Georgia vs. Minnesota pre-game notes

Tonight's Game
Game 7: Minnesota (4-2) at Georgia (5-1)
Friday, December 7, 2001 - Athens, Ga.
Broadcast Information

Game Notes in PDF Format
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TV: None.
Georgia Radio: Georgia Bulldog Radio Network (74 stations for basketball), broadcast by Scott Howard (Play-by-Play) & Jeff Dantzler (Color). Local stations: WSB-AM (750) in Atlanta & WNGC-FM (106.1) in Athens.
Actual Tipoff Time: 7:37 p.m. (EST)
On the World Wide Web For up-to-date stats, notes and other information, log on to:
www.georgiadogs.com
To listen to Georgia games via the internet, log on to the following address: http://www.broadcast.com/sports/ncaa/georgia/MensBasketball/
PROBABLE STARTING LINEUPS
Georgia Bulldogs (5-1 this season, 16-15 in 2000-01)
HEAD COACH: JIM HARRICK (31-36 IN THIRD SEASON AT GEORGIA)
Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Cl. Hometown PPG RPG
F - 24 Jarvis Hayes 6-6 200 So. Atlanta, Ga. 15.7 4.3
F - 50 Chris Daniels 6-7 210 So. Albany, Ga. 11.2 6.0
C - 55 Steve Thomas 6-8 235 So. Carrollton, Ga. 9.3 7.7
G - 5 Ezra Williams 6-4 208 Jr. Marietta, Ga. 21.5 8.0
G - 3 Rashad Wright 6-1 170 So. Statesboro, Ga. 9.2 4.5*
Top Reserves
F - 33 Jonas Hayes 6-6 200 So. Atlanta, Ga. 9.2 5.3
G - 4 Tony Cole 5-11 175 Jr. Baton Rouge, La. 5.3 3.2*
Minnesota Golden Gophers (4-2 this season, 18-14 in 2000-01)
HEAD COACH: DAN MONSON (34-32 IN THIRD SEASON AT MINNESOTA)
Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Cl. Hometown PPG RPG
F - 41 Michael Bauer 6-8 205 So. Hastings, Minn. 13.5 4.3
F - 45 Dusty Rychart 6-7 210 Jr. Grand Rapids, Minn. 12.5 6.8
C - 4 Rick Rickert 6-10 202 Fr. Duluth, Minn. 12.7 6.0
G - 12 Kevin Burleson 6-3 190 Jr. Seattle, Wash. 6.7 6.3*
G - 21 Travarus Bennett 6-7 205 Sr. Rosedale, Miss. 8.3 3.3
Top Reserves
G - 15 Kerwin Fleming 6-3 180 Sr. Chicago, Ill. 6.3 2.5
F - 40 Jerry Holman 6-10 218 Jr. St. Paul, Minn. 10.2 4.5
*Assists Per Game
o Dogs, Gophers Tip Off Busy Weekend for Georgia Basketball
Georgia plays host to Big Ten Conference member Minnesota tonight at Stegeman Coliseum. The Bulldogs are three days removed from their first loss of the young season, an 83-78 defeat by Georgia State in Atlanta. The loss prevented Georgia from posting its first 6-0 start since the Final Four season of 1983. There will be scant time for the Bulldogs to reflect upon this game, no matter the outcome. Less than 48 hours from now, they'll renew their annual rivalry against Georgia Tech in a Sunday afternoon contest in Athens.
o Other Pertinent Facts About Tonight's Game
> Tonight will likely mark the return to active duty of Georgia sophomore Jarvis Hayes. The Bulldogs' No. 2 scorer has missed the past three games after he sprained his right knee in practice on Saturday, Nov. 24. In his absence, junior guard Mike Patrick - who entered the program as a walk-on in 1999 but is now on scholarship - had stepped forward with some admirable play. He scored eight and 10 points in the Colorado and Georgia State games, respectively, playing 30 minutes each time.
> This game will be Georgia's third against an opponent from a so-called "major" conference whose name begins with the word "Big." The Dogs have already faced Georgetown (Big East) and Colorado (Big 12) and could face another Big East foe (Boston College) in the Rainbow Classic later this month.
o Georgia vs. Minnesota
Tonight's game is the fourth all-time meeting between Georgia and Minnesota in basketball. Minnesota has won all three previous meetings, details of which follow: Date Score
11/20/93 @Minn. UM 91, UGA 71
Pre-Season NIT 2nd round game
12/18/99 @Athens UM 66, UGA 65
J.B. Bickerstaff layup with :03.1 left
11/19/00 @Minn. UM 77, UGA 74
Dj vu...Bickerstaff layup with :11 left
This game is also the third installment of a 4-year home-and-home agreement between the two schools. The final "return" engagement will take place in Minneapolis next season on a date that hasn't yet been determined.
o Georgia vs. the Big 10
Of all the so-called "major" conferences, the Big 10 has likely presented more problems for past Georgia teams. Georgia has an all-time record of 7-17 against teams of the Big Ten, a breakdown of which is:
vs. Illinois 0-4
vs. Indiana 0-3
vs. Iowa 1-1
vs. Michigan 0-3
vs. Ohio State 1-0
vs. Penn State 2-1
vs. Purdue 1-3
vs. Wisconsin 2-0
On several occasions, it has taken a post-season game to match Georgia against Big Ten foes. The Bulldogs have played Illinois (1985) and Purdue (1996) in the NCAA Tournament. In 1998, the Bulldogs played both Iowa and Penn State in the NIT.
o Hayes Likely to Return Tonight
Completely healthy or not, the return to action of sophomore Jarvis Hayes would strengthen a Georgia lineup in dire need of some depth. His recovery from a sprained MCL of his right knee has been amazingly quick, given the prognosis of 2-4 weeks by team orthopedist Robert Hancock. Hayes injured the knee in practice on Saturday, Nov. 24, just 13 days ago. Only three days afterward he was running straight ahead as part of his recovery process, and last Monday he began light scrimmaging with the Bulldogs.
o Few Cards to Play
The knee injury to Jarvis Hayes had further thinned an already skinny roster of servicable players from which coach Jim Harrick can choose. And in his absence, Harrick has been forced to play with a bare-bones rotation.
In the Georgia State loss, Harrick's problems worsened because of two factors: 1) Jonas Hayes had been slowed by an ankle sprain suffered late in the Colorado game and 2) Tony Cole incurred first-half foul trouble.
The result? Five players played at least 30 minutes each and four of them (Daniels, Thomas, Wright, Patrick) recorded career scoring highs.
o Williams Picking Up Offensive Slack
Jim Harrick's greatest concern in the wake of the Hayes injury was offensive production. Could Georgia generate enough offense to win games in Hayes' absence?
Ezra Williams in particular has assumed a leadership role on offense over the past several games. He's led Georgia in scoring in five of six games thus far. Given his status as the Dogs' top offensive returnee from last year, that's no surprise.
Here's the surprise - he's also the team's top rebounder to date. Nothing Williams did last season could have foretold that he might lead Georgia in boards during the current season. But twice already he's posted "double-doubles," and he currently ranks 3rd among all SEC players in rebounding at 8.0 per game.
o Odds & Ends Thus Far This Season
> There's a direct correlation between the following three stats and the outcome of Tuesday's game against Georgia State: 1) the Dogs were outrebounded for the first time this season (36-33), 2) their opponent shot over 50 percent for the first time and 3) their performance at the free throw line (13x24, .542) was by far their weakest of all six games thus far.
> Better enjoy it while they can. The Bulldogs this week received 63 points in AP Top 25 balloting, good for the 29th-best total of all teams. That figure is likely to decline, or maybe even disappear, in the wake of last Tuesday's loss to Georgia State. For what it's worth (not much at this juncture)...Georgia also dropped from an amazing 2nd to 8th in the current RPI ratings.
> It must seem like old times to Mike Patrick. The injury to Jarvis Hayes was a windfall to Patrick, the team's most experienced player with a whopping 41 games under his belt. For the past two games, he's stepped in and - despite hardly playing all of last season - picked up right where the 2000 season ended, with him as a vital player. He's played 30 minutes in each of the past two games, posting eight and 10 points, respectively, both career highs.
> The 23 shots hoisted by Ezra Williams against Georgia State on Tuesday were the most by a Georgia player since D.A. Layne shot 24 times against Tennessee last season. Of course, Layne had 10 overtime minutes in that game in which to shoot. In his three seasons, Layne shot more than 20 times in just three games.
> Is it too early in the season to spot trends? Perhaps, but here are some numbers to ponder: Georgia, which ranked last in the SEC in steals last season at 6.3 per game, is averaging 9.8 through six games thus far. And also through six games, its average of assists (17.8/game) is up from last year's rate of 15.2, which ranked sixth in the SEC. And finally, Georgia's 6-game scoring average of 77.0 points might be 4.2 points better than last season's final average, but it rates the same (8th) in current SEC stats as it did in the final conference stats of '01.
> Granted, it didn't count for anything, but Jarvis Hayes' 40 points in the exhibition win over EA Sports was the highest point total by a Georgia player in any type of game since 1984 (Vern Fleming - 44 pts.). Incidentally, this was against the same EA Sports team that claimed both North Carolina and Florida as victims on its regional tour.
> The 15 steals Georgia had against Georgetown was the highest total in the 2-plus seasons of the Jim Harrick era in Athens.
> Chris Daniels doesn't grab your attention on the basketball court, mainly because he's not one of Georgia's primary scorers. But his linescores thus far have demonstrated his all-around ability. He currently leads the Bulldogs in two categories, blocked shots and steals, and is second in FG percentage.
> Georgia's performance Nov. 21 against Georgia Southern bore an uncanny resemblance to its game against Mississippi State last season. In the GSU game the Bulldogs rang up 63 first-half points- four shy of the school record for most in one half - and shot an amazing 74 percent in the process. In last season's game vs. MSU, they shot 68 percent in the first period, led 53-35 at halftime and cruised to a 94-73 win, the same score as the GSU contest last week.
o About Georgia's Three Walk-Ons
Head coach Jim Harrick has welcomed non-scholarship members of the Georgia basketball program. Mike Patrick, in fact, walked on in 1999, became the first such player in Harrick's coaching career to earn a starting berth and untimately won an athletic scholarship in the program.
Georgia has three walk-ons among its current roster. They include: 25 DANIEL SZYMANEK...a resident of Memphis, Tenn...Attended Christian Brothers High School there...A native of Poland, he immigrated to the U.S. with parents Kazimiera (mother), Zbigniew (father) and brother Thomas when Daniel was age 3. 1 BRIAN WATTS...from Roswell, Ga. Is attending Georgia one year ahead of his Roswell High classmates as part of UGA's early-enrollment program. 40 RICHARD WEHUNT...from Hoschton, Ga...more information is available on Wehunt in the 2002 Georgia media guide.
o Dean Set to Join Dogs in December
The loss of Jarvis Hayes should be offset to a certain degree by the mid-December addition of shooting guard Mike Dean. While the two don't play the same position, Dean will at least present coach Jim Harrick with more options to consider.
Dean was a prolific scorer the past two seasons at Class AA Coosa High School in Rome, Ga. He averaged 31.3 points per game there as a senior and had spent much of the summer in Athens, working out with the Georgia team.
Because of an administrative problem with his transcript from Coosa - and with one from Rome High School, which he attend as a freshman and sophomore - he did not meet the NCAA initial-eligibility standards in time to enroll for Fall Term. In compliance with NCAA rules, he had to re-sign with the Dogs during the early signing period. He's on track to join the team after Fall Semester, which ends Dec. 14. Though it's unlikely, he would be eligible to play in Georgia's Dec. 15 game at South Alabama.
o Wilkins Must Sit Out '02 Season
Aside from Jonas Hayes, Georgia's other MVP of the preseason was likely Damien Wilkins. The nephew of former UGA All-American Dominique Wilkins, he played every position on the floor during practices and drew raves from the coaching staff for his work ethic and leadership ability.
Wilkins transferred to Georgia last June after playing two seasons at N.C. State. Georgia had filed an appeal in his behalf to waive NCAA rule 14.5.5.2.10A, requiring any Division I basketball transfer to sit out one year before gaining eligibility at his new school. The Administrative Review subcommittee at the NCAA rendered its ruling Wednesday, Nov. 7.
o Early Signing Period Nets Two
The week-long early national signing period produced two highly-regarded signees for the Bulldogs:
ALEXANDER JOHNSON
Center, 6-9, Albany, Ga.
A senior at Dougherty High School...Last year he averaged 28.2 points and 16 rebounds per game, leading Dougherty to a 28-4 record and the Georgia Class AAAA state championship. He was named the AAAA tournament MVP after he averaged over 30 points during Dougherty's run through the tournament...Rated the nation's 25th-best senior by Blue Chip Hoops...Ranked the fifth-best center prospect by ESPN.com.
WAYNE ARNOLD
Guard, 6-3, Lilburn, Ga.
A senior at Berkmar High School...Last season he was the leading scorer - averaging 16.0 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.8 assists - on the Patriots' team that went 29-4, won its second straight Class AAAAA title and was ranked among USA Today's top 10 prep teams...As a sophomore starter, Arnold averaged 12.9 points per game, making an even 50 percent of his 162 three-point tries. Last year he was considered the best player on a team from which four players earned scholarships to NCAA Division I schools.

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