Georgia Basketball’s 2020-21 non-conference schedule was announced on Friday by head coach Tom Crean, with the Bulldogs set to host seven contests at Stegeman Coliseum between Nov. 25-Dec. 22.
The Bulldogs will host a diverse group of teams from seven different conferences – Cincinnati from the AAC, Gardner-Webb from the Big South, Jacksonville from the Atlantic Sun, Montana from the Big Sky, Northeastern from the CAA, Samford from the SoCon and Columbus State from the Division II Peach Belt Conference.
Georgia’s opening contest will be on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving – the first available play date for the 2020-21 season – when the Bulldogs host Columbus State. Georgia will entertain Gardner-Webb on Nov. 29, Jacksonville on Dec. 4, Montana on Dec. 8, Samford on Dec. 12, Cincinnati on Dec. 19 and Northeastern on Dec. 22.
Both Northeastern and Montana have been picked to win their respective conferences this season, while Cincinnati returns three starters from last season when the Bearcats tied for the AAC regular-season title.
Game times and television information will be announced at a later date.
Last Friday, the SEC released its 18-game league schedule for the coming winter. The Bulldogs will begin conference play on Dec. 30 when they host Mississippi State. All told, Georgia’s 16-game home schedule features eight weekend and eight weeknight contests.
The Bulldogs began practices on Oct. 14 and have completed just over four weeks of their six-week official preparations for the season. Georgia’s roster is a mix of six returning letterwinners and eight newcomers.
Starters Toumani Camara and Sahvir Wheeler are back along with junior Tye Fagan and sophomores Christian Brown, Jaykwon Walton and Jaxon Etter.
Georgia’s group of newcomers features a representative of each class – graduate transfer seniors Andrew Garcia, P.J. Horne and Justin Kier, juniors Jonathan Ned and Mikal Starks, sophomore Tyron McMillan and freshmen K.D. Johnson and Josh Taylor.
Georgia defeated Ole Miss, 81-63, in the opening round of the SEC Tournament on March 11, the Bulldogs’ most decisive victory over a league foe during the 2020-21 season. Georgia’s season ended a day later when the remainder of the tourney was cancelled due to COVID-19. The Bulldogs wrapped up the season with a 16-16 record, headlined by victories over No. 9 Memphis and No. 12 Auburn.
Gameday admission and event guidelines for this season will be announced at a later date. The Bulldogs have been a hot ticket of late, breaking their all-time total attendance record at Stegeman Coliseum in each of Crean’s first two seasons. Georgia drew 164,071 fans for 17 home dates during the 2019-20 season, producing the second-best average attendance mark (9,651) in school history.