Georgia Basketball adds Atlanta event, NCAA Tournament team to non-conference schedule
Georgia Basketball has officially added another game to its non-conference schedule for the 2024-25 season with the announcement of the Bulldogs’ participation in Holiday Hoopsgiving. UGA will play Grand Canyon, coming off of an appearance in the NCAA Tournament, at State Farm Arena in Atlanta on Saturday, December 14th.
It’s not the only matchup of the day at the home of the Hawks. Georgia rivals Auburn and Florida will also be involved, creating a tripleheader of games, with the Tigers taking on Ohio State and Gators playing Arizona State. All three Hoopsgiving games will be televised live on ESPN Networks
Georgia played in Holiday Hoopsgiving in Mike White’s first season as the head coach when the Bulldogs beat Notre Dame. The event is in its fifth season and has welcomed the likes of Mississippi State, Indiana, LSU, Wake Forest, Clemson and Memphis, among others.
“Holiday Hoopsgiving continues to grow year after year, and we are thrilled to host another incredible lineup of teams at State Farm Arena for the fifth year anniversary,” said Christopher Williams, CEO of event organizer The VII Group. “This event not only brings top-tier basketball to Atlanta but also provides these student-athletes with a unique opportunity to compete on a big stage in front of a national audience.”
Tickets for the 2024 Holiday Hoopsgiving will go on sale at a later date. For more information on the event, including ticket sales and game times, please visit HolidayHoopsgiving.com.
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The addition of the Lopes to the schedule gives Georgia another marquee matchup in the non-conference slate, joining four games against power conference opponents. UGA will play Marquette and St. John’s in the Bahamas the weekend before Thanksgiving (November 23/24) before hosting Notre Dame in the second annual ACC/SEC Challenge on December 3rd. Georgia Tech is also expected to be on the schedule for a road trip in the annual rivalry series against the Yellow Jackets.
Last year, UGA was the only team in the six basketball power conferences to play a pair of games against power conference opponents to open the season and took on six in total (Oregon, Wake Forest, Miami, Providence, Florida State, Georgia Tech) across the 13 non-conference games. It helped prepare the Bulldogs for when they made an appearance in the NIT, making a run to the semifinals with wins over Xavier, Wake Forest and Ohio State including the latter two on the road.
Georgia also knows its opponents for SEC play with the league announcing matchups. Coming to Stegeman Coliseum next season are Auburn, Florida, Kentucky, LSU, Mississippi State, Missouri, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Vanderbilt. As is tradition, Georgia will play Bruce Pearl’s Tigers twice. The same is true too for both the Gators of Florida and Gamecocks of South Carolina. Then, on the road where things get difficult oftentimes are games against Alabama, Arkansas, Ole Miss, Tennessee, Texas and Texas A&M – plus the squads Georgia double-dips against.
The Bulldogs will be led by a trio of returnees from last year’s team that won 20 games for the first time in eight seasons. Freshman All-SEC point guard Silas Demary returns alongside Blue Cain and Dylan James and will be joined by a talented cast of newcomers. In the Class of 2024, Georgia signed five-star plus+ forward Asa Newell, former Kentucky commit Somto Cyril, Serbian international standout Savo Drezgic as well as 2025 reclass Jordyn Kee. Meanwhile, by way of the transfer portal, the Bulldogs added the likes of DeShayne Montgomery (Mount St. Mary’s), Justin Abson (Appalachian State), Dakota Leffew (Mount St. Mary’s), RJ Godfrey (Clemson) and Tyrin Lawrence (Vanderbilt).
