The defensive template is now set on Georgia; the Bulldogs can expect it the rest of the year. Just pack into a tight zone and give them all they want outside. Georgia can’t make 3s, or not enough of them to make a difference.
South Carolina used that formula to great effect on Wednesday night to a score a decisive 83-59 win over Georgia in Columbia, S.C. The Bulldogs missed 22 of their 26 3-point attempts, many of them largely uncontested as the Gamecocks made sure instead there would be no lanes for dribble-drives nor any room to rebound the misses.
“A lack of respect for our shooting,” Georgia’s third-year coach Tom Crean said. “They didn’t come out and (guard) us at all. At the end of the day we missed open shots and that’s a factor.”
The loss was Georgia’s sixth in the last eight games. The Bulldogs (9-6, 2-6 in SEC) have lost nine games in a row to the Gamecocks. They host Ole Miss (8-7, 3-5) on Saturday at 6 p.m. (televised by the SEC Network).
South Carolina, which had been inundated with COVID-19 issues early in the year, improves to 4-5 overall and 2-3 in SEC play.
After mounting an early four-point lead and staying ahead for a good portion of the opening half, the Bulldogs trailed from the 7:02 mark on. Georgia was outscored 47-33 in the second half, with 11 of its points coming against South Carolina substitutes in the final four minutes of play.
With the regular rotations on the floor, the Gamecocks outscored Georgia 60-29 over a 23-minute span until four minutes were left. It was a total annihilation.
“I didn’t say a lot to the team after the game,” Crean said. “It’s not the time or place. The bottom line is our lack of shot-making hurt us on the defensive end. We get quiet when we’re not making shots and it’s a tough night.”
The Bulldogs attempted 26 3-point shots because they were basically uncontested. They made just four, or 15.4%.
Meanwhile, Georgia couldn’t make many of the contested lay-ups and pull-up jumpers either. So, the Bulldogs ended up shooting 31.8% from the field, helped substantially by those final four minutes. They also committed 20 turnovers.
Georgia’s K.D. Johnson scored 10 of his team-high 14 points in the second half, and all of those with the outcome decided. Andrew Garcia was the only other Bulldog in double figures with 10 but was 4-of-11 shooting.
Graduate transfers P.J. Horne and Justin Kier came to UGA as supposed 3-point shooting specialists. They combined to go 0-for-11 Wednesday, with Horne missing seven of them. They’re shooting 29.7% and 37.1%, respectively, from beyond the arc in SEC play.
“We’re going to have to do something different,” Crean said. “... Do we make shots in practices and in some games? Absolutely. But the bottom line is we’re not making them right now.”
Point guard Sahvir Wheeler had nine points and seven assists and led Georgia with nine rebounds. The Bulldogs were hurt by early foul trouble. Toumani Camara, Georgia’s most formidable frontcourt presence, was whistled for three fouls in the first half and played only 19 minutes in the game.
South Carolina was cold shooting the ball early on, too. But the Gamecocks rallied in the game’s middle 20 minutes. They ended up making nine of their 19 3-point attempts, or 47%. They shot 44% for the game.
