Georgia takes 'Road Dawg' mentality into matchup at Kentucky

Mike White’s Georgia Bulldogs are one of five teams in the country that remain undefeated on the road in 2023-24. Along with UGA, the list includes No. 4 North Carolina (plus Grand Canyon on a 14-game winning streak, West Coast Conference leading St. Mary’s and VCU), just going to show the impressive nature of what White and company have done so far this season.

“We’ve got a pretty good ability to move on to the next play after we hit some adversity. [We have] a pretty good connected team, which has allowed us to do overcome those adversities. Whether they be a tough call, an offensive drought, defensive deficiency or what have you, our guys have done a good job of bouncing back from negative plays and staying together,” White said on Friday when asked why it was he felt his team was so successful on the road. “(The smaller margin for error on the road) is something that has been addressed not only in the past but in the past 24 hours as we head into this one, which is the toughest test that we’ve had to this point of course and presents its own unique challenges playing in Rupp. All of these places are a little bit different, and we’re excited about the opportunity.”

Inside Georgia’s locker room, there’s a certainly mentality the players have taken on when they’re going into the hostile environments of a road game. It started in November when they were able to overcome a 17-point deficit at Florida State to win 68-66 on a Justin Hill jumper at the buzzer in Tallahassee. It continued when they opened SEC play at Missouri with a hard fought 75-68 victory. Most recently, it showed up at South Carolina on Tuesday as the Bulldogs once again fought through adversity to walk out on top.

“We’ve got a really resilient group. You go back to that Florida State game, one of you guys asked me after that game, ‘Do you think this will give you confidence going forward in terms of being able to come back and show your guys how resilient they were,’ whatever word was used, and that’s a game we referenced midway through the second half in this one,” White said postgame on Tuesday. “We did at Missouri. For us to continue to fight down double figures or near it, it’s a good sign. It’s been a fun group to work with. Hopefully we’ll continue to get better.”

According to White, the “Road Dawg” mentality is something that’s been player driven. The coaches – who have been around the league before and know just how hard it is to win any given night – don’t treat road games any differently than they do ones at home. However, the players seem to rally around being the idea of spoiling the party in opposing territory.

“That’s coming from within the locker room. That’s our guys. If they’re with that, I’m with it, you know?,” White said. “Our guys have been really good of course, and if that’s the way they term it, great. You know, most importantly, again, we’ve just played with some mental toughness starting, again, in Tallahassee when we were down 17 late in the game. That’ll be a game that we continue to reference all year and hope that we can continue to build upon that on the road.”

Next up for Georgia is the toughest test of them all. After holding their own against a top-10 Tennessee team at home last weekend, the Bulldogs will look to do the same on the road this week as they make the trip to Lexington to take on No. 8 Kentucky (13-3, 3-1 SEC).

Last year, Georgia led Kentucky by as many as 11 at Rupp Arena and entering the locker room up eight. After another 20:00, the Wildcats were 14-point victors.

“This team has nothing to do with last year’s team. We’re a totally different team, a totally different mentality, experiences to this point, playing differently,” White said. “I shouldn’t say it has nothing to do with last year’s team because we do have four returners, and those guys have grown and they’ve gotten better. But with us and the whole big-picture thing, we just don’t do it. I don’t do it. If you do it in this league, you’re in trouble, right, or you’re in major trouble.”

“Continuing to stay the course in terms of our mentality on the road, we’re going to have to catch some breaks of course and make some shots and the ball’s got to bounce our way. You know, we’ve got to stay out of foul trouble. Good things are going to have to happen for us of course, especially early. We’d like to hang in there as long as possible and see what happens down the stretch,” he added. “Hopefully you’re within striking distance late in the game against a team that I think has got a chance to potentially win the whole thing. They’re fantastic, and [we’ll be] in an environment too that’s as tough as a place to play in as anywhere in college basketball.”

Tip time between the Bulldogs and Wildcats is set for 6:00 p.m. ET on the SEC Network. Georgia and Kentucky split the season series last year with the home team winning each time including a 75-68 UGA victory in the most recent meeting.