Lady Bulldogs Host Charleston Southern On Sunday

December 01, 2018 | Women's Basketball

Game Notes

Georgia Lady Bulldog Basketball Game Notes
Georgia (4-3) vs. Charleston Southern (1-5)
Sunday, Dec. 2 | 2 p.m. ET
Stegeman Coliseum | Athens, Ga.
Radio: Georgia Bulldogs Sports Network - 960 AM in Athens (Jeff Dantzler)
TV: None
Video: SECN+ (Matt Stewart and Mark Slonaker)
Live Stats

Complete Game Notes (PDF)

Probable Starters

Pos	No.	Name	PPG	RPG

Georgia Bulldogs
Coach: Joni Taylor
67-35 (4th year) at UGA
67-35 (4th year) overall
G	0	Taja Cole	11.7	5.4
5-8; RS-Jr.; Richmond, Va./Louisville
G	2	Gabby Connally	10.0	1.9
5-6; So.; San Antonio, Texas/Brandeis HS
G	10	Caitlin Hose	3.3	2.9
5-9; Fr.; Hazel Green, Ala.
F	3	Stephanie Paul	4.0	4.4
6-1; Jr.; Naples, Fla./Community School of Naples
F	4	Caliya Robinson	15.1	9.6
6-3; Sr.; Marietta, Ga./McEachern HS

TEAM COMPARISON

GEORGIA LADY BULLDOGS		CHARLESTON SOUTHERN
64.6	Scoring	63.7
41.5%	FG%	35.0%
28.3%	3FG%	22.3%
45.3	Rebounds	42.2
16.6	Assists	12.8
7.0	Blocks	4.3
7.6	Steals	7.7
53.3	Scoring Def.	69.3
32.2%	FG% Def.	38.5%
18.9%	3FG% Def.	25.4%
+9.3	Reb. Margin	-4.8
-1.6	T/O Margin	+2.3
1.0	Ast-T/O Ratio	0.7

Lady Bulldogs Back at Stegeman Coliseum

Georgia returns to Stegeman Coliseum this Sunday to host Charleston Southern at 2 p.m. ET. The game will be carried on SEC Network + with Matt Stewart and Mark Slonaker on the call.

Series History: First Meeting Since 1997

The Lady Bulldogs and Bucs meet for only the third time in program history and for the first occasion since 1997. Georgia is 2-0 all-time against Charleston Southern with a 91-33 victory in 1995 and a 97-61 win in 1997, which came in the Tallahassee (Florida) Democrat Classic.

Scouting Charleston Southern

Charleston Southern is 1-5 this season, with its lone victory coming against Converse -- 101-50 -- in the first game of the year. Leading the charge for the Bucs are seniors Rachel Burns, Lexii Cassell, Weknyne Dumorne, Ke'Asia Jackson and Shelby Wilbanks. Both Burns and Dumorne were named Preseason All-Big South players with both making the second team. Jackson leads the 2018-19 squad with 15.4 points per game.

Robinson's Feat a First Nationally

Caliya Robinson's 30-point, 17-rebound effort against Mercer marked the first time this season a women's basketball player from any school has gone over 30 points and 15 rebounds and had just one turnover in a single game. Robinson also became just the fourth Lady Bulldog in school history to have a 30-point game and just one turnover, joining Tasha Humphrey, Janese Hardrick and current teammate Gabby Connally.

Cole Leads SEC in Assists

Georgia redshirt junior guard Taja Cole leads the SEC in total assists with 43 and has totaled five or more dimes in all but one game so far this year. Cole's 11 assists against Winthrop are the most for any SEC player in a single game this season.

Young Pups

With eight underclassmen and just four upperclassmen, the Lady Bulldogs are the youngest team in the Southeastern Conference. Of the seven freshmen and sophomores who have been able to play (minus Que Morrison due to injury), all of them are averaging over 10 minutes per game during the 2018-19 season.

Filling the Void Left By Que Morrison's Injury

On Nov. 1, SEC All-Freshman Team selection Que Morrison had surgery to repair a lateral meniscus in her left knee. That has forced Gabby Connally to start at the two guard spot and the combination of Maya Caldwell and freshman Caitlin Hose at the three guard, with all three of those players -- Connally, Caldwell and Hose -- starting for the first times in their careers. Morrison is out for an unspecified amount of time with her recovery set to take around a month.

Georgia Has Led in All Three Losses

In each of Georgia's three losses this season, the Lady Bulldogs have led in the game. Against UCLA, Georgia built a 12-point advantage and led for over 30 minutes. Against Tech, the Lady Bulldogs led by five points, while they erased a 15-point deficit against Maryland to build a two-point lead in the second half. Georgia was outscored in the fourth quarter, 62-41, in those losses.

Lady Bulldogs Add Top Prospects to 2019 Signing Class

The initial signing period was a good one for the Lady Bulldogs. Mitchellville, Maryland native and five-star guard Chloe Chapman inked with Georgia on Thursday. Chapman is widely regarded as one of the top prospects in the nation as the No. 28 overall recruit and No. 7 point guard according to ESPNW. Later in the week, Georgia announced the signing of five-star forward Javyn Nicholson from Lawrenceville, Georgia and Jordan Isaacs from Alpharetta, Georgia.

Robinson Inching Closer to Blocked Shots Record; Staiti Among SEC Leaders

Georgia's lone senior Caliya Robinson needs just 66 more blocks to break the school record of 297 set by Tawana McDonald during her four-year career from 1998-2002. Robinson is not the only Lady Bulldog shot blocker. Jenna Staiti actually ranks third in the SEC in blocks with 18 total this season.

Exceeding Expectations Under Taylor

Georgia continued its upward trend under head coach Joni Taylor last season. The Lady Bulldogs finished tied with South Carolina for second place in the final SEC standings after being picked eighth in the preseason poll. It's a trend that goes all the way back to Taylor's first year, when her squad was picked ninth and finished sixth. Then, in 2016-17, Georgia was picked 12th and finished eighth.

Defense Travels Year In and Year Out

Georgia's mantra over the last few years has been Defense Travels. The Lady Bulldogs put up impressive defensive numbers last year, finishing first in the SEC in field-goal percentage defense (35.1 percent), second in blocked shots (196), second in turnovers forced (18.6 per game) and second in scoring defense (57.6 ppg). Those defensive numbers are reflective of Coach Taylor's first three seasons as head coach. In her tenure, Georgia is 25-0 when holding opponents to 50 points or less and has been one of the leading defensive teams in the league.

Most Wins Since 2013

The team's 26-7 overall record last year marked Georgia's most wins in a single season since 2012-13. The Lady Bulldogs stormed out to a 12-1 start at the conclusion of non-conference play and then defeated three ranked SEC opponents to finish with a 12-4 league record.

Among the Lady Bulldogs' most impressive wins was a 92-84 overtime win at Texas A&M and two victories against Missouri. The 12 wins in league play marked the most for Georgia since the team made the Elite Eight in 2012-13.

Georgia Set for Primetime

Eleven of Georgia's 16 SEC games are set to air nationally on either ESPN, ESPN 2, ESPNU or the SEC Network.

Among the games selected for television, ESPN will carry the Lady Bulldogs' home contest against Tennessee on Jan. 13 at 3 p.m. Georgia will also host Alabama (Jan. 27, 2 p.m.) and Florida (Feb. 10, noon) on ESPNU and Texas A&M (Jan. 20, 4 p.m.) on ESPN2.

Georgia's SEC Network schedule includes road matchups at Mississippi State (Jan. 10, 9 p.m. ET, 8 p.m. CT), Missouri (Jan. 17, 7 p.m. ET/6 p.m. CT), Auburn (Feb. 3, 3 p.m. ET/2 p.m. CT), South Carolina (Feb. 14, 7 p.m.) and Alabama (Feb. 24, 5 p.m. ET/4 p.m. CT).

The SEC Network will also broadcast home games against Ole Miss on Monday, Feb. 18 at 7 p.m. and Kentucky on Sunday, March 3 at 1 p.m.

Taylors Expecting Second Child

Jacie Taylor will be gaining a new brother or sister this spring as Coach Taylor and her husband Darius are expecting their second child. The baby is due to come sometime in the month of February. Taylor will still coach this season, but any head coaching duties during her absence will be handled by associate head coach Karen Lange. During Taylor's last pregnancy, Lange coached the first six games of the 2016-17 season, going 4-2 during that span.

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