No. 19 Georgia Back on the Road to Alabama

February 21, 2018 | Women's Basketball

Game Notes

Georgia Lady Bulldog Basketball Game Notes
#19 Georgia Lady Bulldogs (22-5, 10-4 SEC) at Alabama Crimson Tide (17-10, 7-7 SEC)
Thursday, Feb. 22, 2018 // 8 p.m. ET
Stegeman Coliseum (10,523) in Athens, Ga.
Radio: Georgia Bulldog Network by IMG // Jeff Dantzler (play-by-play) In Athens: 960 AM and 103.7 FM
TV: None
Video: SEC Network + (Eli Gold — play-by-play, Rick Moody— analyst)

Complete Game Notes (PDF)

Probable Starters

Pos	No.	Name	PPG	RPG

Georgia Bulldogs
Coach: Joni Taylor
59-29 (3rd year) at UGA
59-29 (3rd year) overall
G	0	Taja Cole	7.8	2.9
5-7; RS-So.; TR; Richmond, Va./Louisville
G	12	Haley Clark	4.2	3.0
5-9; Sr.; 3L; Orlando, Fla./Edgewater HS
G	23	Que Morrison	8.7	4.8
5-7; Fr.; HS; Riverdale, Ga./McEachern HS
F	33	Mackenzie Engram	12.9	6.7
6-2; Sr.; 3L; Powder Springs, Ga./Hillgrove HS
F	4	Caliya Robinson	13.1	7.6
6-3; Jr.; 2L; Marietta, Ga./McEachern HS

Pos	No.	Name	PPG	RPG

Alabama Crimson Tide
Coach: Kristy Curry
81-75 (5th year at UA)
390-224 (19th year overall)
G	3	Jordan Lewis	10.1	4.0
5-7; So.; Windermere, Fla.
G	11	Hannah Cook	11.3	4.1
6-0; Sr.; Ozark, Mo.
G	23	Shaquera (Shaq) Wade	6.9	4.2
6-0; Jr.; Huntsville, Ala.
F	1	Quanetria (Nene) Bolton	6.9	4.3
6-0; Sr.; Anniston, Ala.
F	20	Ashley Williams	10.8	6.5
6-0; Sr.; Covington, Ga.

TEAM COMPARISON

GEORGIA		ALABAMA
69.9	Scoring	68.3
42.9%	FG%	40.4%
31.9%	3FG%	29.6%
39.9	Rebounds	39.7
16.5	Assists	12.0
6.1	Blocks	4.3
8.7	Steals	8.9
58.3	Scoring Def.	62.2
35.1%	FG% Def.	39.0%
29.2%	3FG% Def.	32.3%
+1.9	Reb. Margin	+4.4
+3.7	T/O Margin	+1.5
1.1	Ast-T/O Ratio	0.8

Opening Tip - Notes To Know Heading Into The Game

The No. 19-ranked Georgia Lady Bulldogs hit the road for the second-straight game when they travel to Tuscaloosa to take on the Alabama Crimson Tide. Tipoff is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT on SEC Network +.
Georgia enters the game ranked No. 19 in both the Associated Press and USA Today Coaches polls and 28th in the NCAA RPI. The Lady Bulldogs were the No. 15 overall seed in the NCAA tournament committee's reveal this past Monday night.
The Lady Bulldogs are 22-5 overall, with all five losses coming to teams ranked in the latest AP top-25. In fact, three of those squads are ranked in the top-10 of the NCAA RPI, while all have an RPI of 26 or higher.
Head Coach Joni Taylor was named one of 10 semifinalists for the 2018 Werner Ladder Naismith National Coach of the Year Award, it was announced on Wednesday. Taylor's team, which is currently in third place in the SEC, was picked eighth in this year's preseason poll. Georgia reached last season's win total of 16 through just 18 games, while the improvement from 16-15 to 22-5 is the largest single-season turnaround since Coach Andy Landers' first season in 1979-80.
Junior forward Caliya Robinson leads Georgia in both scoring (13.1 ppg) and rebounding (7.6 rpg) this season. The SEC Defensive Player of the Year candidate is the only player in the conference to rank top-10 in the league in three major defensive categories: blocks (82), steals (47) and defensive rebounds (5.8 rpg). Robinson's 82 blocks are the second-most in the SEC and rank ninth nationally.
As a team, Georgia leads the league in several statistical categories, including assists (16.5 per game) and field-goal percentage defense. The Lady Bulldogs have held 21 of 27 opponents, including four-straight, at or below 40-percent shooting from the field.

Series Information

Overall: Georgia leads, 38-11
In Athens: Georgia leads, 18-3
In Tuscaloosa: Georgia leads, 14-6
Neutral Sites: Georgia leads, 6-2
Current Streak: Georgia has won 8 of last 10
Last Meeting: Georgia won, 71-65 (OT) (2/23/17)
Largest Margin of Victory: Georgia won, 96-41 (1/7/01)
Largest Defeat: Alabama won, 105-81 (2/29/92)

Last Time Out

Georgia Lady Bulldog junior forward Caliya Robinson scored a season-high 28 points to lead her team to a 66-52 victory Monday evening at The Pavilion on the Ole Miss campus.

The Lady Bulldogs saw their 17-point halftime lead trimmed down to a one-point margin in the third quarter, before outscoring the Rebels 18-8 in the fourth.

Robinson's 28 points were just two shy of her career-high 30 that she scored last season against Minnesota. In addition to Robinson's performance, freshman Que Morrison finished with 10 points, 10 rebounds and six assists.

"We never gave up the lead, but I thought we just came out sluggish in that third quarter," head coach Joni Taylor said. "Ole Miss was aggressive after the half and we started fouling and giving up offensive boards. In the fourth, we went back to what we do best. It's always tough to win on the road and we have another tough one Thursday at Alabama."

Robinson A Top-10 Finalist for Katrina McClain Award

Georgia junior forward Caliya Robinson has been named a finalist for the 2018 Katrina McClain Award, which goes to the nation's top power forward. The honor is named for the former Lady Bulldog, who as a two-time All-American and the 1987 National Player of the Year. Robinson is currently 27 points from 1,000 in her career and just two blocks from 200. She would be just the fifth player in school history to reach the 200-block total for a career.

Clark Leading In Senior Season

While veterans Mackenzie Engram and Caliya Robinson lead the team in most statistical categories, senior Haley Clark has also been a consistent leader for the Lady Bulldogs. Clark has started every game the last two seasons -- a string of 58-straight contests. Clark, who already has a bachelor's degree in finance and is working on a master's in financial planning, is a nominee for the CoSIDA Academic All-District Team and also the SEC Scholar Athlete of the Year award. Another 20-win Season For the Lady Bulldogs

It Starts With Defense Under Taylor

Georgia prides itself on defense, and that has paid off this season. The Lady Bulldogs lead the conference in field-goal percentage defense (35.8 percent) -- a mark that ranks 11th nationally. In all, the Lady Bulldogs are 22-0 in three seasons under Coach Taylor when holding an opponent to 50 points or less and are 19-2 when an opponent shoots less than 40 percent this season.

Undefeated January For Only Fifth Time

Georgia finished the month of January with a perfect 7-0 record. It marked only the fifth time in program history that the Lady Bulldogs have gone undefeated in January. Three of those previous four teams (1985-86, 1990-91 and 1995-96) won the SEC title that same season.

Taylor's Team Exceeding Expectations ... A Three-Year Trend

There is still a lot of basketball to be played, but this year's performance marks a trend for the Lady Bulldogs under head coach Joni Taylor. Georgia was picked eighth in the SEC's preseason poll, and so far it looks like the Lady Bulldogs will once again exceed expectations. In Coach Taylor's first year, Georgia was picked ninth and finished sixth (one game out of fourth). In her second season, the Lady Bulldogs were picked 12th and finished eighth.

Georgia's Road Streak The Best In Over 20 Years

The Lady Bulldogs began the year with a perfect 8-0 mark away from home -- their best start on the road since the 1994-95 NCAA Final Four team began the year 11-0 away from Stegeman Coliseum. Georgia's current streak came to an end on Feb. 1, when LSU defeated the Lady Bulldogs, 71-60.

Lady Bulldogs Bave Mixture Of Youth And Experience

Even though the Lady Bulldogs are led by veteran players, three of Georgia's top-5 scorers are actually newcomers. Morrison leads the way with 8.7 ppg, followed by Taja Cole's 7.8 ppg and Gabby Connally's 7.4 ppg.

Balanced Bulldogs

Through 27 games, eight or more players have scored in 21 contests. In all, every available player on the Lady Bulldogs' roster has scored a point, while nine players average 15 or more minutes per game.

Georgia Boasts Top Women's Hoops Program

The Lady Bulldogs have boasted one of the top women's basketball programs in the nation over the last three decades. During head coach Andy Landers' 36-year tenure, Georgia ranked No. 2 nationally in both NCAA Tournament appearances (31) and weeks ranked by the Associated Press (522). Georgia is also one of three DI basketball programs to post a winning record every season since women's athletics became under the auspices of the NCAA with the 1981-82 season. The Lady Bulldogs' 32 NCAA Tournament appearances rank second only behind Tennessee for most in the nation.

Georgia's Clark Already A College Graduate

A three-time selection to the SEC Academic Honor Roll, Haley Clark graduated in just three years and received her diploma from UGA during graduation ceremonies this past May. Clark received her bachelor's degree in business and finance and is pursuing a master's in financial planning. One of her career goals is to work in corporate finance and help other athletes with financial planning.

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For more information on the Georgia Lady Bulldogs, follow the team on Twitter (@UGA_WBB), Instagram (@uga_wbb) and Facebook (Facebook.com/UGAWomensBasketball).