Georgia Bulldogs end slide, beat Ole Miss 80-66
By John Buhler
The Georgia Bulldogs snap their three-game losing streak by handling the Ole Miss Rebels at home Saturday afternoon, winning their 15th game, 80-66.
It took a while, but the 2015-16 Georgia Bulldogs got their 15th win of the season by knocking off the NCAA Tournament hopeful Ole Miss Rebels Saturday afternoon, 80-66.
While UGA will certainly have to win the SEC Tournament to get back to the NCAA Tournament this season, it was nice to see the Dawgs play a complete game against a decent opponent. This loss for Stefan Moody and the rest of the Ole Miss Rebels likely ends their semi-realistic hopes of getting into the NCAA Tournament as an at-large bid.
With this win, Georgia moves to 15-12 on the year and back to .500 in SEC play at 8-8, probably feeling good about itself as it heads into the final three regular season game before the SEC Tournament at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville in a few weekends.
The game between the Georgia Bulldogs and the Ole Miss Rebels was very close in the first half, with the Dawgs carrying a 33-32 lead into halftime at Stegeman Coliseum. Georgia failed to shoot a single free throw in the first half and Ole Miss was able to keep pace with strong shooting from three in the onset.
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However once play resumed in the second half, the Georgia Bulldogs were able to distance themselves from a Rebels team that was fighting for its NCAA Tournament life by getting to the charity stripe and sinking long-range three-pointers effectively. Georgia shot 18-24 at the free throw line in the second half and were 10-21 from three against the Rebels.
Georgia had three starters in double figures scoring with J.J. Frazier leading the way with 26 points. Frazier was 8-16 from the field, 5-8 from three, and 5-7 at the line. He finished with five rebounds, two assists, and two steals in victory for the Dawgs.
Kenny Gaines continues to shoot the basketball well with 23 points against Ole Miss. Gaines was 8-15 from the field, 5-10 from beyond the arc, and a perfect 2-2 at the charity stripe. He finished with two rebounds, two steals, an assist, and a block.
Yante Maten had himself another double-double for the Georgia Bulldogs. Maten had 19 points and 10 rebounds, shooting 7-13 from the field and a perfect 5-5 at the free throw line. When Maten shoots better than 50% from the field, Georgia is a tough team to defend. He also had two blocks against the Rebels.
Next: Georgia Bulldogs lose third straight, 84-81 to Auburn
Mark Fox’s Georgia Bulldogs hope to bring all the positive vibes from this game to Columbia on Thursday night when they take on a sure-fired NCAA Tournament team in Michael Carrera‘s South Carolina Gamecocks. Tipoff for this rivalry game is at 7:00 PM ET and ESPN 2 will have the coverage. Go Dawgs!