Georgia lost a buzzer-beater game against Mississippi State 68-67 Wednesday night in a way that no one expected.
Immediately after Tyree Crump hit a 3-point shot to tie it up, Jordan Harris fouled Mississippi State’s top scorer of the night, Quinndary Weatherspoon, in the last second of the game. Upset fans began to boo and yell with frustration.
Weatherspoon missed his first free throw shot and, somewhere in the mix of things, a small stuffed Bulldog made its way onto the court, presumably thrown by a fan. Head coach Tom Crean quickly grabbed a microphone to tell the fans that filled Stegeman Coliseum not to throw anything on the court.
Shortly after Crean’s public plead, the SEC officials deemed the flying toy a technical foul on Georgia giving Weatherspoon an extra chance to shoot from the free throw line. He made that shot and missed the next.
A desperate effort to win the game came from Rayshaun Hammonds who heaved the ball into the air towards the basket. It fell short as the buzzer sounded signifying that his team had lost.
Crean said that in his 19 years as a head coach he has not seen a technical foul been called without a warning or an explanation.
Despite the unimaginable ending for Georgia, the Dawgs showed improvement in this game. Georgiacame back from being down 17 and managed to tie the game four times.
Mississippi State head coach Ben Howland mentioned after the game that this is not a team he wants to play again.
As a team that averages 16.2 turnovers per game, Georgia’s nine against the Bulldogs is a step in the right direction. They also only allowed eight points off of those nine m
“They are getting better and improving. They are bringing that practice game. We have had great practices all year but we haven’t always brought that to the game,” said Crean.
Georgia will travel to Oxford, Mississippi on Saturday to take on Ole Miss at 3:30.