University of Georgia Athletics
Landers 1000th Game At UGA On Friday
November 18, 2010 | Women's Basketball
Nov. 18, 2010
Lady Bulldog Basketball Game Notes
Georgia vs. Chattanooga
Friday, November 19 at 7 p.m.
Stegeman Coliseum (Athens, Ga.)
Georgia Bulldog Radio Network (AM 960 in Athens)
Upcoming Promotions
Sunday, November 21 vs. Indiana
• First 1,000 kids (8th grade and below) receive Georgia silly bands
The basics
Though fall is still in full swing, the No. 18-ranked Georgia Lady Bulldogs will welcome Chattanooga's Lady Mocs to historic Stegeman Coliseum on Friday evening an outing with a distinct "March Madness" feel.
The Lady Bulldogs possess one of the most impressive post-season résumés in the nation. Georgia has been invited to 27 of 29 editions of the "Big Dance" since women's basketball came under the auspices of the NCAA beginning with the 1981-82 season.
And UGA has made the most of those chances, advancing to the "Sweet 16" 18 times, the "Elite Eight" on 10 occasions, the Final Four in five instances and the national championship game twice.
Chattanooga has carved its niche as perhaps the most consistent mid-major in the nation. The Lady Mocs have been included in the NCAA bracket for eight of the past nine years and have captured 11 straight Southern Conference regular-season titles.
"Chattanooga always has an outstanding and well-coached team," head coach Andy Landers said. "While they've lost some key players from last season, Chattanooga has used the `three-ball' its calling card over the years and I expect that's what we'll see again this Friday."
Landers' 1000th game at UGA
Tonight's contest represents Andy Landers' 1000th game as the University of Georgia's head coach. Landers coached his first game with the Lady Bulldogs on Nov. 10, 1979, an 88-69 win over Piedmont.
Some points of reference for that date...
• "Heartache Tonight" by The Eagles was No. 1 on the Billboard charts;
• The Iranian Hostage Crisis was less than a week old (began Nov. 4);
• Gas was 80 cents a gallon;
• A ticket to the movies cost $2.47 (we're guessing $2.50 with tax);
• A Sony Walkman cost $200 Landers is 8-1 in "games on the hundreds" as outlined below.
100 - Dec. 11, 1982 in Athens
Georgia 88, Florida 66
200 - Nov. 30, 1985 in Raleigh, N.C.
No. 2 Georgia 92, No. 15 N.C. State 67
300 - Dec. 19, 1988 in Detroit, Mich.
No. 4 Georgia 87, Detroit 54
400 - Jan. 26, 1992 in Athens
Georgia 82, Mississippi State 60
500 - Feb. 21, 1995 in Athens
No. 9 Georgia 91, Charleston Southern 33
600 - March 13, 1998 in Storrs, Conn.
George Washington 74, Georgia 72
(NCAA Tournament)
700 - March 3, 2001 in Memphis, Tenn.
No. 6 Georgia 63, Arkansas 44
(SEC Tournament)
800 - Nov. 19, 2004 in Athens
No. 5 Georgia 98, Furman 76
900 - Nov. 9, 2007 in Athens
No. 9 Georgia 81, Richmond 53
Series history vs. Chattanooga
Georgia leads the all-time series with Chattanooga 12-1, including a perfect 6-0 record in Athens.
UGA and UTC met a year ago to the day in Chattanooga last season. That contest served as a fitting homecoming for Trenton, Ga., native Ashley Houts, who grew up approximately 15 minutes from McKenzie Arena and had roughly 500 family and friends in attendance.
With Georgia trailing by six and 30 seconds left in the first half, Houts took control of the game. She knocked down a three-pointer to cut UTC's lead in half before the intermission and then scored Georgia's first 10 points in the first 3:24 of the second period to give the Lady Bulldogs a 43-39 lead they would never relinquish.
The Lady Bulldogs last hosted the Lady Mocs on Nov. 29, 2000 when Georgia secured an 81-43 victory. Tawana McDonald poured in 22 points and Coco Miller added 11 to lead the Lady Bulldogs.
Chattanooga's lone win in the series is a 79-74 decision on New Year's Eve of 1980, just Andy Landers' second (of now 32) seasons in Athens...and his 32nd contest (of now 1000) at Georgia.
Last time out...
The Lady Bulldogs officially opened their 2010-11 campaign with a 58-43 win last Sunday afternoon over in-state rival Georgia Southern in Stegeman Coliseum.
Georgia received a double-double performance from Porsha Phillips - an 11-point, 13-rebound effort - while Meredith Mitchell matched her teammate with 11 points and also dished out a career-high seven assists.
"You've got to tip your hat to [Georgia Southern]," Andy Landers said. "They played well and hit their shots. It seemed like every time we were able to get the lead, they would hit a shot and make it close again. It was encouraging, but we've gotten to the point where we need to get better."
Georgia built a nine-point advantage, 14-5, with 13:46 to play in the first period on a lay-up from Phillips, but GSU took advantage of a cold spell to reclaim the lead, 15-14, with 7:38 left in the opening frame.
The Lady Bulldogs scored 11 of the half's final 13 points to take control with an 11-point lead, 30-19, at the break.
The Lady Eagles eventually pulled within single-digits, 42-34, with 8:35 on the clock, but Georgia responded with a jumper for Miller followed by a three from freshman Ronika Ransford to stretch it back to 47-34, less than 90 seconds later.
Jamie Navarro was the leading scorer for GSU with 10 points and added nine boards.
Career-highs abound
There were numerous career-high outputs from the Lady Bulldogs' season-opening victory as outlined alphabetically below.
• Anne Marie Armstrong equaled her career high with three assists;
• Anne Marie Armstrong equaled her career high with three blocks;
• Jasmine Hassell equaled her career high with one steal;
• Meredith Mitchell dished out a career-best seven assists (previously five);
• Tamika Willis scored a career-best nine points (previously four);
• Tamika Willis grabbed a career-best eight boards (previously five);
• Tamika Willis logged a career-high 13 minutes (previously 10);
• Tamika Willis equaled her career high for blocks (one);
UGA impressive in openers
Georgia improved to 31-9 (.775) all-time in season openers, including an even more sterling 27-5 (.844) under Andy Landers.
The Lady Bulldogs are now 16-1 all-time in openers contested within historic Stegeman Coliseum.
Lady Bulldogs tabbed fourth
Georgia was picked to finish fourth in the SEC this winter in separate balloting of league media and coaches.
Both bodies picked Tennessee and Kentuckyto finish 1-2 and also agreed on Georgia to finish fourth, Auburn sixth, South Carolina seventh and Mississippi State 12th.
The media voted Vanderbilt third, LSU fifth and Arkansas, Alabama, Ole Miss and Florida in eighth-11th, respectively.
Coaches voted LSU third, Vanderbilt to tie with the Lady Bulldogs for fourth and Alabama, Ole Miss, Florida and Arkansas in the eighth-11th positions.
Porsha Phillips was a first-team All-SEC selection by league coaches, who also included Jasmine James on their second-team. Phillips was featured as a second-team pick in voting of league and national media as well.
Record number of TV dates
A Lady Bulldog-record 15 regular-season games will air on television during 2010-11. That tally betters the most in Georgia history of 14 contests in both 2006-07 and 2009-10.
The Lady Bulldogs will appear nationally on the ESPN family networks three times - on ESPN2 at LSU and at Tennessee, as well as on ESPNU at Kentucky.
Eight contests will be shown on CSS. Airing on the network will be non-conference dates at Georgia Tech and at TCU, SEC road contests at Arkansas, Alabama, Ole Miss and Florida and league home dates with Arkansas and Vanderbilt.
FSN will televise home games with Mississippi State, Alabama and Kentucky, while the Lady Bulldogs' matchup with Florida in Athens will be shown on the SEC Network.
The addition of television coverage did change the originally announced game times for four games. The Jan. 13 game at Arkansas and the Jan. 20 game at Alabama both are now scheduled for 9 p.m. The Jan. 23 contest against Mississippi State in Athens is now at 3 p.m. The regular-season finale at Florida is now set for 2 p.m.
1985 Lady Bulldogs reunited
Georgia's 1985 NCAA runner-up team returned to Athens for a reunion the weekend of the season opener. The team had dinner at Andy Landers' house Saturday and was recognized at halftime of the Georgia Southern game.
That team provided one of the most electrifying campaigns in the program's history.
"In my mind, it wasn't only one of our greatest teams, it was one of the greatest teams in the history of college basketball," Landers said. "The members of that team comprised the nucleus of what was a great run for Georgia Basketball. They were great kids who were a joy to coach, and I'm excited that we'll have most of them back to Athens this weekend."
The Lady Bulldogs compiled a 24-3 regular-season record and spent the entire season ranked among the nation's top-10 teams, including two weeks at No. 1.
When "March Madness" arrived, Georgia rolled through its first four NCAA Tournament foes - Tennessee Tech, No. 18 UCLA, top-seeded Long Beach State and Western Kentucky - by more than 20 points per game.
In the NCAA final against Old Dominion, the Lady Bulldogs opened up a 31-22 first-half lead before fouls began to mount. The Monarchs eventually used a late surge to secure a 70-65 victory.
Georgia's roster that season featured many of the Lady Bulldogs' greatest players ever, a balanced squad that featured double-digit scoring averages from Janet Harris, Teresa Edwards, Katrina McClain and Lisa O'Connor.
Donald, Ford sign with UGA
Guards Erika Ford and Krista Donald signed letters of intent during the NCAA early signing period from Nov. 10-17.
"Together, Erika and Krista move us in the direction of our objective to create a deeper backcourt so that we can continue changing our style of play, utilizing more players and implementing more full-court strategies," Andy Landers said.
Ford, 5-9 and a three-year starter Chattahoochee High in Alpharetta, Ga., has been rated as the nation's No. 55 overall prospect and the No. 8 guard by the All Star Girls Report. Ford was named all-state for Class AAAAA as both a sophomore and a junior. She topped 1,000 career points as a sophomore and helped Chattahoochee's volleyball team to a runner-up finish in the 2010 Class AAAA state tournament.
"Erika is someone who has been on our radar for quite some time," Landers said. "We're extremely please that she is going to be part of our basketball program. Erika has terrific athleticism, great quickness and tremendous defensive abilities, along with an aggressive slashing offensive game."
Donald, 5-11 and from Lake High in Lake (Miss.), is a two-time member of the Jackson Clarion-Ledger's Dandy Dozen of the top players in Mississippi. She is ranked as the nation's No. 55 overall recruit and the No. 12 wing by the Girls Basketball Report. Last season, Donald averaged 19.1 points and 11.7 rebounds per game and was named the Southeast Region Player of the Week by ESPN Rise Magazine on Feb. 17 after scoring a career-high 37 points against Newton.
"Krista is a power guard," Landers said. "She has great strength coupled with a guard's skill set. Krista can score it from the perimeter, slash you to the basket or post you up. She possesses a truly an unusual package for a guard."
From the bench to broadcasts
Injuries forced fifth-year senior Jaleesa Rhoden to make the difficult decision to forego her last season of eligibility on the basketball court.
But that opened another door. Rhoden will now serve as the color analyst for the radio broadcasts of Lady Bulldog Basketball.
"I definitely think everything happens for a reason," Rhoden said. "As much as I hate to say my injuries are a blessing, I guess they are."
In her first three seasons, Rhoden showed glimpses of the skill set that caught Andy Landers' eye during the recruiting process. Each time she seemed poised to make a major step forward, an injury got in the way. After averaging 19.8 minutes per game in 2008-09, Rhoden saw that playing time dip to just 9.3 mpg last winter as she struggled with a nagging hamstring.
That was perhaps the final straw that forced Rhoden to realize her days on the hardwood would not materialize as planned.
"It was really, really, really hard," Rhoden said. "I thought so much about it...how my body would be able to handle playing this game and the pounding it takes playing Division I basketball, not only the games, but every day in practice. I thought about not being out there with my teammates, since this was going to be my senior season. I know having another body would help them. And then I visited with my family to make sure this was the right decision for my health and my future."
As Rhoden prepared for her first-ever broadcast with the Lady Bulldogs' exhibition game against Lander, she compared the butterflies of announcing to those of returning to the court after rehabbing from an injury. Her insightful response bodes well for her potential to provide valuable information in her new role.
"I think I'm more nervous about radio because I don't know what I'm doing," Rhoden joked. "It is talking about basketball and I know the game so I don't think I could mess that up. But to actually have to formulate words and give details and provide insight about a game I've been playing my whole life will be challenging. I think it will be harder than coming back from my injuries because that was getting back out there and doing something I'd done by repetition over and over for so many years. I don't have that type of experience with broadcasting."