Georgia Bulldogs Travel to Newark for Seton Hall Pirates
By John Buhler
The Georgia Bulldogs look to get an impressive road win when they take on the Big East’s Seton Hall Pirates at the Prudential Center tonight at 7:30 PM ET.
Georgia will play its first road game of the 2015-16 NCAA season when they travel to Newark, New Jersey to play the Seton Hall Pirates of the Big East. Like UGA, Seton Hall is a program on the rise under their HC Kevin Willard. Though Seton Hall has not made the NCAA Tournament in a decade, they have been in the AP Top 25 during the Willard Era (since 2010).
Last year’s win over Seton Hall was a quality out of conference for the Georgia Bulldogs and it could stand as another one as Seton Hall enters tonight’s game with a 4-1 record on the season. The Pirates’ lone loss was to the Long Beach State 49ers by three points. Seton Hall is coming off an impressive victory over another SEC foe in the Ole Miss Rebels.
-= Related: Georgia Bulldogs Survive High Point, 49-46 =-
The Georgia Bulldogs are 2-1 in their first three games, all at Stegeman Coliseum. UGA is riding a two-game winning streak over Murray State and High Point after dropping their home opener to Chattanooga.
More from UGA Basketball
- Georgia Basketball: The Bulldogs Land Their Point Guard
- Amir Abdur-Rahim Strengthens Atlanta Flavor In Athens
- Georgia Bulldogs: The Problem And Promise Of Tom Crean In Athens
- Tom Crean New Head Man For Georgia Bulldogs Basketball
- Georgia Bulldogs: Mark Fox Dismissal Not Clear Cut
Seton Hall is a more balanced basketball team than the Georgia Bulldogs entering their head-to-head matchup. The Pirates are 161st in team offensive efficiency (106.0) and 91st in team defensive efficiency (93.4). While Georgia is better on the defensive end of the floor than the Pirates (47th in the NCAA, 88.4), they have a way to go on the offensive end as a basketball team (302nd in the NCAA, 94.0). All of these totals are out of 351 Division I NCAA teams.
What the Georgia Bulldogs will need to do well in this game to win on the road is to play solid team defense, knock down three-point opportunities, and shoot well from the free throw line. The offense will hopefully come together in time, as it has not established a strong low post presence yet. Replacing Nemanja Djurisic, Cameron Forte, and Marcus Thornton isn’t easy, but players like Yante Maten have looked good at times on the offensive end of the floor.
Defensive tenacity will go a long way in winning this game, as it’s always difficult to rely on the three-ball on the road. Expect UGA to attack the basket to draw contact and live at the free throw line if the outside shots aren’t falling.
Next: Kenny Gaines: Three-Point Stroke Sustainable?
Even if the inside game isn’t much of a factor either, look for the Dawgs to play strong on the glass. How the team rebounds is almost indicative of how the team performs under HC Mark Fox. This will be one of the tougher teams UGA will play in the non-conference part of the schedule.
Here’s to UGA getting a quality road win for hopefully another trip to the NCAA Tournament. Tipoff is at 7:30 PM ET and the game will air on Fox Sports 1. Go Dawgs!