[su_spacer size=”40″] Sophomore forward Yante Maten led the way for the Bulldogs with 20 points, including a career-best eight field goals, and five rebounds. Senior Kenny Gaines added 17 points of his own and junior J.J. Frazier finished with 11 points.
[su_spacer size=”40″] “It was a disappointing second half for our team,” head coach Mark Fox said. “We had a very poor start to the second half. I thought we had a questionable shot and a couple offensive turnovers. We never could regain a real offensive rhythm in the second half. We couldn’t get a stop and rebound to win the game.”
[su_spacer size=”40″] Georgia led by as many as 12 points in the first half with just under eight minutes to go eventually taking a 37-28 lead into the break. Kenny Gaines and Yante Maten teamed together to score 23 of the Bulldogs’ 37 total first-half points.
[su_spacer size=”40″] The Bulldogs were all over the Wildcats defensively holding Kansas State to just 34.5-percent shooting from the floor. Georgia made an effort to force the ball down low and it showed with the Bulldogs hitting 50-percent of their first-half shots. Georgia hit on three of its seven 3-point attempts in the first twenty minutes.
[su_spacer size=”40″] Kansas State jumped out to a 15-5 run to start the second-half taking a 43-42 lead with over 13 minutes left in the game. The Wildcats forced several turnovers and held the Bulldogs to only five points in the first eight minutes of the second half.
[su_spacer size=”40″] J.J. Frazier sparked a run midway through the half scoring five points in a row to reclaim the Bulldogs’ lead at 49-47.Frazier scored seven of his eleven points in the second half.
[su_spacer size=”40″] The last four minutes went back-and-forth as both teams battled for the lead. Freshman Mike Edwards hit the front end of a one and one to tie the game up at 66, but Kansas State’s Dean Wade hit a 15-foot baseline jumper that gave the Wildcats a 68-66 lead. J.J. Frazier was able to get one final look, but his long 3-point attempt ended just short.
[su_spacer size=”40″] The Bulldogs return to action on Tuesday at 7 p.m. hosting Winthrop at 7 p.m. at Stegeman Coliseum. The game will be nationally broadcast on the SEC Network.
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