Jump To Top of Page
MBB: Dawgs beat Ole Miss in final home game of the season
The Georgia men’s basketball team beat Ole Miss, 69-66, in a defensive showdown before 6,219 spectators in the home finale inside Stegeman Coliseum on Tuesday evening.
Noah Thomasson led the Bulldogs (16-14, 6-11 SEC) in scoring for the fifth time in the past six games with 15 points. Russel Tchewa notched 11 points, 10 rebounds and a personal best five assists, while Dylan James recorded career-bests of 10 points and nine rebounds. Justin Hill and RJ Melendez each contributed 11 and 10 points respectively. Georgia edged Ole Miss (20-10, 7-10 SEC) in paint points by a 36-22 margin, marking the 12th time this season the Bulldogs outscored their opponent in the statistic.
Georgia jumped out to a 14-6 lead after the first seven and a half minutes before the teams’ offenses began to get going. The Bulldogs’ Thomasson and James led their first-half scoring efforts, contributing 12 and eight points respectively, as the team led 35-32 at the halftime break. Georgia opened the half with shooting struggles, going 2-of-8 from the field in the first five minutes but followed up by making eight of its next 10 attempts. The team’s lead got up to eight before the under-eight media timeout after a thunderous dunk from James. The Rebels got within two points with under a minute left after sinking a pair of free throws and knocking down a 3-pointer, but a layup from Russel Tchewa stretched the lead back out to four. The Bulldogs then forced three missed shots on the other end, clinching the team’s win.
Georgia closes out the regular season on Saturday, March 9 at 6:30 p.m. against No. 13 Auburn inside Neville Arena. The Tigers previously beat the Bulldogs inside Stegeman Coliseum on Feb. 24 by a 97-76 margin.
Five Fast Facts
• The trio of Bulldog freshmen (Silas Demary Jr., Blue Cain and Dylan James) marks the first time Georgia has started three or more first-year collegiate players since March 11, 2020, during an 83-61 win over Ole Miss in the first-round of the SEC Tournament (Anthony Edwards, Toumani Camara, Sahvir Wheeler).
• In his first collegiate start, Dylan James entered the game averaging 3.1 points per contest but recorded a new best personal best of 10 points, also contributing a career-high nine boards.
• Georgia’s success inside overcame a below-average performance from beyond the arc, with the Bulldogs shooting only 19 percent from 3-point range. That is the lowest percentage in a victory since shooting 18.2 percent in a 73-64 win over Georgia Southern on Dec. 23, 2019.
• Graduate Russel Tchewa is the first seven-footer from an SEC team to have five or more assists since 2015. Tchewa’s five assists set a new career high.
• In the only previous coaching matchup between Mike White and Chris Beard, Beard’s Texas Tech team defeated White’s Florida squad, 69-66, in the 2018 NCAA Tournament Second Round. Tonight’s result reversed the score in White’s favor.
Mike White Presser Video
On how the team responded this game…
“I couldn’t agree more. That was just the message to our guys. We just won a game against a really talented, well coached team with a team that’s going to play postseason. I would imagine, right? I don’t have their numbers or their record in front of me but a really good team. Quality SEC win after going four of 21 from three. I mean, you can win games like that. We haven’t won a lot of games like that. Especially against the power five teams, our high major opponents. To win it in that fashion is a really good teaching moment, you know, for our guys and for this program moving forward. Last time we got a chance to play in front of our fans here at the Steg, it has been a great environment all year. I’m really happy we were able to thank you know, obviously when weren’t packed tonight, but the fans that came they continued to support these young men. Really happy for our three seniors, RJ Sunahara, Russel Tchewa, who played as well as he’s played all season. Noah Thomasson, who played really well again and all three of those guys made it a point to want to thank our fans right when the game was over. Their idea. Great stuff, it was a big win for us. Moving forward to be a real player in this league, you’ve got to grow your toughness, you’ve got to grow your culture to be able to win more games like this. It was a good step for us, especially bouncing back after the opposite end of the spectrum the other day.”
On Dylan James’ impact against Ole Miss and this season…
“He came to Georgia as a high basketball IQ, skilled, step out. shooting post player. He’s developed his toughness, his motor, he’s playing more athletically, he’s learned how to play harder. He’s adjusted to this level. It’s taken a little time, as it does for every freshman in this league, especially this week, and he’s playing his best basketball at the end of his freshman year. Go again. Another example, we go four-of-21 as a team. He and Blue Cain, as two freshmen, both go 0-for-3 and 0-for-3, but played as hard as they played all season. And again, you can play quality minutes, you can play winning minutes. You can help add to a winning culture without having to make shots. I like to make shots; I like to make a bunch of them. Then you can be you can beat a bunch of people, but I’m proud of those guys’ effort.”
On the team’s approach against Ole Miss in the paint…
“They’ve got two elite rim protectors that are very tough to score on, whether it’s your five or your one, and anyone in between. It’s our approach to attacking, their defense was a little bit different when those guys were in the game as opposed to when they play small ball. When they play small ball, they’re as difficult to guard has anyone in our league. We break the field at the five, but obviously when he’s at the five, he’s hard to defend on the other end. Offensively, we wanted to get some paint touches and Russel obviously took advantage and played really well.”
On the impact of this win as a program…
“This time of year. Really for the most part in the middle of the season, I’m locked in on trying to beat Ole Miss. I’m locked in on an off day tomorrow. We’ll watch a ton of Auburn film and figure out how we can keep that thing competitive for a while, against a team that has got a chance to make a really big run. Finish as strong as we possibly can. We’re building, there’s no doubt in my mind. We’re going to get it done. We’re going to be even better next year. We’re better than we were a year ago. No doubt in my mind. We’ll take another jump next year. I’m not putting a time frame on anything, just trying to win each day. Do the best we can in player development, recruiting and scouting and operating at a high level. I thought our program had a good day today.”
Box Score
BSB: Dawgs defeat Eagles in North Augusta, 7-2
Slate Alford’s grand slam capped a six-run ninth inning as Georgia beat Georgia Southern 7-2 Tuesday in front of a crowd of 5,685 at SRP Park.
The Bulldogs (11-1) went on top 1-0 in the third inning as Paul Toetz (3-for-4) scored on a wild pitch. He led off the inning with a base hit, took second on a single by Alford (3-for-5, 4 RBI) and advanced to third on fielder’s choice by Tre Phelps. The game was 1-1 until the ninth inning.
“We were finally able to get to some pitches in the ninth, and when they got them up, we didn’t miss them,” said Georgia’s Ike Cousins head baseball coach Wes Johnson. “Logan Jordan had a big at bat to get that inning started with a walk. Sebastian Murillo got a big hit to give us the lead. Paul Toetz had a nice night with three hits including an RBI-single in the ninth and then obviously, Slate didn’t miss his pitch. That ball may beat us back to Athens.”
Georgia sophomore left-hander Jarvis Evans started and went five innings, surrendering one run on two hits with three walks and a career-high eight strikeouts. After walking the leadoff batter, Evans retired nine in a row before a leadoff walk in the fourth to Jarrett Brown. Sam Blancato followed with a double as Brown took third. Evans battled back to allow just a run on a sacrifice fly, retiring the next three Eagles to send it to the fifth at 1-1. The Eagles put a pair of runners in scoring position in the fifth and Evans got the Bulldogs out of the jam.
In the sixth, the Eagles had two on with one out against Brandt Pancer. He struck out pinch-hitter Jonathan Jaime and got Sean White to bounce into an inning-ending fielder’s choice. Tyler McLoughlin took care of the seventh and then Zach DeVito pitched the final two innings for the victory. Eagle reliever Davis Smith dropped to 1-2, allowing five runs on three hits.
SEC WBB Tourney: Georgia (12-17, 3-13 SEC) vs. Kentucky (11-19, 4-12 SEC) at 11 AM today
Bon Secours Wellness Arena || Greenville, S.C.
TV: SEC Network (Eric Frede, Christy Thomaskutty and Brooke Weisbrod)
Listen: Jeff Dantzler (GeorgiaDogs.com, 960 AM The Ref or 103.7 FM)
Opening Tip
» No. 13 seed Georgia faces the Kentucky Wildcats in the first game of the 2024 Southeastern Conference Tournament. The Lady Bulldogs and Wildcats tip off at 11 a.m. ET Wednesday.
» The Lady Bulldogs own a 52-40 all-time record in the SEC tournament and have won the title four times — 1983, 1984, 1986 and 2001. Georgia finished runner up in the 2021 SEC Tournament.
» This marks Georgia’s first time playing on Wednesday at the SEC tournament.
» The Lady Bulldogs are led by fifth-year senior forward Javyn Nicholson. Nicholson is third in the SEC with 15 double-doubles and has scored in double figures in 28 of 29 games.
» Georgia has won three-straight matchups against Kentucky, including this season’s 72-65 victory in Athens. This is the first meeting between the two programs in the SEC tournament since the 2021 quarterfinals.
» Nicholson led Georgia with 23 points and 13 rebounds in Georgia’s first contest against the Wildcats this season.
» Georgia played in front of 7,406 fans at Stegeman Coliseum on Feb. 29 against LSU. It marked the largest home crowd for the Lady Bulldogs since 2012.
» Georgia is in its second season under the leadership of Coach ABE. ABE’s successful first year included a NCAA tournament appearance, 22 wins, and a fifth-place finish in the final SEC standings.
» The Lady Bulldogs were the only SEC squad to not have a single player enter the transfer portal this past offseason.
» Coach ABE’s 12 NCAA tournament appearances rank third most among active SEC coaches, only behind Kim Mulkey (LSU) and Dawn Staley (South Carolina).
WBB: Javyn Nicholson named to the All-SEC team
Georgia fifth-year senior Javyn Nicholson, who ranks third in the Southeastern Conference with 15 double-doubles this season, has been named to the All-SEC second team, it was announced Tuesday.
The Lawrenceville, Ga., native has turned in one of the best seasons by an individual player in school history. She is the first Lady Bulldog since Janet Harris in 1983 to record eight-straight double-doubles and is one of just four conference players this year to rank in the top-10 of the league in both scoring and rebounding.
Nicholson is averaging 16.6 points and 8.9 rebounds per contest and has scored in double figures in 28 of 29 games. She has also paced the Lady Bulldogs in scoring in a team-high 15 games during the 2023-24 campaign.
The Collins Hill prep star came to Georgia in 2019 and has thrived under Coach ABE’s leadership. After averaging 4.5 points and 4.0 rebounds per game in her first three collegiate seasons, Nicholson tripled her points per game to 13.1 and doubled her rebounds per contest to 8.0 over the last two years.
Nicholson is the 30th Georgia player to be named second-team All-SEC by league coaches.
Jump To Today’s Discussion Thread