[su_spacer size=”20″] Georgia seniors Kenny Gaines and Charles Mann were voted to the preseason first team in balloting of league coaches announced by the league office on Thursday.
[su_spacer size=”40″] Gaines and Mann become just the second duo of Bulldogs to earn first-team preseason honors from league coaches since the recognition began before the 2004-05 season. Travis Leslie and Trey Thompkins were also first-team selections before 2010-11.
[su_spacer size=”40″] Gaines, a 6-3, 205-pound Atlanta native, was the Bulldogs’ top scorer in SEC play a year ago while averaging 11.9 ppg and was No. 21 in the league in overall scoring (11.7 ppg). He led Georgia in scoring eight times, including one-third of the Bulldogs’ SEC contests. Gaines started 29 of 31 games played in 2014-15 and missed only two contests despite a preseason illness, an early-December shoulder sprain, and a late-season foot sprain.
[su_spacer size=”40″] Mann, who is 6-5, 215-pounds and from Alpharetta, also was named first-team preseason All-SEC by league coaches before last season. He is the first Bulldog ever to repeat as a preseason first-team honoree. Mann started 32 of 33 games played and was one of only two players on Georgia’s injury-plagued roster to play in every game during 2014-15. He notched a team-high 21 double-digit scoring outputs and finished the season ranked among league leaders in scoring (No. 24 at 11.2 ppg) and assists (No. 10 at 3.6 apg).
[su_spacer size=”40″] Georgia opens its 2015-16 season tomorrow night when the Bulldogs host Chattanooga at Stegeman Coliseum at seven p.m. Gaines and Mann are two of nine returning letter winners who led Georgia to a 21-12 finish and an NCAA Tournament bid last season. They also have helped the Bulldogs post back-to-back 20-win seasons for just the third time in program history.
[su_spacer size=”40″] Single-game tickets for Georgia Basketball are $15 and can be purchased in advance at the UGA Ticket Office in the Butts-Mehre Heritage Hall from 8:30-4:30 on Monday-Friday, by calling the ticket office at 877-542-1231 or online by clicking here. Also, single-game tickets go on sale at the Stegeman Coliseum box office at five p.m. for games from Monday-Friday and one hour before tipoff for Saturday contests.
[su_spacer size=”40″] All UGA students are admitted to home games free of charge with valid UGA ID at the student gate beginning one hour before tipoff.
[su_spacer size=”40″] Mini-plans and group tickets can be purchased by calling 706-369-6218.
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