Georgia Bulldogs trounced by Tennessee Vols, 67-48

Feb 18, 2014; Knoxville, TN, USA; Tennessee Volunteers forward Jarnell Stokes (5) goes to the basket against the Georgia Bulldogs during the first half at Thompson-Boling Arena. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports

The Georgia Bulldogs took to the road against the Tennessee Volunteers on Tuesday night. The Dawgs have had a rocky road schedule this year at all with 3 of their 4 SEC losses coming on the road. Tennessee came into the game with two losses in a row against Florida and Missouri. Both teams were looking to prove something to the tournament committee. However, only one team could still say they have an outside shot at the dance when the game concluded. Unfortunately, that team was wearing orange.

The first half was tightly contested until the last 5 minutes with Georgia trailing Tennessee 28-26. Then Georgia’s shooters completely iced up, as the Volunteers outscored UGA 6-2 to close the half. Georgia really compounded the problem with turnovers. Whenever a game goes horribly wrong for the Dawgs, it starts with turnovers early and often. The Bulldogs racked up 8 turnovers in the first half alone. Another issue was rebounding, since Georgia got out-rebounded for the first time since their loss to Florida. Not exactly the winning combination Mark Fox was looking for in Knoxville.

Tennessee’s shooters were on fire for most of the game, shooting 50% from the floor. Georgia simply couldn’t keep up with the pace. Kenny Gaines was the only starter who showed up, scoring 13 points on the night. Another problem with this Georgia team is they often settle for bad outside shots instead of living in the paint, and if they don’t get to the rack or get to the foul line, they end up losing. This game was no different. Georgia only shot 10 free-throws for the match, compared to the 26 free-throws they shot in the win against Ole Miss.

The difference is aggressive inside offense, and the Dawgs didn’t have it on this night.