Georgia’s next win will be the 100th of Mark Fox’s tenure as the Bulldogs’ basketball coach. Of course, due to circumstances mostly out of his control, Fox has been stuck on 99 for a little while now.
The Bulldogs (14-7, 5-4 SEC) have been without power forward Marcus Thornton due to a concussion for the last week and a half. Not coincidentally, Georgia lost both games it played during that span.
The status of the Bulldogs’ leading scorer and rebounder remains uncertain for Saturday’s SEC tilt against Tennessee (13-8, 5-4). Thornton will be evaluated sometime in the hours before the noon game at Stegeman Coliseum and then a determination will be made.
“They’re going to let him do some things today,” Fox said before Friday’s practice at the Stegeman Training Facility. “They won’t make a final decision until tomorrow. I was really hopeful to say, ‘hey, he can play.’ They’re not ready for me to say that.”
The Bulldogs lost road games at South Carolina (67-50) and Kentucky (69-58) while Thornton remained in Athens under strict orders to have no physical activity whatsoever. So even if Georgia gets Thornton back in time to face the Vols, it would be unrealistic to expect the kind of production Thornton was giving them before he was knocked headlong to the court on a flagrant foul by Vanderbilt on Jan. 27. Thornton averages 13.5 points and 7.3 rebounds per game.
“He’s had no reps,” Fox said. “He’s not going to be a guy that’s going to be in great condition or anything like that. He’s been going through a resting period.”
The Bulldogs have turned to sophomore Houston Kessler and freshman Yante Maten in Thornton’s absence. They improved significantly from one game to the next, but have fallen short of feeling the void.
Maten started against South Carolina and fouled out with three points and six rebounds in 18 minutes while Kessler had two points and four rebounds. Kessler started against No. 1 Kentucky and finished with a career high seven points and two rebounds while Maten came off the bench to log 13 points and nine rebounds.
“It’s definitely been a learning experience for me,” said Kessler, whose father, Chad, and uncle, Alec, both played for the Bulldogs. “I hadn’t played that volume of time before. So I’m learning. But we’re definitely excited for when (Thornton) comes back for sure.”
As for the matter of getting Fox his 100th victory, it’s not something that Georgia’s players were even aware of until the subject was broached by reporters. The Bulldogs had won five games in a row before dropping these last two. So, generally, they’d like to get the win, period. Getting Fox his 100th in the process would be a bonus.
“It’s probably a stepping stone for him, but he’s not going to talk about it because it’s not that big of deal to him,” junior guard Charles Mann said. “It’s just about the team winning. We want to win every game. Hopefully we get that win – for us and for him – tomorrow.”
As expected, Fox downplayed the 100th-victory storyline.
“We’re just trying to build a program that people can be proud of and that’s healthy in every way,” the former Nevada head coach said. “That’s what I’m trying to do. I want the tradition of Georgia basketball to continue to gain strength and to be something people can be proud of, period.
“There has just been too many negative times in the history of our program. We’ve got to fight through it and change it. So however many wins it takes, it’s going to take more than one more to get that changed.”
When Fox finally reaches the century mark, he will join a very exclusive club at Georgia. Only three other coaches have ever done it: Herman J. Stegeman (170-78 from 1920-31), Harbin “Red” Lawson (112-241, 1952-65) and Hugh Durham (298-216, 1979-95).
“I think milestones of that nature, century marks, certainly are outstanding achievements,” Georgia Athletic Director Greg McGarity said. “It’s something we should all be very proud of. We’re excited about Mark getting that 100th win as a Bulldog. We hope there are hundreds more.”
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