(Photo by John Kelley)
Georgia vs, Florida
Sunday, March 1 at 3 p.m. ET
O’Connell Center (11,373) in Gainesville, Fla.
TV: SET Network; Cara Capuano, play-by-play; Steffi Sorensen, analyst
Radio: Georgia Bulldog Radio Network (AM 960 The Ref in Athens & 103.7 FM from Gainesville); Jeff Dantzler, play-by-play
Starting 5
• UGA is 50-15 all-time against UF, including a 21-10 mark in Gainesville
• With a win today, UGA would secure a first-round bye in next week’s SEC Tournament in N. Little Rock, Ark.
• UGA is looking to snap the second eight-game losing streak in the history of Lady Bulldog Basketball
• UGA is three wins shy of the Lady Bulldogs’ 900th all-time victory
• UGA played four top-10 teams in a row for the 1st time ever from 1/22-2/5 – No. 10 Texas A&M, No. 5 Tennessee, No. 10 Kentucky & No. 1 S. Carolina
Keeping An Eye On…Entering Today’s Game:
Tiaria Griffin is…
• 9 3-point FGAs from No. 6 Kelly Miller among UGA’s career leaders
• 2 3-point FGs from co-No. 10s Angela Puleo (2007-08) and Kelly Miller (1998-99) among UGA’s single-season leaders
• 5 3-point FGs from No. 10 Alexis Kendrick among UGA’s career leaders
Lady Bulldog Basketball is…
• 3 wins from the program’s 900th victory
Andy Landers is…
• 8 victories from his 950th win as a collegiate head coach
Millennium point watch…
• Erika Ford is 174 points from 1,000
• Tiaria Griffin is 177 points from 1,000
Georgia vs. Florida In Finale
The Georgia Lady Bulldogs and the Florida Gators square off at 3 p.m. on Sunday in the 2014-15 regular-season finale. The matchup is one where more (points) means less (games) for Georgia, as a win would secure a first-round bye for next week’s SEC Tournament in North Little Rock, Ark.
Georgia is currently 17-11 overall and 5-10 in the SEC. Tiaria Griffin is the Lady Bulldogs’ active scoring leader at 10.9 ppg, while Krista Donald is the top active rebounder at 6.6 rpg.
Those records are a long way from the 17-3 and 5-2 marks the Lady Bulldogs sported following a Jan. 22 upset of No. 10 Texas A&M. Since then, UGA:
• dropped single-digit road setbacks at No. 5 Tennessee and at No. 10 Kentucky;
• suffered its first home loss of the year to No. 1 South Carolina;
• lost at Arkansas and to Florida in Athens in contests that weren’t decided until the final 10 seconds;
• collected an “L” at LSU playing without 60 percent of its starters for the aforementioned upset of Texas A&M;
• fell to Auburn last Sunday afternoon; and
• came up short in a valiant effort against No. 6 Tennessee when UGA was within four points with 4:30 remaining.
The slide has put Georgia is in the midst of just its second eight-game losing streak in 42 seasons of intercollegiate competition and the longest in Andy Landers’ 36 campaigns with the Lady Bulldogs.
The skid coincides with when Georgia lost Shacobia Barbee – and her 11.6 ppg and 6.9 rpg averages – to a season-ending injury at Tennessee on Jan. 25. Barbee fractured her right distal fibula while coming down from a drive to the basket late in the first half. She had surgery Jan. 28 to repair the fracture.
In addition, Merritt Hempe, Georgia’s starter at the “5” spot, has been out of action for the last four games due to mononucleosis, and Krista Donald missed most of the second half of the first game against Florida and the entire LSU game with a sprained left ankle.