Bulldogs Set To Face Commodores Wednesday Night

Georgia Basketball Game Notes
Georgia (8-5, 0-1 SEC) vs. Vanderbilt (9-4, 0-1 SEC)
Wednesday, January 9 at 6:30 p.m. ET
Stegeman Coliseum (10,523) in Athens, Ga.
Listen: Georgia Bulldog Sports Network Flagship: WSB AM 750 Atlanta; Sirius: 98; XM: 190; Internet: 961. (Scott Howard, play-by-play; Chuck Dowdle, analyst; Tony Schiavone, producer)
TV: SEC Network (Mike Morgan, play-by-play; Mark Wise, analyst)
Video: SECN+

Pos	No.	Name	PPG	RPG

Georgia Bulldogs
Coach: Tom Crean
8-5 in 1st season at UGA
364-236 in 19th season overall
G	0	William Jackson	3.8	2.5
6-4; 185; Sr.; Athens, Ga.
G	1	Teshaun Hightower	7.8	2.5
6-5; 180; So.; Lithonia, Ga.
F	20	Rayshaun Hammonds	13.8	6.5
6-8; 235; So.; Norcross, Ga.
F	33	Nicolas Claxton	12.7	9.8
6-11; 220; So.; Greenville, S.C.
F	34	Derek Ogbeide	9.9	6.4
6-9; 250; Sr.; Atlanta, Ga

Pos	No.	Name	PPG	RPG

Vanderbilt Commodores
Coach: Bryce Drew
40-40 in 3rd season at VU
164-89 in 7th season overall
G	0	Saban Lee	12.2	3.5
6-2; 183; So.; Phoenix, Ariz.
G	2	Joe Toye	10.9	3.8
6-7; 210; Sr.; Chicago, Ill.
F	32	Matt Ryan	10.8	3.2
6-8; 215; R-Jr.; Cortland Manor, N.Y.
F	1	Yanni Wetzell	5.8	3.1
6-10; 240; R-Jr.; Auckland, New Zealand
F	11	Simisola Shittu	14.9	7.8
6-10; 240; Fr.; Burlington, Ontario

TEAM COMPARISON

STATISTIC	GEORGIA	VANDERBILT
Points Per Game	76.9	82.0
Opp. Point Per Game	72.5	71.1
Scoring Margin	+4.5	+10.9
Field Goal Pct.	.466	.467
Opp. Field Goal Pct.	.392	.403
3-Point Pct.	.323	.345
3-Pointers Per Game	6.4	8.2
Opp. 3-Point Pct.	.301	.319
Free Throw Pct.	.722	.714
Free Throws Per Game	17.6	19.6
Rebounds Per Game	42.1	40.0
Opp. Rebound Per Game	345.7	34.8
Rebound Margin	+6.4	+5.2
Assists Per Game	14.5	14.2
Turnovers Per Game	16.6	12.9
Assist-to-Turnover Ratio	0.88	1.10
Turnover Margin	-4.6	-0.8
Steals Per Game	5.8	4.9
Blocks Per Game	5.9	5.1

The Starting 5...

Georgia has already sold out 7 games this season, the most sellouts for the Bulldogs since they had 9 during the 2002-03 season.
Nicolas Claxton is the only SEC player to lead his team in points, boards, assists, blocks & steals in a game this season...and he's done it twice.
Derek Ogbeide enters the Vanderbilt game eight rebounds shy of joining UGA's top-10 career leaders in boards.
UGA's bench has outscored it counterparts in 11 games, with nine of those being by +10 or more. UGA's bench has a +172 scoring margin.
UGA's coaching staff sports a combined 80 seasons of D-I experience (Crean-28, Scott-27, Dollar-23, Abdur-Rahim-12) with 38 postseason bids

The Opening Tip

Georgia returns to the friendly - and increasingly crowded - confines of Stegeman Coliseum on Wednesday evening to host Vanderbilt in an SEC Network-televised matchup.

The Bulldogs are 6-1 at Stegeman this season and averaging 8,004 fans per game. Georgia's non-conference attendance average was the Bulldogs' best since the 2002-03 season.

The first 1,250 UGA students through the gates on Wednesday will receive either a No. 0, No. 13 or No. 24 player t-shirt and a free Bojangles chicken biscuit.

Series History With The Dores

Vanderbilt owns a 91-53 advantage in the all-time series between UGA and VU; however, the Bulldogs possess a 35-28 edge in Athens. There is one contested score, what UGA lists as a 50-44 win on Jan. 17, 1941.

Up Next: A Trip To The Plains

For the second consecutive weekend, Georgia will face a defending SEC co-Champion on the road. The Bulldogs will trek to The Plains this Saturday to face No. 11/10 Auburn.

Welcome To The League, Coach

Tom Crean's initiation into the SEC might be considered hazing by some.

Georgia begins league play with six consecutive outings against teams that entered SEC competition ranked in the top-50 of the new NCAA Evaluation Tool (NET) rankings.

The Bulldogs' first half-dozen SEC opponents will be, in succession, No. 7 Tennessee, No. 45 Vanderbilt, No. 18 Auburn, No. 10 Kentucky, No. 33 Florida and No. 27 LSU.

Dogs' Sellout Count Climbs To 7

The Tom Crean regime established some attendance records before the season even began by selling out three games.

In early December, that count ascended to six sellouts. The Bulldogs then wrapped up 2018 with a capacity crowd against UMass on Dec. 30.

On Oct. 24, Georgia announced sellouts for the Florida and Kentucky games, the earliest sellout(s) in UGA Basketball history.

Two days later, the Texas game also sold out. Prior to this year, Georgia never had more than one sellout prior to the opener.

Dates with LSU, South Carolina and Ole Miss also sold out in December. The last time the Bulldogs had seven sellouts was in 2002-03 when they hosted nine capacity crowds.

It should be noted that the 2,000 free seats reserved for UGA's student body must be filled at those games for capacity crowds of 10,523 to be in attendance at the Bulldogs' half-dozen "sellouts."

The Dogs Are Drawing

Georgia averaged 8,004 fans for its seven non-conference outings, the second-highest figure in the 2000s.

That's the most since the Bulldogs averaged crowds of 8,792 during the 2002-03 non-conference campaign. That season featured only five non-league dates, with three of those being on weekends and a fourth against No. 2 Pittsburgh on New Year's Eve.

A Historic Opener

Georgia christened both the 2018-19 campaign and the Tom Crean era on Nov. 9 with an impressive evening on and off the court.

The Bulldogs secured a 110-76 victory over Savannah State, Georgia's most points in the 2000s. The last time the Bulldogs scored more than 110 points was in a 113-74 victory over Grambling on Nov. 27, 1999.

A crowd of 9,018 fans flocked to Stegeman Coliseum for the opener, the biggest turnout for a home opener since the Stegeman's capacity became 10,523 in 1994. You have to go back to 1981, Dominique Wilkins' sophomore year, to find a larger crowd for the home opener. That year, a then-capacity crowd of 11,200 saw Georgia top Georgia Tech, 62-61.

"First things first, I want to say 'thank you' to everybody who was here," Crean said. "This is largest crowd on an opening night since they redid Stegeman, and it was fun. It was fun to see the enthusiasm that people have had turn into bodies and live energy and loud fans. That was tremendous."

Also on the scoring front, UGA's 59 first-half points were its most in a half since scoring 60 in the second period against Jacksonville State 11 years earlier...on Nov. 9, 2007.

Georgia Hosts Vandy In Initial SEC Home outing of 2018-19 Season

The Georgia Bulldogs return to action on Wednesday evening when they entertain the Vanderbilt Commodores in Georgia's first SEC home date of the current campaign.

The Bulldogs are 8-5 overall, including a 6-1 record at Stegeman Coliseum. Georgia's lone loss at home was a two-point setback to No. 20 Arizona State.

Sophomores Rayshaun Hammonds and Nicolas Claxton lead the Bulldogs.

Hammonds averages a team-high 13.8 ppg, which ranks No. 17 among league statistical leaders. He also is No. 5 in free throw percentage and No. 13 in rebounds.

Claxton, last week's SEC Player of the Week, is contributing 12.7 ppg and paces the SEC in both rebounding (9.8 rpg) and blocks (3.0 bpg). Nationally, he entered this week No. 25 in boards and No. 7 in blocks.

Vanderbilt is 9-4 on the year. The Commodores won their first four outings before leading scorer Darius Garland (19.8 ppg) suffered a season-ending injury early in the fifth game of the season.

The four Commodores to start every game to date all average double figures - Simisola (14.9 ppg), Saban Lee (12.2 ppg), Joe Toye (10.9 ppg) and Matt Ryan (10.8 ppg).

Series History With The Dores

Vanderbilt possesses a 91-53 lead in the all-time series between the Bulldogs and Commodores; however, Georgia owns a 35-28 edge here in Athens.

The Bulldogs and Commodores last met in the opening round of last season's SEC Tournament in St. Louis. Georgia scored the game's first 10 points and then kept a comfortable lead the rest of the evening en route to a 78-62 victory.

The Bulldogs led 24-13 with 8:00 left in the first half and then exploded on a 14-0 run to blow the game open.

In the most recent outing in Athens two seasons ago on Jan. 17, 2017, four Bulldogs scored in double digits as Georgia pulled past Vanderbilt 76-68.

Yante Maten poured in 21 points to lead the Bulldogs. Juwan Parker and J.J. Frazier contributed 17 points and 15 points, respectively, while they both reeled in team-high six rebounds. Derek Ogbeide scored 11 points, his fourth double-digit output of the season.

The Bulldogs led 34-25 at the half and quickly pushed the margin to 38-25 to open the second stanza.

Vanderbilt rallied twice, trimming the lead to three points at the 15:50 mark and to five points with 2:17 to play, but that was the closest the Commodores got. Georgia held Vanderbilt scoreless on a 0-for-7 stretch that lasted over three minutes.

Last Time Out...

No. 3 Tennessee used an early 11-0 run to gain distance en route to a 96-50 victory over Georgia last Saturday in Knoxville.

The Volunteers led 14-12 before going on an 11-0 surge that gave them a 25-12 lead with 9:17 remaining in the opening half.

Derek Ogbeide was a bright spot for the Bulldogs. He scored a season-high 17 points by connecting on 6-of-9 shots from the floor and 5-of-7 trips to the line. Ogbeide grabbed six rebounds and in the process moved past Trey Thompkins into the No. 11 position on the Bulldogs' career boards leaders ledger.

Claxton Named SEC POTW

Nicolas Claxton was tabbed the SEC Player of the Week on Dec. 31, a day after his game-high tallies of 20 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks against UMass.

Claxton posted his sixth double-double of the season and was 8-of-13 from the field and 3-of-3 at the line versus the Minutemen. He grabbed 10 defensive rebounds, one less than the UMass roster grabbed as a whole on that end of the floor.

Bulldogs Are Shot Swatters

Georgia ranks among the nation's top shot-blocking teams.

Through games of Jan. 6, Georgia ranked No. 9 nationally in blocked shots, averaging 5.9 rejections per game.

Nicolas Claxton leads the Bulldogs' blockers and entered the week ranked No. 7 nationally at 3.0 bpg.

Dogs' Depth Paying Dividends

Georgia's bench has outscored its counterparts in 11 of 13 games...consistently doing so by a significant amount.

The Bulldogs' bench has been +10 or more in nine outings. UGA's overall scoring margin on bench points is +173 for the season.

Claxton Doing It All For Dogs

Nicolas Claxton is the only player in the SEC this season to - in the same game - lead his team in points, rebounds, assists, blocks and steals...and he's done so twice.

The sophomore from Greenville, S.C., did so Nov. 27 against Kennesaw State with 16 points, 15 boards, four assists, two blocks and two steals...and did so again versus Oakland on Dec. 18 with 17 points, 13 boards, three assists, three blocks and one steal.

The Deflection Objective

The deflection is an extremely key statistic for Georgia. Head coach Tom Crean regularly discusses the deflection and its significance.

"I was told a long time ago - and I don't think you can say it any better - deflections are barometer of active defense. It's any type of activity on the ball. It's a finger tip, a hand, blocked shots, chargers, a steal. That's what we're aiming for. I want our team at a deflection-to-turnover ratio of 3.5-to-1. To me, that is an optimal number."

"You will hear me talk a lot about it," Crean said in his press session following the Sam Houston State game. "Some of you will get tired of it, and some of you will buy into it."

The quote above gives a definition of the stat. The Bulldogs' season totals to date are below. Nicolas Claxton leads the team, including 18 deflections against Sam Houston State.

"I have only coached four other guys, and all four of them played in the NBA, that ever had more than 18 in a game," Crean said.

UGA Deflections
Player	Number
Nicolas Claxton	121
Teshaun Hightower	44
Rayshaun Hammonds	43
Jordan Harris	36
E'Torrion Wilridge	36
Tye Fagan	32
Turtle Jackson	32
Tyree Crump	30
Derek Ogbeide	29
Amanze Ngumezi	12
JoJo Toppin	9
Ignas Sargiūnas	8
Christian Harrison	6
Connor O'Neill	2
Mike Edwards	1

Ogbeide Already Ranks Among Bulldogs' Best Boarders Ever

Derek Ogbeide began his senior season with 614 rebounds and ranked No. 17 among the Georgia's career leaders.

Ogbeide is now No. 11 on that list and just eight boards away from joining the Bulldogs' top-10.

Feel Free To Call Him "Ty-3" Crump

Tyree Crump has scored nearly two-thirds of his career points at UGA on shots from 20-feet, 9-inches from the basket...and beyond.

With a 28 3-pointers this season and 91 for his career, 3-pointers directly account for 273 of Crump's 441 (61.9 percent) points at UGA.

Now 67.4 percent (91-of-135) of his made shots from the floor at UGA are trifectas.

Maten Earns G League Honor

Yante Maten, the 2018 AP SEC Player of the Year for Georgia, enjoyed a very productive month of December.

Maten, a two-way player with the Miami Heat and the Sioux Falls Skyforce, was named NBA G League Player of the Month. In nine games, he averaged 29.2 points, 11.4 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.4 blocks per game while shooting 59.0 percent from the field, 47.4 percent from 3-point range and 80.3 percent from the line. Maten's month was highlighted by a 42-point, 14-rebound performance against Stockton, one of his seven December double-doubles.

"I'm definitely enjoying my time in Sioux Falls," Maten said. "I'm being used a lot. I'm trying to make the best out of every opportunity and every game. I'm just exited to come out and prove a point every night."

Perfect Against "The Enemy"

With its 70-59 win over Georgia Tech on Dec. 22 at McCamish Pavilion, Georgia's Class of 2019 secured a unique spot in the Bulldogs' history.

In the first 113 seasons of Georgia Basketball, only four, four-year Bulldogs finished their careers undefeated against the Yellow Jackets. That number more than doubled with this year's victory.

Prior to this season, James Banks and Vern Fleming, who played for Georgia from 1980-84, and Richard Corhen and Gerald Crosby, who were in Athens from 1981-85, were the only Bulldogs who never lost to Tech.

Mike Edwards, Turtle Jackson, Connor O'Neill, Derek Ogbeide and E'Torrion Wilridge joined that quartet. Senior Christian Harrison also is undefeated against Tech, but only played two seasons in Athens after transferring from Troy.

It should be noted that Georgia and Georgia Tech played two or three times each season from the beginning of the series through the 1981-82 campaigns.

There are some impressive statistical nuggets from within the streak.

The Bulldogs have won each game by double figures. The last time Georgia posted four-consecutive double-digit wins over the Jackets came during a stretch covering the 1908-09 through 1913-14 seasons.
The Bulldogs' 60-43 win in Atlanta on Dec. 20, 2016, was Georgia's most decisive win over the Jackets on the Tech campus since a 55-38 decision on Dec. 6, 1980. As a matter of fact, to find a larger margin of victory, you have to go back to a 69-13 win on 1/19/09...that being 1909.

Hammonds Puts Up Rare Stat Line

Rayshaun Hammonds poured in a career-high 31 points while not turning the ball over once versus Illinois State.

Hammonds is the only SEC player this season to put up 30 points with no turnovers. Only two SEC players did so last season - Vanderbilt's Jeff Roberson and Terence Davis from Ole Miss.

Hammonds, Yante Maten and Jumaine Jones are the only Bulldogs to do so in the last 20 seasons as outlined below.

30 Points, 0 Turnovers
Player	Pts.	Opponent (date)
R. Hammonds	31	Illinois State (11/19/18)
Y. Maten	30	Charleston Southern (12/17/16)
Y. Maten	30	Kansas (11/22/16)
J. Jones	34	Kentucky (1/26/99)

Career-High Outings Against ISU

Rayshaun Hammonds and Nicolas Claxton exploded for career-high outputs of 31 and 22 points, respectively, against Illinois State.

Hammonds scored 31 points in 31 minutes. He scored 18 first-half points, almost topped his previous best effort of 21 points before intermission. Claxton did much of his damage after the break with 14 second-half points.

Excitement Surrounds Bulldogs

Tom Crean was hired as the Bulldogs' head coach on March 15 and created an off-season buzz surrounding Georgia Basketball that it hasn't been seen since Dominique Wilkins' days in Athens during the early-80s.

Before this season, Georgia had never sold out more than one game before its opener.

This fall, the Bulldogs had three sellouts - Florida, Kentucky and Texas - in October.

In addition, the number of contributors and the amount donated to UGA's Basketball Enhancement Fund (BEF) set records by considerable margins. The BEF tally topped $1 million for the first time ever and as of Nov. 7 had bettered the previous watermark by just shy of 25 percent.

UGA Loaded With Peach Products

Nearly three-fourths of Georgia's roster played high school hoops in the Peach State. Eleven of 15 Bulldogs - that's 73.3 percent to be exact - did so.

The list includes: seniors Christian Harrison (Woodward Academy), William "Turtle" Jackson (Athens Christian School), Connor O'Neill (Blessed Trinity Catholic High) and Derek Ogbeide (Pebblebrook High); juniors Tyree Crump (Bainbridge High) and Jordan Harris (Seminole County High); sophomores Rayshaun Hammonds (Norcross High) and Teshaun Hightower (Collins Hills High); and freshmen Tye Fagan (Upson-Lee High); Amanze Ngumezi (Johnson High) and JoJo Toppin (Norcross High).

Fagan Owns Unique Record

The first recruit to commit to Tom Crean at Georgia certainly brought a winning résumé.

Spring signee Tye Fagan helped Upson-Lee High School to back-to-back state titles and 63 consecutive victories as a junior and senior. The Knights' effort represents the third-longest winning streak in Georgia boys' high school hoops history.

"Any time you add a championship-winning player and person to your program, it's great," Crean said. "But I can't recall ever signing anyone that was 63-0. That's unique."

Georgia's loss at Temple on Nov. 13 represented Fagan's first setback representing his school since an Upson-Lee setback to New Hampstead on Feb. 17, 2016 in the first round of the 2016 state tournament...providing a span of exactly 1000 days between those losses.

Inaugural StegMania A Success

Tom Crean arrived in Athens with a distinct vision. One thing he wanted to create was an preseason event to display the new energy and enthusiasm around Georgia Basketball.

On Friday, Oct. 5, the first-ever StegMania drew a crowd of more than 5,000. It was, by all measures, a significant success.

UGA students lined up around the Coliseum to receive commemorative "StegMania" t-shirts. A lengthy autograph session with a distinct family feel wrapped up the festivities.

StegMania itself was packed with pyrotechnic player intros, a high-flying dunk contest, a dance battle with the Georgia Lady Bulldogs, an impromptu performance of the hit song "Rolex" by hip-hop artists Ayo & Teo and a scrimmage with Crean "mic'd up."

"When you're brand new coming into something like this, you really don't have an expectation," said Crean after the event. "But if I would've had one, it would have exceeded it. When I saw people in line to get into the Coliseum, I got a lump in my throat. It was awesome because you never take it for granted. Hopefully, everyone walks out of here knowing that they matter."

The Leftiest Lads In The Land

The Bulldogs' roster features six - count 'em on two hands - left-handed players. Georgia's southpaws include Nicolas Claxton, Tye Fagan, Rayshaun Hammonds, Jordan Harris, Derek Ogbeide and JoJo Toppin.

We're relatively confident that tally is the most any NCAA Division I basketball team will suit up during 2018-19.

During the summer months, J.D. Hamilton of the NCAA sends out a laundry list of questions to the nation's Division I men's basketball SIDs. The inquiries can range from statistical - what school has the most 2,000-point scorers - to staff - who has the nation's most experienced coaching staff - to roster related - who has the most newcomers.

Round 1 of the email on September 5 including the following offering from Athens: "Georgia has six left-handed players. Does any other team in the country have as many or more players who are left-handed?"

Not that SIDs are bound to answer every request, but that question received no replies. So, the ask was modified for a second email correspondence sent out by Hamilton on September 26 to read: "Georgia has six left-handed players. Does any other team in the country have as four or more players who are left-handed?"

That led to Tennessee (D.J. Burns, John Fulkerson, Jalen Johnson and Yves Pons), Washington (David Crisp, Elijah Hardy, Bryan Penn-Johnson and Nate Roberts) and Winthrop (Adam Pickett, Jermaine Ukaegbu, Kyle Zunic and Raivis Scerbinskis) supplying lists of four.

While nothing is official, Georgia will claim the unofficial title of the leftiest team in America until proven otherwise.

And for full effect, the above headline should be read in a voice immitating Dan Magill, the greatest Bulldog of all time. If you're not familiar with Coach Magill, ask.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Nicolas Claxton

Tyree Crump

Mike Edwards

Tye Fagan

Rayshaun Hammonds

Jordan Harris

Christian Harrison

Teshaun Hightower

Yante Maten

Amanze Ngumezi

Connor O'Neill

Derek Ogbeide

Juwan Parker

JoJo Toppin

E'Torrion Wilridge