ATHENS — Georgia’s game against Ole Miss on Saturday represented the midpoint of the SEC season. If the Bulldogs could somehow play the Rebels a few more times, the Bulldogs would have reason to be very encouraged.
Unfortunately, Georgia is done with Ole Miss, at least for the 2021 regular season. The Bulldogs beat the Rebels for a second time Saturday, this time 71-61 at Stegeman Coliseum. The Bulldogs defeated Ole Miss 78-74 on Jan. 16 in Oxford, Miss.
The victory gets Georgia to 10-6 (3-6 SEC) with nine games to go, then the SEC Tournament. Ole Miss falls to 8-8 (3-6 SEC).
“It was a great team win,” said sophomore guard Sahvir Wheeler, who led the Bulldogs with 15 points and five assists. “We played a happy brand of basketball.”
Wheeler also four rebounds and led a Georgia offense that was incredibly effective, shooting 55% from the floor and 50% from 3-point range (9-18). The Bulldogs were similarly accurate in Oxford, where they shot 58.7% and 60%, respectively.
Georgia also got 13 points on 6-of-9 shooting from Tye Fagan. He was 9-of-9 in the last meeting against the Rebels. Andrew Garcia added 11 points, and Toumani Camara had 10 with eight rebounds.
Oddly, the Bulldogs were bad from the free-throw line. They made only 10 of 20 shots. Wheeler, who came in shooting 78% from the line, was 3-of-11.
“I honestly don’t know what happened,” Wheeler said of the missed freebies. “I think I was sort of psyching myself out toward the end when I realized I’d missed four in a row. But we got the win, so I’m just going to wipe it off and shoot some more free throws in practice and make sure everything’s in line.”
Ole Miss got 24 points from Jarkel Joiner. But Devontae Shuler, who scored 24 in the last meeting, was held to 11 on 4-of-14 shooting. The Rebels shot 35.9% overall, 15.4% from beyond the arc, and their starting guards were 8-of-24.
Credit: UGA Sports
Credit: UGA Sports
Georgia’s Tom Crean was encouraged.
“We’re not letting adversity knock us out,” the Bulldogs’ third-year coach said. “That starts with effort and energy. These are lessons that all of us, but especially basketball teams, are learning every day about mental toughness.”
Ole Miss managed to stay in the game by dominating Georgia on the offensive boards 23 to 10. That allowed the Rebels to outscore the Bulldogs 17-7 on second-chance points.
“They’re really good at that; we have to give them credit,” Camara said. “All five of their players are focused on rebounding, even on defense. Even if you box your man, they’d get it. It’s something we need to learn from them and try to have the same energy since we’re such a small team.”
The Bulldogs now turn their attention to the second half of the league schedule, which starts with a trip to Auburn on Tuesday. Three of their next four games are on the road.
“When you’re 2-6 you kind of get a little desperate,” Wheeler said. “When you know you’re right there in a couple of games and a couple of mistakes cost you wins, you get thirsty and really want to win. I thought our guys came out tonight with a kind of energy like, ‘we’re not going to be denied.’”
The Bulldogs recorded two amazing feats in the first half. The first was making six 3-pointers, shooting 67% beyond arc and 60% from the field in the opening 20 minutes. The second feat was leading only 37-34 while shooting with that kind of efficiency.
It didn’t help that the Rebels attempted seven more shots (32), thanks mainly to their 11 offensive rebounds and 11 UGA turnovers. For Georgia, the miscues seemed to come in bunches after it had pushed ahead by significant margins with a chance to extend its advantage. The Bulldogs led by as many as nine points and were ahead by at least six for most of the final 12 minutes.
But the Rebels mounted a 7-0 run in only 59 seconds to get within two at the 5:42 mark, then stayed close the rest of the way.
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