Georgia lets lead slip away in second half, can't hold on against Alabama
ATHENS, Ga. — Georgia dropped an important one on its schedule on Wednesday night as No. 24 Alabama walked away from Stegeman Coliseum with an 85-76 win. While the Bulldogs led at the break and were up as many as 16 in the game, a season-high turnover total of 19 and a strong close by the Crimson Tide acted as the difference in UGA’s second straight loss.
Four Georgia players finished the loss in double-figures as Noah Thomasson and RJ Melendez tied for the team-high with 15 while Silas Demary and Russel Tchewa each added 10 of their own. Melendez had 10 rebounds for a double-double.
Meanwhile, on the other side, it was Mark Sears and Grant Nelson that led Alabama in victory with 23 and 20 respectively. They were joined in double-figures by Rylan Griffen (12) and Aaron Estrada (11).
How It Happened…
After Georgia’s recent play has been best defined by strong second halves, the Bulldogs came out of the gates strong on Wednesday. They hit on over half of their attempts from 3-point range in the first frame and out-rebounded Alabama by 20.
Jabri Abdur-Rahim got the scoring started for Georgia with early action at the free throw stripe and from beyond the 3-point line. His make from deep started a 13-0 run for the Bulldogs that also featured 3-pointers from RJ Melendez – who made his first start in 15 outings – and Blue Cain.
Noah Thomasson got in on the fun with his first make from 3-point range just past the halfway point. It got the Georgia lead back into double figures after the Crimson Tide had cut it to single digits with 9:19 to go in the first half. Then, when Alabama did it again with 4:25 to go before the break, Thomasson made his third 3-pointer of the first half. He and Cain each made multiple from deep while it was Thomasson who led all scorers entering the locker room with 13 points. Leading by as many as 16, the Bulldogs went in with a 41-27 lead.
Turnovers were an issue for Georgia in the first half with 11, and they opened the door for the Crimson Tide to get back as they reared their head again after the break. The Bulldogs’ lead slowly slipped away with Alabama within single digits at several points throughout the second half, but a 7-0 Crimson Tide run put them to within two scores with under 8:00 to go.
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A 3-pointer by Alabama’s leading scorer Mark Sears with 6:07 to go put the Crimson Tide within three. Another by Rylan Griffen tied it just moments later, and a put back by Grant Nelson just 1:20 after the initial bucket by Sears gave Alabama its first lead of the night with 4:47 remaining.
Alabama entered the final 3:40 of action after the under-4 media timeout having scored 22 of the last 29, and the Crimson Tide continued their strong close to the game. While Georgia got as close as two with a Justin Hill and-one with 2:06 to go, a pair of clutch 3-pointers from Nelson acted as the dagger in the Dawgs’ efforts to overcome the late deficit.
Trying to rebound from back-to-back losses for just the second time this season, Georgia has another big one at Stegeman Coliseum on Saturday as South Carolina comes to town fresh off a win over No. 5 Tennessee on Tuesday night in Knoxville. It’s the second meeting between the Bulldogs and Gamecocks with the earlier resulting in a 74-69 UGA win in Columbia.
Lamont Paris’ team is tied for the most wins in the SEC with an 18-3 record overall and 6-2 mark in league play. They entered this week’s action sitting as an 8-seed according to ESPN’s Joe Lunardi.
Tip time for Saturday is set for 1:00 p.m. ET on the SEC Network.
