Andrew Garcia, a 6-foot-5, 228-pound guard from Stony Brook, is transferring to Georgia, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution confirmed. His transfer won’t be official until all the paperwork has been completed and approved.
Garcia started all 33 games last season for the Seawolves, averaging 13.3 points and 6.7 rebounds per game. He recorded six double-doubles last season and scored a season-high 24 points against Binghamton.
The Bergenfield, N.J., native is the proverbial late-bloomer as a basketball player. He redshirted his first season after suffering a knee injury before the season. After playing in only 11 games and averaging 2.9 points as a redshirt freshman, Garcia played in all 66 games the past two seasons.
At Georgia, the Bulldogs hope that Garcia will give them a physical presence on offense and defense. The Bulldogs lost freshman Anthony Edwards and junior Rayshaun Hammonds to the NBA draft off last season’s team, as well as six seniors who completed their eligibility.
Once his transfer is approved, as expected, Garcia will join six other newcomers on coach Tom Crean’s third Georgia team. They are freshman signees K.D. Johnson, Jonathan Ned, Mikal Starks and Josh Taylor, junior college transfer Ty McMillan of Kilgore (Texas) Community College and grad transfer Justin Kier from George Mason.
Two starters return for the Bulldogs in point guard Sahvir Wheeler and Toumani Camara, who are rising sophomores. Georgia was 16-16 last season, after play was abruptly ended because of the coronavirus pandemic after a first-round win in the SEC Tournament in Nashville.
