Bulldogs Look to Tame Tigers Wednesday

Wednesday, February 27

Athens, Ga.

9:00

University of Georgia

Auburn

Buy Tickets

February 26, 2019 | Men's Basketball

Game Notes

Georgia Basketball Game Notes
Georgia (10-17, 1-13 SEC) vs. Auburn (18-9, 7-7 in SEC)
Wednesday, February 28 at 9:00 p.m. ET
Stegeman Coliseum (10,523) in Athens, Ga.
Radio: Georgia Bulldog Sports Network Flagship: WSB AM 750 Atlanta; XM: 385; Internet: 976. (Scott Howard, play-by-play; Chuck Dowdle, analyst; Tony Schiavone, producer)
TV: ESPNU (Tom Hart, play-by-play; Seth Greenberg, analyst)
Video: SECN+

Complete Game Notes (PDF)

Pos	No.	Name	PPG	RPG

Georgia Bulldogs
Coach: Tom Crean
10-17 in 1st season at UGA
366-248 in 19th season overall
G	0	Turtle Jackson	5.7	1.6
6-4; 185; Sr.; Athens, Ga.
G	2	Jordan Harris	6.6	3.5
6-4; 190; Jr.; Iron City, Ga.
F	11	Christian Harrison	1.0	0.9
6-4; 200; R-Sr.; Atlanta, Ga.
F	20	Rayshaun Hammonds	12.6	6.3
6-8; 235; So.; Norcross, Ga.
F	33	Nicolas Claxton	12.7	8.9
6-11; 220; So.; Greenville, S.C.

Pos	No.	Name	PPG	RPG

Auburn Tigers
Coach: Bruce Pearl
88-69 in 5th season at AU
550-214 in 24th season overall
G	1	Jared Harper	15.1	2.8
5-11; 175; Jr.; Mabelton, Ga.
G	2	Bryce Brown	15.9	2.1
6-3; 198; Sr.; Stone Mountain, Ga.
G	4	Malik Dunbar	7.3	3.5
6-6; 230; Sr.; North Augusta, S.C.
F	24	Anfernee McLemore	7.1	4.5
6-7; 220; Jr.; Warwick, Ga.
F	5	Chuma Okeke	11.3	6.6
6-8; 230; Soph.; Atlanta, Ga.

TEAM COMPARISON

STATISTIC	GEORGIA	AUBURN
Points Per Game	73.8	80.5
Opp. Point Per Game	75.2	67.9
Scoring Margin	-1.4	+12.6
Field Goal Pct.	.448	.449
Opp. Field Goal Pct.	.428	.421
3-Point Pct.	.332	.376
3-Pointers Per Game	6.9	11.1
Opp. 3-Point Pct.	.337	.342
Free Throw Pct.	.717	.691
Free Throws Per Game	16.2	13.6
Rebounds Per Game	39.4	36.5
Opp. Rebound Per Game	34.6	35.1
Rebound Margin	+4.8	+1.3
Assists Per Game	14.1	14.9
Turnovers Per Game	16.0	13.2
Assist-to-Turnover Ratio	0.88	1.13
Turnover Margin	-5.0	+4.7
Steals Per Game	5.7	9.1
Blocks Per Game	4.9	5.1

The Starting 5...

Georgia is 5,887 fans shy of breaking the program's total attendance record. The Bulldogs' smallest crowd this season was 5,947.
Nicolas Claxton is one of three Division I MBB players to lead his team in scoring, rebounding, assists, blocks and steals.
With an average 9,611 fans, Stegeman has been 91.3 percent full for UGA's SEC seven home dates. That's 4th-best in the league.
Jordan Harris has put up a career-high point total in each of the last three games, with 12 points vs. LSU, 13 vs. Mississippi St. & 15 at Ole Miss.
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 hosts Auburn on Wednesday looking to continue improved performances of late. The Bulldogs have lost their last three games – all to projected NCAA Tournament teams – by a combined six points.

History will be made prior to the contest. The Bulldogs are currently 5,887 fans shy of breaking the program's all-time total attendance record. With advance sells already well over that mark – not to mention those sales don't include a UGA single student – a new standard will certainly be set on Wednesday.

To date, 133,683 fans have attended Georgia's 15 home outings this season. The existing record is 139,570 fans established in 2015-16 when Georgia hosted 19 home games.

Promo Giveaway: UGA Students Get Free Food, Clothes & Maybe $5,000

UGA students who arrive early enough to get a seat in Stegeman lower bowl on Wednesday will receive a free t-shirt. The first 750 students also will receive a free Bojangles biscuit.

At halftime, two students will take part in "Make it or Take it" with the potential to win $5,000. Two students will be selected via "Commit to the G" student rewards app to play "Make It or Take It." At halftime, two students will take part in a coin flip. The student who wins the flip will be given the chance to dribble the length of the floor and make a layup in nine seconds for $2,500. If the student makes the layup, they will be given a chance to make a 3-pointer to double their money to $5,000. If the student decides not to attempt the 3-pointer, the second student will have the chance to shoot a 3-pointer and take the $2,500 reward from the other student.

Series History With The Tigers

Georgia and Auburn have met 188 times on the hardwood. Each school has 94 wins in the series. The Bulldogs do own a healthy 61-26 edge in games played in Athens.

Up Next: A trip to See The Gators

Georgia travels to Gainesville this weekend to take on Florida. The Bulldogs and Gators met this season on Jan. 19 in Athens, with Florida securing a 62-52 win. The Gators are Georgia's most frequent foe on the hardwood, meeting for the 219th time this Saturday.

2018-19 to Move from No. 3 To No. 1

The Bulldogs are set to break their all-time attendance record prior to Wednesday's game against Auburn. The current total of 133,683 fans ranks third as outlined on the next page.

A crowd of 5,888 would break the record. The Bulldogs' smallest crowd of the season was 5,947 against Kennesaw State.

UGA Basketball Total Attendance
Rk.	Season	Games	Total
1.	2015-16	19	139,570
2.	2003-04	16	137,902
3.	2018-19	15	133,683
4.	2006-07	18	132,048
5.	2010-11	16	131,998

The Dogs Are Drawing

Georgia has been drawing fans at a record pace throughout the 2018-19 campaign, including seven sellouts.

The Bulldogs are averaging 8,912 fans over 15 home games this season, their highest average since a school-record mark of 9,857 during the 2002-03 campaign. If the current average holds, it would be the third-highest average in school history.

Tom Crean's inaugural season with the Bulldogs' has carried historic ramifications for Georgia Basketball from an attendance standpoint, including:

Georgia announced sellouts of the Florida and Kentucky games on Oct. 24, the earliest date for a game to sell out in program history.
The Texas game became a third sellout two days later. Before this season, the Bulldogs never had more than one sellout prior to the season opener.
In December, all tickets for the LSU, South Carolina and Ole Miss games were sold. The six sellouts before the calendar rolled were UGA's most ever.
Georgia drew 9,018 fans for the season opener against Savannah State, UGA's biggest crowd for a home opener in 37 seasons...since Dominique Wilkins' sophomore year in Athens in 1981-82.
The UMass game on Dec. 30 also sold out, giving Georgia seven sellouts. That represents the most sellouts since having a school-record nine in 2002-03.

It should be noted that 2,000 free seats for UGA students must be filled for "sellouts" to have capacity crowds of 10,523.

Stegeman Nearly Full Regularly

The confines of Stegeman Coliseum have been increasingly crowded this season.

Georgia's overall attendance average of 8,912 fans in the 10,523-seat venue equates to it being 84.7 percent full over 15 home contests, which ranks No. 5 in the SEC.

The Bulldogs have drawn an average of 9,611 fans for their SEC games, meaning Stegeman has been 91.3 percent full for those seven games. That ranks No. 4 in the league behind only Florida (98.3 percent), Kentucky (98.1) and Tennessee (93.8).

Dogs Host Tigers At Stegeman

Georgia is set to host Auburn on Wednesday evening at Stegeman Coliseum, a rematch of the matchup between the Bulldogs and Tigers on Jan. 12 on The Plains.

Georgia is now 10-17 overall and 1-13 in the league. The Bulldogs are looking to continue to build on the positive momentum from their last three outings. Georgia lost those three contests – all against teams currently included in ESPN's bracketology – by a combined six points.

Georgia pushed No. 19/21 LSU to the brink on Feb. 16 before falling, 83-79. The Bulldogs led by as many as five points midway through the second half before the Tigers rallied to improve to 11-1 in the SEC.

Last Wednesday Georgia rallied from a 17-point, second-half deficit to tie Mississippi State before a heart-breaking ending. Tyree Crump's 3-pointer with 9.3 seconds remaining knotted the score at 67-67 before Quinndary Weatherspoon's free throw with .5 of a second left provided State with the victory.

The Bulldogs dropped a second-straight one-point decision at Ole Miss last Saturday. Georgia rallied from a 10-point halftime deficit to force four ties and six lead changes in the second stanza. The outcome wasn't decided until the Bulldogs' potential game-winner was off the mark at the buzzer.

Multi-dimensional Nicolas Claxton has been a "do-it-all" contributor for the Bulldogs. He is one of only three Division I players who entered this week leading his team in all five major statistics – scoring, rebounding, assists, blocks and steals.

Rayshaun Hammonds, who has a team-high 20 double-figure performances, is averaging 12.6 ppg.

Auburn is 18-9 overall and 7-7 in the SEC. The Tigers were ranked No. 10 in the coaches' poll and No. 11 by the AP when they hosted Georgia last month but have since dropped out of the polls. Guards Bryce Brown and Jared Harper average 15.9 ppg and 15.1 ppg, respectively, to lead Auburn, while Chuma Okeke chips in 11.3 ppg and a team-high 6.6 rpg.

Series History With The Tigers

The all-time series between Georgia and Auburn is currently tied at 94-94; however, the Bulldogs own a healthy 61-26 advantage in Athens.

In the most recent meeting at Stegeman Coliseum on Feb. 10 last season, No. 8 Auburn topped Georgia 78-61.

The Tigers built a 40-31 halftime lead and handled every Georgia rally following the intermission.

The Bulldogs pulled within 43-39 with 14:07 remaining and gained possession with a chance to pull closer but missed a 3-pointer and Auburn pushed its lead back to double figures just over two minutes later.

Earlier this season on Jan. 12 in Auburn, Turtle Jackson scored a season-high 16 points to lead four Bulldogs scoring in double figures; however, Georgia dropped a 93-78 road decision at No. 11/10 Auburn.

Nicolas Claxton, Tyree Crump and Teshaun Hightower added 15, 14 and 12 points respectively, and Rayshaun Hammonds hauled in a game-high 10 rebounds for Georgia.

The Bulldogs led 28-24 before Auburn used an 11-2 run to gain control.

Last Time Out...

Jordan Harris notched his third-consecutive career-high scoring output, but Georgia still suffered a 72-71 loss at Ole Miss on Saturday.

The Rebels led by 10 at the half, but Georgia opened the second stanza on a 14-2 run.

Ole Miss went back on top and eventually led 69-62 with 2:53 remaining before Harris scored seven straight – with a bucket at the 2:28 mark, a three-point play following his steal with 1:56 remaining and pair of free throws with 1:36 on the clock.

Devontae Shuler ended the surge with a 3-pointer, but Nicolas Claxton answered for Georgia. The Bulldogs missed a pair of potential game-winning 3-pointers in the final minute at the 18- and 1-second marks.

Harris' Production Is Up

Over his last nine games, Jordan Harris has more than doubled his production over his first 15 contests. In addition, he has posted career-high point tallies in the last three games.

Entering the Florida contest on Jan. 19, Harris was averaging 4.1 points, 2.5 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 0.6 steals and 0.3 blocks.

Since then, the junior from Iron City is contributing 10.7 points, 5.1 boards, 2.3 assists, 1.8 steals and 0.7 blocks.

That stretch actually covers 10 of Georgia's games. Harris had a two-game hiatus due to concussion-like symptoms following a collision with Nicolas Claxton at LSU on Jan. 23.

Harris showed little rust in his return to action against South Carolina and finished with 11 points, six boards, four steals and two assists. His quartet of steals is the most by any Bulldog in a single game this season.

Harris equaled his career-best output with 12 points against LSU before upping that to 13 versus Mississippi State and again to 15 at Ole Miss.

Claxton In Rare Air Statistically

Nicolas Claxton enters this week as one of only three Division-I players who is leading his team in all five major stats – points, rebounds, assists, blocks and steals.

As of Monday, Claxton, Matt Rafferty of Furman and Sandy Cohen III of Green Bay were the only D-I players pacing their team in that statistical quintet.

Claxton has led the Bulldogs in four of the aforementioned categories – everything but scoring – for virtually the entire season. Rayshaun Hammonds has been Georgia's leading scorer for the most part; however, Claxton inched by him with his 18-point performance at Texas A&M on Feb. 12.

Pepplebrook Teammates Face Off

Georgia senior Derek Ogbeide and Auburn junior Jared Harper were teammates at Pebblebrook High during the 2014-15 season.

Ogbeide transferred to Pebblebrook in 2013 as a junior from Monsignor Percy Johnson Catholic High School in Toronto. Harper joined Ogbeide in 2014 following two seasons at Mr. Vernon Presbyterian School.

Ogbeide and Harper helped Pepplebrook to a 27-6 record and a runner-up finish in the 2015 Georgia 6A State Tournament. The Falcons lost in the state title tilt 59-58 to Wheeler, which finished ranked No. 6 nationally. Ogbeide grabbed 24 rebounds in that contest, a single-game record for both a Georgia High School Association (GHSA) state tournament game and a state championship contest.

Harrison Joins Starting Lineup

Redshirt senior walk-on Christian Harrison has started the Bulldogs' last three games.

Harrison secured the first start of his collegiate career against LSU and remained in the lineup against Mississippi State and Ole Miss.

An Atlanta native, Harrison was a scholarship player for two seasons at Troy before transferring to Georgia as a walk-on.

After sitting out 2016-17, Harrison saw action in two games last season. He began this year on the scout team before earning meaningful minutes against Oakland on Dec. 18. Harrison was then was a key defensive contributor in the second half at Georgia Tech on Dec. 22 and is now a rotation regular, with action in 15 of the last 18 contests.

Against LSU, Harrison logged a career-high 19 minutes, six more than his previous high as a freshman, and spent a good portion of the second half guarding Tremont Waters.

"I just want to tip my hat off to Christian," Nicolas Claxton said following the LSU game, unprompted by the media. "He came here and last year didn't play at all. This year, his minutes have been kind of up and down. But, throughout all of that, he has just stayed persistent. He just kept grinding. He comes in every day, and he doesn't complain. He just comes in and works hard, and you see the results today."

Ogbeide Steps Up In SEC Play

Derek Ogbeide is averaging 10.2 points and shooting a team-best 58.5 percent from the field in SEC games. That's a significant jump from his efforts of 9.2 ppg and 49.0 percent in non-conference action.

Ogbeide would rank second in the SEC in field goal percentage among statistical leaders for league game only; however, he is slightly shy of the made field goals minimum (5.0 per game) to qualify.

Turtle, Tyree And the "3"

Although the above headline sounds like the title to a children's book, it's actually in reference to the standing of Turtle Jackson and Tyree Crump among Georgia's career leaders in 3-point field goals.

Jackson and Crump both joined the Bulldogs' top-20 all-time for successful shots from behind this arc. As a matter of fact, they entered the Ole Miss and Texas A&M games tied at No. 18. Crump inched ahead of Jackson at A&M, but Jackson knotted their numbers again during the LSU game.

Last Wednesday vs. Mississippi State, Turtle moved just past Crump by one trifecta, and he maintained that margin at Ole Miss, where Jackson ascended to No. 15 and Crump moved to No. 17 as outlined below.

UGA Career 3-Point FG Leaders
Rk.	No.	Player	Season	GP
1.	261	Levi Stukes	2004-07	683
10.	172	Jody Patton	1988-91	387
14.	132	Terrance Woodbury	2006-09	386
15.	122	Rashad Wright	2001-04	358
	122	Turtle Jackson	2016-19	368
17.	121	Sundiata Gaines	2005-08	400
	121	Tyree Crump	2017-19	344
19.	116	Michael Chadwick	1996-99	340
20.	106	Nemanja Djurisic	2012-15	292

An 80 Percent Lefty Lineup

Later in these Game Notes, you'll have the opportunity to read how Georgia's roster (more than likely) features the most left-handed players in Division I hoops this season.

In fact, the Bulldogs started four southpaws – Nicolas Claxton, Rayshaun Hammonds, Jordan Harris and Derek Ogbeide – in consecutive outings against Alabama, Ole Miss and Texas A&M.

All told, Georgia has used eight different starting quintets in the first 27 games of the season, with Claxton and Hammonds being the only Bulldogs to begin every outing.

Dogs' Depth Paying Dividends

Georgia's bench has outscored its counterparts 19 times...consistently doing so by a significant amount. The Bulldogs' reserves have been +10 or more in 13 outings, helping Georgia to a +202 margin on bench points.

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.

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

The last SEC player to lead his team in all five stats in multiple games was LSU's Ben Simmons, who did so three times in 2015-16.

Feel Free To Call Him "Ty-3" Crump

More than two-thirds of Tyree Crump's successful FGs for Georgia have been from at least 20-feet, 9-inches away from the basket.

All told, 68.8 percent (121-of-176) of Crump's made shots from the floor have been from behind the arc. In fact, 3-pointers directly account for 63.8 percent (363 of 569) of Crump's career points with the Bulldogs.

Claxton Joins Top-10 Ledger For Single-Season Swatters

Nicolas Claxton moved into the Bulldogs' the top-10 list of single-season blocked shots efforts near the midway point of the season.

Claxton passed a familiar name at No. 9 during the South Carolina game, his father Charles. Nicolas is currently No. 7 on that ledger as outlined below and still chasing his dad, who also owns Georgia's single-season blocked shots record of 94 in 1995.

UGA Season Blocks Leaders
Rk.	No.	Player	Seasons	GP
1.	94	Charles Claxton	1995	28
2.	91	Richard Corhen	1984	30
3.	88	Lavon Mercer	1977	27
4.	83	Terrell Bell	1996	31
5.	82	Lavon Mercer	1977	27
6.	76	Lavon Mercer	1980	27
7.	65	Nicolas Claxton	2019	27
8.	61	Yante Maten	2016	34
	60	Antonio Harvey	1991	29
10.	58	Charles Claxton	1994	30

Ogbeide Among Best Boarders

Derek Ogbeide began the season ranked No. 17 among UGA's career rebounding leaders with 614 boards.

Ogbeide joined the Bulldogs' top-10 boarders all-time during the Vanderbilt victory, and he has since ascended to No. 8. as outlined below.

UGA Career Rebounds Leaders
Rk.	No.	Player	Seasons	GP
1.	1116	Bob Lienhard	1968-70	75
2.	923	Terry Fair	1980-83	123
3.	893	Alec Kessler	1987-90	123
4.	889	Yante Maten	2015-18	128
5.	867	Jerry Waller	1964-66	75
6.	840	Charles Claxton	1992-95	116
7.	838	Lavon Mercer	1977-80	106
8.	766	Derek Ogbeide	2016-19	123
9.	763	Chris Daniels	2000-04	119
10.	739	Carlos Strong	1993-96	118

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	235
Rayshaun Hammonds	105
Jordan Harris	95
Turtle Jackson	71
E'Torrion Wilridge	71
Teshaun Hightower	68
Derek Ogbeide	60
Tyree Crump	52
Tye Fagan	40
Christian Harrison	19
Amanze Ngumezi	16
Ignas Sargiunas	15
JoJo Toppin	9
Connor O'Neill	2
Mike Edwards	2

A Really Big Family Reunion

Nearly 100 Georgia Basketball letterwinners returned to Stegeman Coliseum for the Feb. 9 Ole Miss game to take part in the Bulldogs' Lettermen's Day. That represented the largest turnout in the event's history.

Hugh Durham, the winningest coach in school history who guided the Bulldogs from 1979-95, headlined the list. Durham's teams produced a series of notable firsts in school history – the first postseason appearance with the 1981 NIT; the first SEC Tournament title, first NCAA Tournament bid and first Final Four all in 1983; and the first SEC regular-season Championship in 1990.

Player-wise, Bulldogs spanning the last 74 seasons were represented – from Charlie Burch, UGA's oldest living letterwinner from the 1944-45 team, to 2017 seniors J.J. Frazier, Kenny Paul Geno and Brandon Young.

Welcome To The League, Coach

Tom Crean's initiation into the Southeastern Conference would probably be considered hazing by some.

Georgia began league play with back-to-back Saturday trips to the defending league co-champs and six straight outings against teams ranked in the top-50 of the new NCAA Evaluation Tool (NET) rankings.

In the Jan. 5 edition of the NET, the Bulldogs' first half-dozen SEC foes, in succession, were ranked as No. 7 Tennessee, No. 45 Vanderbilt, No. 18 Auburn, No. 10 Kentucky, No. 33 Florida and No. 27 LSU.

On Jan. 27 (when all 14 league teams had played six SEC games), the NET listed UGA's first six opponents as No. 6 Tennessee, No. 93 Vanderbilt, No. 27 Auburn, No. 7 Kentucky, No. 37 Florida and No. 16 LSU.

The Bulldogs' opponents over their first six SEC contests averaged a NET ranking of 31.0, far and away the most difficult in the league. The next closest was 42.0 for Alabama.

Dogs Shooting Blistering Percentages Against Longhorns

As outlined below, Georgia's overall and 3-point field goal percentages against Texas both rank among the top-5 in school history.

For good measure, the Bulldogs connected on 78.6 percent of their trips to the free throw line versus the Longhorns.

"I'm not sure I've ever coached a team in my 19 years that's ever shot that well from all three spots on the floor," Tom Crean said.

UGA Single-Game FG Percentages
Rk.	Pct.	Site-Opponent	FG-FGA	Date
1.	.762	H-Chattanooga	32-42	12/19/80
2.	.702	H-Miss. State	40-57	2/28/01
3.	.692	H-Vanderbilt	45-65	2/12/86
4.	.667	H-Texas	32-48	1/26/19
	.667	H-Winthrop	40-60	12/21/93
	.667	H-Tennessee	32-48	3/12/83

UGA Single-Game 3FG Percentages
Rk.	Pct.	Site-Opponent	3FG-3FGA	Date
1.	.727	H-Alabama	8-11	2/6/88
	.727	A-Vanderbilt	8-11	2/14/90
3.	.706	H-Texas	12-17	1/26/19
4.	.700	A-Miss. State.	7-10	1/19/89
	.700	H-S. Carolina	7-10	1/22/00

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 recorded his sixth double-double of the season while connecting on 8-of-13 shots from the field and converting on 3-of-3 trips to the line versus the Minutemen. He grabbed 10 defensive rebounds, one less than the UMass entire roster grabbed as a whole on that end of the floor.

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 – the tandems of James Banks and Vern Fleming (1980-84) and Richard Corhen and Gerald Crosby (1981-85).

That number more than doubled with this year's victory as Mike Edwards, Turtle Jackson, Connor O'Neill, Derek Ogbeide and E'Torrion Wilridge joined that quartet. Christian Harrison also went undefeated against Tech, but only played two seasons in Athens after transferring from Troy. Those Bulldogs not only won each game, the did so by double figures. The last time Georgia posted four-consecutive double-digit wins over the Jackets was a stretch covering the 1908-09 through 1913-14 seasons

To adhere to "truth in advertising" principles...it should be noted that UGA and GT played at least twice each season from the beginning of the series through 1981-82.

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.

30 Points, 0 Turnovers
Player	Points	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.