WBB Game Notes: Georgia Travels to Missouri for SEC Matchup

Georgia Basketball Game Notes

#15/17 Georgia Lady Bulldogs (13-3, 2-2 SEC) vs. Missouri Tigers (13-4, 2-2 SEC)
Monday, Jan. 17 | 7 p.m. ET/6 p.m. CT
Columbia, Mo. | Mizzou Arena (15,061)
Radio: Georgia Bulldog Sports Network (Jeff Dantzler) 960 AM The Ref, WXKT 103.7 FM | Affiliates
TV: SEC Network (Brenda VanLengen and Aja Ellison)
Video Stream: SECN+
Audio Stream: georgiadogs.com
History: UGA 9-6 (Full History)
Last Meeting: W 82-64 (2/14/2021)

TEAM COMPARISON

LADY BULLDOGS
Ranking: #17 (AP) #15 (Coaches)
Head Coach: Joni Taylor
Career Record: 132-66 (7th season)
Record at Georgia (7th season): Same

MISSOURI TIGERS
Ranking: NR (Coaches) RV (AP)
Head Coach: Robin Pingeton
Career Record: 537-315 (27th season
Record at MIZ: 202-158 (12th season)

GEORGIA (Natl. Rank)	2020-21 STATISTICS	MISSOURI (Natl. Rank)
73.8 (46)	POINTS PER GAME	74.6 (40)
56.6 (43)	SCORING DEFENSE	64.7 (211)
.451 (39)	FG PERCENTAGE	.474 (5)
.371 (75)	FG PERCENTAGE DEFENSE	.396 (179)
.310 (163)	3-PT. FG PERCENTAGE	.385 (10)
.283 (93)	3-PT. FG PERCENTAGE DEFENSE	.309 (198)
.717 (121)	FREE-THROW PERCENTAGE	.724 (109)
42.2 (40)	REBOUND AVERAGE	37.4 (176)
+8.1 (31)	REBOUND MARGIN	+3.9 (102)
17.5 (19)	ASSISTS PER GAME	14.0 (125)
+3.5 (62)	TURNOVER MARGIN	-1.82 (176)
9.8 (69)	STEALS PER GAME	5.1 (340)
6.4 (7)	BLOCKS PER GAME	1.6 (328)

Opening Tip

Two teams with identical records clash in a pivotal SEC matchup Monday evening at Mizzou Arena. Tipoff between Georgia and Missouri is slated for 7 p.m. ET/6 p.m. CT on the SEC Network.
Georgia enters the game following a one-week break. The Lady Bulldogs downed Alabama last Sunday to improve to 2-2 in conference play.
With a win on Monday, the Lady Bulldogs will be off to their best start since 2017-18, when the team began the year 19-2 overall.
Speaking of starts, the Lady Bulldogs are looking to get off to a better start when the ball tips off against Missouri on Monday. Georgia has trailed by 16 or more points in three of its first four SEC games. The Lady Bulldogs stormed back from a 21-point deficit to defeat Alabama and trailed by 16 before coming back to beat Florida.
Georgia owns a 9-6 lead in the all-time series against Missouri. The Lady Bulldogs have won three of the last five meetings, including last year's 82-64 victory in Columbia.
Graduates Que Morrison and Jenna Staiti are leading Georgia in SEC play. The duo combines to average 42 points and 14 rebounds per game against conference foes.
After missing the first two league contests due to health and safety protocols, Staiti has looked sharp over the last two games. She has hit 17-of-30 from the field and 9-of-10 from the free-throw line and is averaging 21.5 ppg.
Staiti -- who was recently named to the prestigious Wooden Award Top-25 Watch List -- has scored in double figures in 44 of the last 51 games. She is also the SEC's career active leader with 240 blocks.
Jillian Hollingshead has earned SEC Freshman of the Week honors twice this year -- the first Georgia player since Caliya Robinson in 2016 to accomplish that feat.

Staiti One of Nation's Best

Jenna Staiti is being recognized as one of the top players in all of basketball. She has been tabbed to the Lisa Leslie Award Watch List, the Naismith National Player of the Year Watch List and was recently tabbed to the Wooden Award Top-25 Watch List. She has already totaled four double-doubles this season and has reached double figures in scoring in all but two contests.

The QUE (En) Does it All

Que Morrison -- the 2021 SEC Co-Defensive Player of the Year and two-time SEC All-Defensive Team selection -- is literally doing it all. If you look at an SEC stat sheet, you will find Morrison's name in nearly every statistical category.

Over the course of the season, Morrison has hit big shot after big shot to carry her team. She has scored in double figures 12 times, has totaled 20 or more points on four occasions, recorded three or more steals six times and three or more assists in every single game.

Dawgs are SEC's Most Unselfish

Georgia paces the SEC and ranks No. 10 nationally with 280 total assists this season. The team's average of 17.5 dimes per game ranks second in the conference and top-20 in the country. The Lady Bulldogs have ranked in the top-3 of the SEC in assists in six of the first seven years under head coach Joni Taylor.

Georgia has totaled 280 assists on 467 made field goals this season -- an average of 60 percent.

Not from Outside!

The Lady Bulldogs are holding team's to just 28 percent shooting from 3-point range this season. In fact, Georgia has held its opponent below 20 percent from behind the arc five times during the 2021-22 campaign.

Coombs Swipes the Irish

Senior guard Mikayla Coombs nearly set the school record with eight steals in the win against Notre Dame -- a total that was just two shy of the school record. Coombs recorded six steals in the first quarter alone to lead her team in the early going.

On A Roll

Georgia has won 21 of its last 27 games dating back to last season. During the stretch going back to Feb. 4, 2021, Georgia has defeated five ranked teams, including No. 2 ranked Texas A&M and second-ranked NC State.

Barker's Bomb Shocks NC State

Sarah Ashlee Barker nailed a 25-foot heave at the buzzer to send the game against NC State into overtime. Barker finished with a career-best four 3-point field goals in the win, including back-to-back three's late in the game to stop a NC State rally.

No. 3 Heats up from 3

Barker has drastically improved her shooting from behind the arc throughout the course of the season. In the first four games, she hit just 2-of-14 (.143) from behind the arc, but has knocked in 45 percent (13-of-29) over the last seven contests.

Overtime Success

Georgia improved to an impressive 9-2 overall in overtime games under head coach Joni Taylor. In fact, Georgia has won four-straight and nine of its last 10 OT contests.

Down Goes No. 2

Georgia's win at then No. 2-ranked NC State marked the program's first true road win against a top-25 team in program history. The victory ended the Wolfpack's 10-game win streak.

Many Contributors

Georgia's bench has outscored its opponents by a 407-185 margin, an average of 14 points per game, this season. Every available player has touched the floor in six of the team's 16 games.

Bulldog Block Party

The Lady Bulldogs set a new school record with 18 blocks in the win against Alabama State on Nov. 21. That total broke a 34-year old record from 1987, when Georgia had 16 against Mercer. The Lady Bulldogs' 18 swats are tied for the second-most in a game in SEC history.

Offensive Improvement

Head Coach Joni Taylor and her staff implemented a new offensive philosophy prior to the 2020-21 season with the goal of playing a more up-tempo style with defensive pressure.

That move has paid dividends. Since last season, Georgia has scored over 90 points four times. The Lady Bulldogs scored over 90 points just four times combined in the five seasons prior.

UGA Seniors Earn Degrees

For the second-straight year, each of Georgia's seniors have already earned their college degrees. Malury Bates (sociology), Mikayla Coombs (sport management), Que Morrison (communication studies) and Jenna Staiti (human development and family science) have all graduated from the University of Georgia.

A Healthy Dose of Que

After suffering a string of injuries in her career, Morrison finally experienced a full healthy season for the Lady Bulldogs.

Here is a look back at some of the adversity Morrison has overcome.

The defensive stopper placed on the SEC All-Freshman Team after drawing 32 starts on Georgia's NCAA tournament team. Then, in her sophomore campaign, Morrison missed the first eight games due to a torn meniscus in her left knee. In 2019-20, she had an injury to her foot before the year began. She then suffered a torn labrum in her right shoulder to end her junior campaign midway through SEC play.

Coombs Takes on Leadership Roles

Mikayla Coombs — a native of Buford, Ga. — was selected by her peers to serve as the vice chair of the SEC Women's Basketball Leadership Council. As one of four elected officers, she will participate in various meetings throughout the year to provide feedback to Athletics Directors, Senior Woman Administrators and Faculty Athletics Representatives.

This news came after she was chosen as the only student-athlete representative on the NCAA competition committee. Coombs graduated with a degree in sport management from the University of Georgia and is currently pursuing a master's in the same program. She was named a UGA Presidential Scholar in 2020, has placed on the Athletic Director's Honor Roll three times and made the Dean's List in 2021.

Coaching Consistency

Georgia has one of the longest tenured staffs in the SEC. With the return of Karen Lange, Chelsea Newton and Robert Mosley, Georgia is the only team in the conference to not have a single coaching change at any level -- head coach or assistant coach -- over the past six years.

Chapman Sticks with Basketball

Junior guard Chloe Chapman played two seasons with the Georgia soccer team, but after spending two years as a dual-sport athlete, she will now focus on just basketball. The Mitchellville, Md., native was a consensus top-40 prospect and was rated as the No. 8 overall point guard in the nation coming out of high school.

Georgia Freshmen Already Making History

Lady Bulldog freshmen Reigan Richardson and Jillian Hollingshead were both named McDonald's All-Americans, marking the first time in Georgia history the program has signed two McDonald's All-Americans in one class. Hollingshead and Richardson are the 11th and 12th McDonald's All-Americans to sign with the Lady Bulldogs and are the first to commit right out high school since Ronika Ransford in 2010. Current Lady Bulldog Mikayla Coombs was a McDonald's All-American in 2017.

A Storied History

Georgia is one of just two SEC programs (Tennessee) and one of just 16 teams nationwide to reach the 1,000 win total. The Lady Bulldogs accomplished the feat last season on the road at East Carolina, marking the latest impressive accomplishment for the storied program.

The Lady Bulldogs are one of only three teams, joining Wisconsin-Green Bay and Tennessee, to have a winning record every year since 1980 and have been to 34 of 39 NCAA tournaments.

WBB Game Notes: Georgia Travels to Missouri for SEC Matchup

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Malury Bates

Chloe Chapman

Mikayla Coombs

Que Morrison

Jenna Staiti

University of Georgia Athletics

WBB Game Notes: Georgia Travels to Missouri for SEC Matchup

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Malury Bates

Chloe Chapman

Mikayla Coombs

Que Morrison

Jenna Staiti

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