University of Georgia Athletics
University of Georgia
11-6, 4-3
Arkansas
9-10, 3-4
Bulldogs Win OT Thriller Against Arkansas
January 23, 2016 | Men's Basketball
Kenny Paul Geno, Kenny Gaines and Houston Kessler weigh in on Georgia's overtime win over the Arkansas Razorbacks.
More Video: Coach Fox's Post Game Press Conference
Jan. 23, 2016
| Arkansas | TEAM | Georgia |
| 73 | SCORE | 76 |
| 39.3% | FG% | 44.1% |
| 42.1% | 3FG% | 40.0% |
| 60.7% | FT% | 53.3% |
| 36 | REB | 46 |
| 14 | ASST | 13 |
| 12 | TO | 13 |
| 6 | BLK | 5 |
| 8 | STL | 6 |
ATHENS, Ga.--J.J. Frazier topped the 20-point barrier for the fifth time this season, pouring in 26 points in the Georgia men's basketball team's 76-73 overtime victory against the Arkansas Razorbacks Saturday night in front of a raucous crowd in Stegeman Coliseum.
With the win Georgia (11-6, 4-3) is now 15-20 all-time against the Razorbacks (9-10, 3-4), but hold a 9-5 advantage in games played in Athens.
Frazier led all scorers with 26 points, followed by Yante Maten, who recorded his fourth double-double of the season with 17 points and 12 rebounds and Kenny Gaines with 16 points.
"That was certainly a very hard-fought SEC game," head coach Mark Fox said. "We feel fortunate to beat a very good Arkansas team. I thought they played really hard and it was a battle. We are fortunate to win the game against a team that we have great respect for. We didn't shoot free throws well and could have made it easier in the end than we did, but we still leave here with the result we wanted."
The Razorbacks jumped out to a quick eight-point lead, but Georgia responded with an 11-2 run themselves. The first half featured several lead changes as neither team could find any separation. The Bulldogs grabbed most of the game's momentum heading into the break riding an 11-3 run. Frazier led all scorers in the half with 12 points including three baskets from behind the arc. Georgia was everywhere on the defensive end holding the Razorbacks to just 32.1-percent shooting from the field in the first half.
Georgia had a strong opening to the second half, extending its lead to as large as eight points with 12 minutes left in the contest. The Razorbacks strung together a run midway through the period, cutting the Bulldogs' lead to three. The Razorbacks continued to chip away at the UGA lead before taking their first lead of the half at the 5:29 mark.
The Razorbacks held a 61-60 lead coming out of the final media timeout, but Frazier quickly grabbed the lead back hitting a pair of shots from the free throw line. The Razorbacks got to the charity stripe to take back the lead at 64-62 with 47.2 seconds remaining, but Frazier scored a big bucket with 24 seconds left to tie things back up at 64-64. The Bulldogs forced a turnover to get the games' last shot, but Frazier's three-point attempt missed wide left forcing the game into overtime.
Yante Maten scored the first points of the overtime period followed by a turnover caused by Georgia's defense on the Razorback's first possession. The Bulldogs relied on its leaders when it counted most and they stepped up. Gaines, Mann and Frazier led the Bulldogs on a 6-0 run with one minute remaining in the overtime period to give UGA some breathing room. The Razorbacks cut the lead to one point with seven seconds left, but it wasn't enough as the Bulldogs held on for the win.
Georgia hits the road on Tuesday to Baton Rouge, Louisiana to face the LSU Tigers at 9 p.m. ET. The game will be nationally televised on ESPN.
