University of Georgia
Xavier
Bulldogs Edged By Xavier, 65-57
February 08, 2011 | Men's Basketball
Feb. 8, 2011
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ATHENS, Ga. --- The Georgia men's basketball team led by one at the intermission but couldn't find its offensive rhythm in the second half, falling 65-57 to non-conference opponent Xavier Tuesday night in Stegeman Coliseum.
The Bulldogs got 14 points from Trey Thompkins before the junior fouled out with 2:42 to go. His teammates Travis Leslie, Gerald Robinson, and Dustin Ware each chipped in 10. Xavier was led by Tu Halloway's game-high 18 points - on perfect 11-for-11 shooting from the free throw line - and Mark Lyons added 14.
Georgia falls to 16-7 while the Musketeers improve to 17-6 with the road win.
"We played better in the first half today then we did in the second half," said head coach Mark Fox. "Our two best interior offensive players fouled out and that's hard to overcome. Trey played so well in the first half, I thought he was going to be key in the second half but they played him well defensively and he didn't get as many good shots. We just didn't play well enough to win."
In all, Tuesday's contest featured 14 lead changes - five in the second half. Coming out of halftime with the slim 27-26 lead, Georgia went up by its largest margin of five, 37-32, with 14:42 to play on a three from Ware.
But Halloway hit a long-ranger of his own with 13:27 showing to give Xavier its first lead since the first bucket of the second half, making it 38-37 in favor of the Musketeers. Jeremy Price put in a follow off a Chris Barnes miss to give Georgia a 39-38 lead on the next play, but that would prove to be the Bulldogs' final lead of the night.
After a Leslie lay-up tied the ballgame at 44-44 with 8:42 to play, Xavier scored eight of the next 10 points to take a six-point lead at 52-46, forcing Georgia to begin to foul on each visitor possession and the Musketeers made the trips count.
Five straight made free throws with just a minute left increased the lead to nine, 52-61, with 34 ticks remaining and the Musketeers ended the game with Halloway converting on his final four from the line to make the margin as large as 11. Ware sank a late three with 14 seconds left, ending it at 65-57 in front of 7.627 in Athens.
The Bulldogs shot just 9-for-28 in the second half - and 2-of-9 from three - in allowing Xavier to take over. Georgia outrebounded the Musketeers by one, 36-35.
The Bulldogs and Musketeers hadn't faced one another since the 2008 season when they squared off in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in Washington, D.C. Incidentally, third-seeded Xavier also came from behind that day, posting a 73-61 victory. Price is the lone Bulldog still on the squad from that team. Xavier is now 2-1 all-time in the brief series.
The Bulldogs will look to get back on track when they return to league play Feb. 12 at South Carolina. The date with the Gamecocks is set to tip at 4 p.m. on the SEC Network.
