Lady Bulldogs Battle Alabama in SEC Tournament

Thursday, March 5

Greenville, S.C.

Noon ET

University of Georgia

Alabama

March 04, 2020 | Women's Basketball

Game Notes SEC Bracket

No. 9 seed Georgia Lady Bulldogs (16-13, 7-9 SEC) vs. No. 8 seed Alabama Crimson Tide (18-11, 8-8 SEC)
SEC Second Round | Thursday, March 5, 2020 | Noon ET
SEC Tournament Bracket
Bon Secours Wellness Arena (15,951) | Greenville, S.C.
Radio: Bulldog Sports Network (Jeff Dantzler) WXKT 103.7FM and 960 AM The REF
TV: SEC Network (Eric Frede and Tamika Catchings)
Stream: SEC Network +

No.	Name	PPG	RPG
Georgia Lady Bulldogs Possible Starters
Coach: Joni Taylor
97-57 in 5th season at UGA
97-57 in 5th season overall
2	Gabby Connally	12.6	3.4
G; 5-6; Jr.; San Antonio, Texas
1	Chloe Chapman	1.5	1.0
G; 5-8; Fr.; Mitchellville, Md.
11	Maya Caldwell	9.9	3.6
G; 5-10; Jr.; Charlotte, N.C.
3	Stephanie Paul	6.6	4.6
F; 5-10; Sr.; Naples, Fla.
14	Jenna Staiti	11.5	6.3
C; 6-4; R-Jr.; Cumming, Ga.

TEAM COMPARISON

GEORGIA LADY BULLDOGS		ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE
63.3	Scoring	72.0
40.6%	FG%	43.4%
29.4%	3FG%	34.1%3
7.8	Rebounds	39.1
13.2	Assists	12.5
3.9	Blocks	3.9
7.3	Steals	6.1
62.2	Scoring Def.	64.1
39.0%	FG% Def.	38.9%
32.7%	3FG% Def.	32.2%
+1.7	Reb. Margin	+5.3
-0.8	T/O Margin	-1.1
0.8	Ast-T/O Ratio	0.8

Opening Tip

Georgia will make its 41st appearance in the Southeastern Conference tournament this week at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, S.C. The Lady Bulldogs are the No. 9 seed and will play No. 8 seed Alabama this Thursday at noon ET in the second round.
Four of the last five games between these two programs have gone into overtime. Georgia has won all four contests, including this year's 76-75 win in Athens. The last five matchups in this series have been decided by an average of 5.4 points per game.
This marks the first time Georgia and Alabama have met in a SEC tournament game since 2010, when the Lady Bulldogs defeated the Crimson Tide, 73-66, in Duluth, Ga.
The winner of Thursday's game will play No. 1 seed South Carolina in the quarterfinals at noon on Friday.
Georgia enters the tournament following a strong finish to the regular season. The Lady Bulldogs won four of their final six games, with the only two losses coming to top-25 teams Texas A&M and Kentucky.
Nine of Georgia's 13 losses have come against top-25 opponents. The Lady Bulldogs have played six games against the top 10 teams in the country, including matchups against No. 1 South Carolina and No. 2 Baylor.
Redshirt-junior forward Jenna Staiti enters the tournament on an impressive pace as of late. Staiti has scored in double figures in seven-straight games, averaging 20.3 points and 9.3 rebounds per game over that span. The Cumming, Ga., native is Georgia's leading scorer in conference play with 12.6 ppg.

Series History

Overall: Georgia leads, 41-12
In Athens: Georgia leads, 19-4
In Tuscaloosa: Georgia leads, 16-6
Neutral Sites: Georgia leads, 6-2
Current Streak: Georgia has won four of the last five
Last Meeting: Georgia W, 76-75 (OT) (2/16/20)
Largest Margin of Victory: Georgia W, 96-41 (1/7/01)
Largest Defeat: Alabama W, 105-81 (2/29/92)
Full Series History

LAST MEETING VS. ALABAMA

In the last matchup between these two teams (Feb. 16, 2020), Georgia built a 22-point lead early in the third quarter, before Alabama stormed back to force the game into overtime. The Lady Bulldogs ended up hanging on for a 76-75 win. Despite losing the lead, the Lady Bulldogs earned the victory with a 17-of-23 clip on free throws, 14 team assists and the endurance of their five starters, who each played 30-plus minutes. With 51 seconds left in overtime, junior Gabby Connally drew a foul on a 3-pointer and hit two free throws, which proved to be the game winner.

SEC TOURNAMENT HISTORY

Georgia is 48-36 (.589) all-time in the SEC Tournament and has won the title on four occasions (1983, 1984, 1986 and 2001). This is the fourth time the Lady Bulldogs have earned a No. 8 seed. Georgia's best finish as a No. 8 seed came in 1993, when the Lady Bulldogs defeated No. 1 seed Tennessee before falling to Vanderbilt in the finals.

STAITI ONE OF MOST IMPROVED PLAYERS IN SEC

Georgia redshirt-junior center Jenna Staiti enters the tournament as one of the most improved players in the conference. She has scored in double figures in seven-straight games, with five 20-plus point scoring efforts.

Staiti's success at the free-throw line is also remarkable. After shooting 61.4 percent from the line last season, she has improved that total by 26-percent, knocking in 63-of-72 (87.5) free-throw shots this season.

MORRISON LANDS ON SEC ALL-DEFENSIVE TEAM

Junior guard Que Morrison was named to the 2020 SEC All-Defensive Team in a vote by league coaches. The Riverdale, Ga., native was in one of the best stretches of her career before suffering a season-ending shoulder injury against Texas A&M on Feb. 20. Morrison started 16-straight games and scored in double figures in seven conference contests, including a pair of 18-point efforts against Mississippi State and Alabama.

Throughout her career, Morrison has been known as Georgia's defensive stopper and routinely guards the opponent's best scorer night-in and night-out. Morrison has totaled 95 steals in her career and had three or more takeaways in four contests this season.

MORE ON MORRISON'S SEASON-ENDING INJURY

Morrison had successful surgery on Tuesday, Feb. 25 to repair a torn labrum in her right shoulder. She suffered the injury in the first half against Texas A&M and had to leave the game immediately. Before the contest against the Aggies, Morrison was finally back to her freshman form when she was named to the SEC All-Freshman Team in 2017-18.

GEORGIA FINISHES STRONG

The Lady Bulldogs have played arguably their best basketball of the season in the last few weeks. Georgia has won four of its last six games, including an impressive 73-56 win against LSU, a pair of victories against Florida and an overtime thriller against Alabama. Jenna Staiti is Georgia's leading scorer over the last seven games, averaging 20.3 points per contest.

CLOSING IN ON MILESTONES

Georgia is closing in on a couple of important milestones as it prepares for the SEC tournament. Head coach Joni Taylor is just three wins shy of recording the 100th victory of her head-coaching career. As a program, the Lady Bulldogs are also just four wins away from reaching the 1,000-victory mark. They are looking to join Tennessee as the lone SEC programs to reach that feat.

ROAD SUCCESS

Georgia has four SEC road wins and a pair of neutral site victories against non-conference foes Virginia Tech and Butler. The Lady Bulldogs' success in those four league victories can be credited to an impressive defensive performance. Georgia held each of those opponents below 60 points, including a season-low 55-point effort from Arkansas. Those teams averaged just 51 points per game in losses to the Lady Bulldogs.

DEFENSE TRAVELED TO FAYETTEVILLE

The Lady Bulldogs put together a remarkable performance against one of the nation's top offensive teams on Jan. 23 at Arkansas. Not only was it a season low in points and 31 below the team's average, but the Razorbacks also committed a season-high 20 turnovers. After being down 43-36 in the third quarter, Georgia went on a 19-2 run and outscored Arkansas 28-12 the rest of the way for the win.

FREE-THROW NUMBERS IMPROVE FOR LADY BULLDOGS

As a team, Georgia has hit 80 percent or better from the free-throw line nine times this season. After finishing the 2018-19 campaign ranked 12th in the SEC in free-throw percentage, Georgia is currently ranked third with a 72.8 percent clip.

SHANIYA PROVIDES SPARK

Georgia guard Shaniya Jones provided a much-needed offensive spark for the Lady Bulldogs, tallying back-to-back double-figure scoring games in wins against Auburn and Arkansas. Jones saw a considerable uptick in playing time, seeing the floor for a career-high 21 minutes against Auburn and then 20 minutes at Arkansas.

Earlier this year, it was quite the debut for her on Dec. 15 against Furman. Jones came off the bench to score 11 quick points in the second quarter, knocking down four of her first five shots in the period. Jones finished with 20 points in just 14 minutes of action against the Paladins. It marked the most points for a Georgia player in a debut since Tasha Humphrey scored 25 to begin her career in 2004.

SIGNEES ENDING STRONG

Georgia signees Sarah Ashlee Barker and Zoesha Smith are each having strong finishes to their prep careers. Barker recently led Spain Park (Ala.) High School to a win against top-ranked Hoover with her 35-point effort. Her team recently defeated Hoover once again to earn the Class 7A state title. Smith, from Brunswick, Ga., was most recently named the GACA Region 2-6A Player of the Year and has led Glynn Academy this season with 20.4 points and 12.6 rebounds per game.

TOP-25 SUCCESS UNDER TAYLOR

Georgia has won 10 games against top-25 opponents during head coach Joni Taylor's tenure. Georgia's last win against a top-10 team in Athens came in Coach Taylor's first season, when the Lady Bulldogs knocked off No. 10 Mississippi State, 47-43.

TWO-SPORT STARS

Georgia's roster this season features a pair of two-sport athletes -- the Lady Bulldogs' first since ESPN-star Maria Taylor played both basketball and volleyball. Freshman Chloe Chapman plays soccer and basketball, while senior Stephanie Paul will compete on the track team, with her specialty being the discus.

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
Chloe Chapman – present – Women's basketball/Soccer
Stephanie Paul – present – Women's basketball/Track (discus)

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