WBB Game Notes: Unbeaten Georgia Hosts No. 12 MSU on New Year’s Eve

Georgia Lady Bulldogs (8-0) vs. No. 12 Mississippi State Bulldogs (5-1)
Thursday, Dec. 31 | 6:30 p.m. ET
Stegeman Coliseum (10,523 - capacity around 20% this season) | Athens, Ga.
Radio: Bulldog Sports Network (Jeff Dantzler) 960 AM The REF, WXKT 103.7 FM in Athens
TV: SEC Network (Eric Frede (play-by-play)/Tamika Catchings (analyst))
Video Stream: SECN+
Audio Stream: georgiadogs.com

JONI TAYLOR - HEAD COACH

SIXTH SEASON // RECORD: 106-58 (.646)

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS

2018 Werner Ladder Naismith National Coach of the Year Semifinalist
Two-time Atlanta Tip-Off Club Georgia College Coach of the Year
2016 Spalding Maggie Dixon National Rookie Coach of the Year
Three WNBA Draft picks
Led Georgia to a 26-7 record in 2017-18, marking the team's most wins in a single season since 2006-07
Georgia hosted the NCAA first and second rounds in Athens for first time since 2003 during the 2017-18 campaign
Five All-SEC honorees and two SEC Scholar-Athletes of the Year
Created the award-winning Beyond Basketball group

No.	Name	PPG	RPG
Georgia Lady Bulldogs Most Recent Starters
2	Gabby Connally	11.0	2.4
G; 5-6; Sr.; San Antonio, Texas
23	Que Morrison	9.8	4.9
G; 5-7; Sr.; Riverale, Ga.
11	Maya Caldwell	9.1	3.3
G; 5-11; Sr.; Charlotte, N.C.
20	Jordan Isaacs	4.6	2.9
F; 6-0; So.; Alpharetta, Ga.
14	Jenna Staiti	15.0	7.9
C; 6-4; R-Sr.; Cumming, Ga.

Women's Basketball Fan Attendance Policy

Due to social distancing protocols, Stegeman Coliseum will be operating at a reduced capacity of approximately 20% with ticket opportunities in blocks of two or four seats only.
Fans will be required to wear face masks at all times while in Stegeman Coliseum.
No fans are allowed on the court level of Stegeman.
All seating is reserved for the 2020-2021 women's basketball season.
Tickets are mobile for the 2020-21 season. Tickets for this game are still available. Visit www.georgiadogs.com/tickets to purchase a mobile ticket.

Opening Tip Storylines

Undefeated Georgia hosts No. 12-ranked Mississippi State on New Year's Eve night at Stegeman Coliseum. Tip time is set for 6:30 p.m. ET on the SEC Network and the Georgia Bulldog Sports Network.
Georgia -- which is receiving votes in the AP poll -- is 8-0 and off to its best start in seven seasons.
Georgia has won 13 of its last 16 games dating back to last year. The Lady Bulldogs' three losses in this stretch are to top-15 teams South Carolina, Texas A&M and Kentucky.
Georgia is going for its 500th win at Stegeman Coliseum. The Lady Bulldogs have compiled a home record of 499-114 in 46 seasons at The Steg.
Head coach Joni Taylor's team is coming off a 107-44 win against Appalachian State. It marked the fourth time in eight games Georgia has scored over 80 points after only doing so twice in 31 contests last season.
The 107 points scored in last Tuesday's win were the most for a Georgia team since the 2000-01 season.
Georgia boasts a balanced attack. All 13 available players scored a basket against App State and 11 or more Lady Bulldogs have scored a point in three-straight games.
The Lady Bulldogs have shot over 60 percent twice this season. Entering the 2020-21 campaign, Georgia had not shot over 60 percent in a game since 2009.
Georgia's mantra has always been 'Defense Travels,' and that has once again been the case. The Lady Bulldogs have held seven of eight opponents below 40-percent shooting from the field, while four teams have scored 50 points or fewer.
Senior center Jenna Staiti leads the SEC and is fourth nationally in total blocked shots (23). Earlier this year, she tallied a career-best seven swats against Georgia Tech.
Staiti has scored in double figures in 16 of her last 17 games with six double-doubles during this current span.
Georgia's four seniors -- Staiti, Gabby Connally, Maya Caldwell and Que Morrison -- have combined to start 199 games in the last three years.

Series History

Georgia leads the all-time series against Mississippi State 28-20. The Lady Bulldogs are looking to snap a five-game losing skid against the Bulldogs from Starkville, with the last win in the series coming in 2016.

Overall: Georgia leads, 28-20
In Athens: Georgia leads, 16-5
In Starkville: MSU leads, 13-10
Neutral Sites: Tied, 2-2
Current Streak: MSU has won the last five meetings
Last Meeting: MSU won, 67-53 (2/3/20) in Starkville
Largest Margin of Victory: 40 points, Georgia won 87-47 (2/8/1986) in Athens
Largest Defeat: 32 points, MSU won 86-54 (1/21/1978) in Starkville
Full Series History

Scouting Mississippi State

Mississippi State is 5-1 this season with the only loss coming in overtime to South Florida. The Bulldogs are coached by women's basketball hall of famer Nikki McCray-Penson, who is in her first season. MSU is ranked No. 12 nationally. Rickea Jackson and Jessika Carter each average over 17 points per game to lead Mississippi State.

Georgia Leads Nation in Blocks

The Lady Bulldogs lead all NCAA teams with 56 total blocks. Georgia is averaging 7.0 swats per game, which is the fourth-best average in the country and tops in the SEC.

Knocking In Free-Throws ... Near Perfect at the Top

Georgia's top three scorers -- Jenna Staiti, Gabby Connally and Que Morrison -- have combined to hit 47-of-49 shots at the free-throw line this year. As a team, Georgia is second in the SEC (behind Alabama) in free-throw percentage, knocking in a collective 75.6 percent from the stripe.

Dishing Dimes

Georgia finished with 32 assists on 46 made baskets against Appalachian State. The 32 dimes are the fourth-most in a single game in Georgia history and the Lady Bulldogs' best effort since 2003.

On The Road, No Problem

Georgia opened the year with three-straight road games for the first time since the 2002-03 campaign. With a perfect 3-0 record in those matchups, it marks the first time in program history Georgia won three-straight true road contests to begin a season.

Offensive Improvement

The Lady Bulldogs are a much improved team on the offensive end compared to last season. Georgia is averaging 80.8 points per game in 2020 after scoring just 63.2 points per game last year.

Barker Named SEC Freshman of the Week

Sarah Ashlee Barker was named the league's Freshman of the Week following performances against East Carolina and Oklahoma. Barker continues to play valuable minutes and has made several key plays for the Lady Bulldogs this season.

With 2:19 left in the overtime period against Georgia Tech, Barker broke open a tie game with a made jump shot to put her team up 65-63. The Lady Bulldogs did not give up the lead the rest of the way en route to a 75-69 win. Barker then hit a 3-pointer in the fourth quarter against Oklahoma, giving Georgia its largest lead of the game at 14.

Barker recorded her first career double-double with 10 pts. and 12 rebs. against Georgia State.

Taylor, Connally Reach Important Marks Against Tech

Georgia defeated Georgia Tech this year to improve the Lady Bulldogs' record to 36-7 against the Yellow Jackets. The win also marked the 100th of Coach Taylor's career. Senior guard Gabby Connally reached the 1,000-point mark with a first-half basket against Tech.

Georgia Reaches 1,000-Win Milestone

With its win against East Carolina on Dec. 3, Georgia became one of just two SEC programs (Tennessee) and one of 16 nationwide to reach the 1,000-win mark. The team commemorated the milestone with a special social media video narrated by Andy Landers and Joni Taylor.

Staiti Among Georgia's All-time Best Shot blockers

With 141 blocks , Staiti is now tied with Porsha Phillips for ninth place on Georgia's career blocked-shots list. Tawana McDonald owns the UGA career record with 297 in her career.

Staiti Steady at the Stripe

Jenna Staiti filled up the stat sheet with double-figure scoring efforts and double-doubles in her last nine games of the 2019-20 season. What might have gone unnoticed was Staiti's performance at the free-throw line. Staiti finished the year hitting 89 percent from the stripe -- good for the second-best single season average in Georgia history.

Connally Lands in Top-10

Georgia senior Gabby Connally needs just one 3-pointer to move into ninth place on UGA's career 3-pt field goals made chart. Connally has totaled 148 during her time at Georgia.

Building Off Strong Finish

Georgia finished the 2019-20 season on a high note, winning four of its final six regular season games and five of eight overall. Among the big wins during the final stretch was a 73-56 road victory at LSU -- a game in which the Lady Bulldogs led the entire way. Georgia also knocked off Alabama and Florida twice during the stretch-run of the season.

Focus On Community

Georgia's Joni Taylor has put a focus on community service during her six seasons as head coach. This past fall, Taylor and her team took action once again by hosting a Water Bottle Drive for the local Boys and Girls Club of Athens. The community stepped up in a big way, donating close to 150 water bottles.

"We were absolutely blown away by the turnout," Taylor said. "COVID-19 has affected all of our lives in so many ways. For the Boys and Girls Club, COVID protocols eliminated the use of water fountains, so the organization needed new, re-fillable water bottles. When our ladies found out about this, they immediately wanted to help. I could not be more proud of their efforts and the efforts of all those who came by today. It's another step forward in making a meaningful impact in our community."

Chapman Best in the State

Two-sport star Chloe Chapman was named the Atlanta Sports Awards State of Georgia College Athlete of the Year this past summer. Chapman, who also plays soccer at UGA, is just the 11th Bulldog student-athlete to earn the honor. She received over 50,000 votes during the seven-day voting period back in July.

Chapman placed on the 2019 SEC All-Freshman Team in soccer before earning a spot in the lineup on the basketball floor.

Two-Sport Star in Rare Company

Chapman is one of only six Lady Bulldogs to play two sports while at UGA. Below is a list of these elite athletes.

All-Time Lady Bulldog Two-Sport Athletes

Tina Price -- 1975-78 -- Women's basketball/Tennis
Donna Noonan – 1975-77 – Women's basketball/Golf
Beth Timmons – 2000 – Women's basketball/Swimming
Maria Taylor – 2007 -- Women's basketball/Volleyball
Stephanie Paul – 2019-20 – Women's basketball/Track (discus)
Chloe Chapman – present – Women's basketball/Soccer

Georgia Seniors Earn Degrees

Each of Georgia's four seniors -- Gabby Connally, Maya Caldwell, Que Morrison and Jenna Staiti -- will wear the SEC graduate patch this season after earning their degrees. The four Lady Bulldogs are all pursuing master's degrees, with Connally focusing on public administration, Cadwell in non-profit management and leadership, and Morrison and Staiti in sport pedagogy.

Georgia Led League in Honor Roll Selections

The Georgia Lady Bulldogs led all Southeastern Conference basketball teams (women or men) with nine players on the league's Academic Honor Roll this past winter.

Each winter, student-athletes from across the conference are recognized for having a 3.0 GPA or above for either the preceding academic year or a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher.

The following Lady Bulldogs reached the above criteria. Malury Bates (Human Development, Roanake, Va.), Maya Caldwell (Communication Studies, Charlotte, N.C.), Gabby Connally (Criminal Justice, San Antonio, Texas), Ari Henderson (Civil Engineering, Stone Mountain, Ga.), Caitlin Hose (Financial Planning, Hazel Green, Ala.), Kaila Hubbard (Psychology, Jonesboro, Ga.), Que Morrison (Communication Studies, Riverdale, Ga.), Stephanie Paul (Sport Management, Naples, Fla.) , Jenna Staiti (Human Development, Cumming, Ga.).

One of Peach State's Best Joins 2021 Signing Class

Jillian Hollingshead, a 6-foot-5 forward from Powder Springs, Ga., added to an already impressive 2021 signing class for the Lady Bulldogs. She was the fourth signee of Georgia's class, joining fellow top-40 prospect Reigan Richardson (Huntersville, N.C.) as well as Alina Sendar (Amsterdam, Netherlands) and Kimora 'Kimmie' Jenkins (Long Island, N.Y.).

Hollingshead was ranked as the No. 5 forward in the nation according to espnW and was also ranked No. 22 in the ESPN HoopGurlz Terrific 25 for the 2021 class.

WBB Game Notes: Unbeaten Georgia Hosts No. 12 MSU on New Year’s Eve

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Sarah Ashlee Barker

Malury Bates

Maya Caldwell

Chloe Chapman

Jordan Cole

Gabby Connally

Ari Henderson

Caitlin Hose

Kaila Hubbard

Que Morrison

Stephanie Paul

Jenna Staiti

University of Georgia Athletics

WBB Game Notes: Unbeaten Georgia Hosts No. 12 MSU on New Year’s Eve

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Sarah Ashlee Barker

Malury Bates

Maya Caldwell

Chloe Chapman

Jordan Cole

Gabby Connally

Ari Henderson

Caitlin Hose

Kaila Hubbard

Que Morrison

Stephanie Paul

Jenna Staiti

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