Former Georgia coach Hugh Durham spoke to the Bulldogs at their practice on Friday and told them to inform Missouri of their seriousness about winning through their defensive effort early in the game.
Apparently the Bulldogs were listening. They held the Tigers to 25 percent shooting in the opening half and built a 20-point lead in the process on the way to a 68-44 win at Stegeman Coliseum. The victory came on a day when Durham and his 1990 SEC championship team were honored on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of that accomplishment.
Saturday’s win further enhances Georgia’s postseason resume. The Bulldogs, who came in with an RPI average in the low-30s, improve to 19-9 on the season and 10-6 in SEC. They play host to No. 1-ranked and undefeated Kentucky on Tuesday.
Missouri falls to 8-21 overall and, at 2-14 in SEC, is virtually assured of the No. 14 seed for the SEC Tournament in Nashville. The Tigers play host to Auburn on Tuesday.
Georgia played in a manner that made both Durham and current coach Mark Fox proud. The Bulldogs dominated defensively, holding the Tigers to 28 percent shooting, and in the rebounding battle, 47 to 30.
The Bulldogs played a decent offensive game, at least for 30 of the 40-minute contest. But they went cold midway through the second half. They came away empty on eight consecutive possessions and failed to score for 6:12 until Marcus Thorton broke the streak with a pair of free throws at the 6:31 mark. Georgia led by 26 points at the time.
Senior forward Nemanja Djurisic led the way with 14 points and J.J. Frazier added 10 points and five assists. Cameron Forte also had 10 as Georgia played a season-high 14 players. Even Juwan Parker, who has missed the last 11 games with an Achilles injury, got into the game and finished with one point and one assist.
