it and stopping the run, but we weren’t effective enough in some other areas: being explosive, our downs, and creating havoc in sacks. Disruption on defense has to be better.”
On the outside linebacker and transfer EDGE Amaris Williams…
“We know a lot about him [Amaris Williams]. He’s got to be able to play within our system, understand our system, but also add value. He can start by taking the reps he’s going to get this spring. We’ve got three young guys that didn’t get a lot of playing time last year. I want to see where they are. Quintavius [Johnson] is continuing to grow. With Gabe [Harris Jr.] out, it’s going to open a door for a lot of guys to get reps and grow and play. I kind of want to see what they can do. Khamari [Brooks] here. He’s a mid-year freshman. We want to see the growth in that room and see those guys continue to get better.”
On the leadership Raylen Wilson can provide with CJ Allen’s departure for the NFL…
“He was one of the leaders of the defense last year. CJ [Allen], his demeanor and his makeup, sometimes overshadowed Raylen [Wilson]. There were times last year CJ couldn’t practice, CJ couldn’t play, but Raylen took over. He did a lot of great things along with CJ, and I think he’s going to shoulder more of that load along with Justin [Williams] and Chris [Cole], and that’s where the leadership in your defense comes from. That middle group that communicates to the defensive line and communicates to the back end, so I have no concerns about Raylen’s leadership ability. I want him to continue to grow as a player and get better and have a great season this year.”
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