Welcome to the Bulldawg Illustrated Hoops Report. It’s like looking for a dance partner in Nashville. But instead of listening to honky tonk today, the Dawgs are rocking to Cat Scratch Fever. After amazingly beating South Carolina for a third time this year, the Dawgs are squarely back on the tournament bubble. However, to make the Big Dance, you got to knock off the Big Cats. And we know that won’t be easy. They dominate the SEC in career titles and sleazy coaches. This year is no difference, they’re red hot and Calipari is still shady as a palm tree. We can only savor that victory against the Lamecocks for a few seconds. So let’s do it.
 
 
Up Goes Frazier!!! JJ, that is. After watching a game where the Dawgs looked out of sync, discombobulated, and even a little disinterested at times, JJ refused to lose. In a game where UGA led for a total of approx 18 seconds, the last 2.1 is what mattered the most. After JJ had made a miraculous drive to hit a layup with no time left of the shot clock, the Lamers inbounded with 10 seconds left and every intention of winning. Unfortunately for them JJ decided it was easier for both teams if he just stole the ball with 2.1 left and allow the Chickens to commit an idiotic foul., His plan worked to perfection as he hit the first and missed the second to seal the deal. I’d also be remiss if I didn’t mention Yante Maten’s double-double. He had 17 and 12 and kept us in the game when the rest of the team was ice cold. I’m still not sure how we kept it close enough to pull out in the end, but just like Nique once said, they didn’t pay me at UGA to go to math class.
 
 
If you want to write a David vs Goliath story, you got it. History pens UK basketball as a perennial powerhouse and UGA as an occasional blip on someone’s radar. So the odds of beating UK today are about as good as a 4-12 UGA team winning the SEC Tournament in 2008. And that’s why we play the game. College basketball is crazy. Anything can happen. The Dawgs played decent on Thursday and sub-mediocre on Friday. But they’re 2-0. I’d like to hope we can come out and play one of our best games of the year today. But Big Blue is red hot. Their top three scorers outscored Bama 60-59 yesterday. The rest of their team added 25 to win 85-59. So nothing will be easy, But here’s the deal. JJ doesn’t like to lose. Maten is one of the best players in the SEC. And maybe it’s time for seniors Charles Mann and Kenny Gaines to both shine in the same game. That’s not happened but once or twice this year. For the Dawgs to have any chance, it must happen today. Kentucky will trap and pressure all day long. Those guys must make them pay and not turn the ball over.
 
 
So here we are. A five-game winning streak at the hot time of the year. A win today and not only are we in the SEC Finals, I think we deserve to be in the big dance. Deserving and obtaining are two different things, but I’d like our chances with a win. They pummeled us by what seemed like a 60 point margin in Lexington this year, so it’s improbable, right? Again, that’s why we play them. There is no time for moral victories today. Show up and keep this thing close from the outset. We can’t fall behind early again. If that happens, then Calipari is going to run traps and pressure at us after every made basket. Defense is the key. Steals, blocks, and no offensive rebounds. If we get that, we got a chance. Go Dawgs!!