ATHENS — Cincinnati’s slow start to the season included a pair of ugly home losses, yet the computer rankings still favored the Bearcats over Georgia.
That’s in large part because of Cincinnati’s typically rugged defense under coach Mick Cronin. The Bearcats flexed their physical style on the Bulldogs for a 57-51 victory on Friday at Stegeman Coliseum.
Georgia led by 11 points at halftime, but couldn’t score once Cincinnati clamped down.
“Their defense was good,” Georgia coach Mark Fox said. “I have to give them credit. That’s an older, mature, very strong team. I thought their strength was a big factor in the game.”
Georgia (4-4) lost its third consecutive game and fourth in five. The Bulldogs had won three previous home games against mid-major opponents, but couldn’t handle the Bearcats of the Big East.
Cincinnati opened the season ranked No. 22 in the Associated Press poll, but suffered losses to Presbyterian and Marshall among its six home games to open the season. They won their first road game by holding Georgia without a field goal for nearly six minutes after Georgia had gained a 43-40 lead.
Even that advantage came the hard way for Georgia.
The Bulldogs, trailing 40-38, came up empty on five consecutive possessions with two missed shots and three turnovers. Fox kept calling timeouts, but the offense didn’t get much better.
Georgia finally started scoring thanks to a couple of lucky breaks.
Cincinnati’s Cheikh Mbodj fouled Dustin Ware on a 3-point attempt at the shot-clock buzzer, and Ware made two free throws. On Georgia’s next possession, Marcus Thornton made a no-look, off-balance basket as the shot clock expired for a 43-40 lead with 6:04 to play.
That was the last gasp for Georgia’s offense, which wouldn’t score another field goal until there were 18 seconds left. Meanwhile Dion Dixon made three consecutive 3-pointers to stake Cincinnati to a 49-43 lead with 2:47 to play.
Georgia’s Gerald Robinson Jr. made two free throws to cut Cincinnati’s lead to 49-45 with 1:36 to go. Robinson made another free throw to pull Georgia within 50-46 with 51.4 seconds left, but Cincinnati’s Sean Kilpatrick made an open 3-pointer with 22 seconds left to turn back the Bulldogs for good.
“That was a hard-fought, physical game,” Fox said. “You have to credit Cincinnati for really making a lot of plays and having a very good second half. We competed really hard, but just didn’t make enough plays to win.”
In the first half the Bulldogs disrupted Cincinnati’s shaky ballhandlers with pressure defense that resulted in six steals and 11 points off turnovers. They couldn’t duplicate that formula after halftime.
“We slowed the ball down ourselves and got out of our offense,” Georgia wing Kentavious Caldwell-Pope said. “We stopped pushing the ball.”
Caldwell-Pope was the most active of the Bulldogs early. He had consecutive fast-break layups off of Georgia steals during a 12-0 run and scored eight consecutive points as the Bulldogs took a 30-19 lead. Caldwell-Pope scored a game-high 16 points, but only three in the second half.
During a 14-2 spurt, Caldwell scored on a jump shot, two free throws, a layup off a steal and a tip-in. The Bulldogs led 30-21 at halftime and were ahead 34-23 early in the second half, but couldn’t hold on.
“I think we wore down a little bit against their bigger, stronger guys,” Fox said.
Kilpatrick made 4 of 9 3-point field goal attempts while scoring a game-high 22 points and Dixon made 4 of his 6 3-point attempts and finished with 19 points.
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