Schedule wrinkle sends Georgia Bulldogs to Rocky Top

“They have a Hall of Fame coach in Rick Barnes as well as a great staff and culture,” Georgia coach Tom Crean said Tuesday. “This Tennessee team has tremendous depth, strength, quickness and speed. They can beat you many different ways, but it starts with their relentless pressure on defense.”

Georgia’s four SEC wins have come by 3.3 points per game. The Bulldogs are coming off a victory over Vanderbilt that required a blocked shot and free throws in the final seconds to win. They also have a one-point win over Kentucky, a four-point win at Ole Miss and a five-point victory at Auburn.

But the Bulldogs head to Thompson-Boling Arena recharged with confidence. They have won three SEC games in a row for the first time since 2017 and will be looking for a fourth consecutive conference victory for the first time since 2016.

“It’s hard to win, man; it’s extremely hard to win,” Georgia coach Tom Crean said. “It’s tough all the way around. You’re thankful that you get these opportunities. … Not only is it hard to win, tomorrow is not promised you. It’s just not.”

Indeed, neither team expected to be playing each other this week and, for a time, wasn’t sure if they’d play at all. Georgia was scheduled to play Texas A&M in College Station on Wednesday, while Tennessee was preparing to play host to the Florida Gators in one of the SEC’s premier games of the month. But A&M and Florida each had to cancel because of the presence of COVID-19 in their programs.

“We alerted them Saturday night that this was a very possible likelihood,” Crean said of the players. “There was some disappointment because it would have been a return home for Sahvir (Wheeler), and others had family coming to the game in Texas. They moved on quickly though.”

While the change represented a curveball for both teams, it’s a particularly sharp turn for the Bulldogs. They go from facing the SEC’s 13th-rated team to one that’s second or third at worst.

But change was finalized by Sunday morning, and Crean said that gave them ample time to get ready. Georgia and Tennessee were scheduled to play anyway, though not until what was to be the regular-season finale March 3.

The profile on the Vols is relatively simple. They play strong defense, rebound well, take good shots and don’t turn the ball over a lot. Basically, the polar opposite of Georgia.

The Bulldogs come in averaging more than five points per game more than Tennessee (77.7-72.4) and suddenly are shooting the lights out. In the past three games, Georgia is connecting on 53.8 percent (86-of-160) of its shots from the field, including 46.9 percent (23-of-49) from behind the 3-point arc.

The only drawback has been turnovers. The 21 they had Saturday kept Vanderbilt in a game that should’ve been a blowout, and the Bulldogs average 17.3 per game.

Like Georgia, the Vols don’t have a definitive player to stop. Seven Tennessee players average between 8.4 and 10.5 points per game. The Bulldogs have seven averaging between P.J. Horne’s 9.2 and Wheeler’s 13.6.

Freshman guard Jaden Springer leads Tennessee at 10.5 ppg and scored 23 in Saturday’s 82-71 win at Kentucky. Also, 6-5 guard Keon Johnson earned freshman-of-the-week honors, in part because of his 27 points against the Wildcats. The toughest matchup for Georgia surely will be Tennessee’s 6-9 fifth-year senior John Fulkerson, who comes in averaging 10.4 points and 5-7 rebounds a game.

Wheeler is about the only constant on offense for Georgia, using his exceptional quickness to push the Bulldogs down the floor, penetrating and dishing. He leads the SEC and is fourth nationally with 7.4 assists a game.

“They’re terrific,” Barnes said of the Bulldogs. “They’ve done a great job of getting out in transition, and they’ve had really good point-guard play, in terms of having a very hard player to defend because of his speed and quickness. … They’ve won three in a row now and they’re playing as well as anybody in our league.”

Logistical wrinkles aside, both teams are just happy to be able to tip off Wednesday.

“We are very, very fortunate to be able to play these games,” Crean said. “There were 32 games canceled or postponed Saturday alone. It’s an unprecedented year in many, many areas.”