Bulldogs To Take On Saint Joseph's On Monday

Georgia Basketball Game Notes

Georgia (3-1) vs. Saint Joseph's (2-1)
Monday, November 21 at 8:30 p.m.
Ocean Center (8,362) in Daytona, Ohio
Radio: Georgia Bulldog Sports Network (Flagship: WSB AM 750); (Scott Howard, play-by-play; Chuck Dowdle, analyst; Adam Gillespie, producer | Affiliates
TV: None
Video Stream: CBS Sports Network (Tom Janes, pbp; Mike O'Donnell, analyst)
Audio Stream: georgiadogs.com
Satellite: SiriusXM: 374; SXM App: 374
History: First Meeting
Last Meeting: N/A)

No.	Name	PPG	RPG

Georgia Bulldogs
Coach: Mike White
3-1 in 1st at UGA
246-129 in 12th season overall
0	Terry Roberts	15.8	5.0
(6-3; 180; Sr.; North Amityville, N.Y.)
2	Kyeron Lindsay	7.8	6.5
(6-7; 215; Fr.; Denton, Texas)
4	Jusaun Holt	4.8	3.5
(6-7; 190; Soph.; Tacoma, Wash.)
12	Matthew-Alexander Moncrieffe	3.0	3.0
(6-8; 215; Jr.; Toronto, Ontario)
13	Mardrez McBride	6.5	2.5
(6-2; 180; 5th Year; Augusta, Ga.)

No.	Name	PPG	RPG

St. Joseph's Red Hawks
Coach: Billy Lange
24-61 in 4th season at SJU
155-195 in 14th season overall
0	Kacper Klaczek	8.0	7.7
(6-8; 230; Soph.; Chorzow, Poland)
2	Erik Reynolds II	23.3	2.7
(6-2; 175; Soph.; Temple Hills, Md.)
3	Cameron Brown	14.7	8.7
(6-5; 220; Sr.; Laurel, Md.)
5	Lynn Greer III	9.7	3.3
(6-2; 190; Soph.; Philadelphia, Pa.)
50	Ejike Obinna	7.7	4.0
(6-10; 245; Grad.; Enugu, Nigeria)

TEAM COMPARISON

2022-23 STATISTICS	GEORGIA	ST. JOSEPH'S
Points Per Game	72.0	84.0
Opp. Point Per Game	68.7	61.3
Scoring Margin	+3.3	+22.7
Field Goal Pct.	.434	.554
Opp. Field Goal Pct.	.431	.397
3-Point Pct.	.300	.500
3-Pointers Per Game	6.0	11.3
Opp. 3-Point Pct.	.348	.320
Free Throw Pct.	.719	.696
Free Throws Per Game	15.3	10.7
Rebounds Per Game	39.3	35.3
Opp. Rebound Per Game	30.7	28.3
Rebound Margin	+8.7	+7.0
Assists Per Game	11.3	18.0
Turnovers Per Game	18.0	10.7
Assist-to-Turnover Ratio	0.63	1.69
Turnover Margin	-3.7	+0.7
Steals Per Game	8.7	5.0
Blocks Per Game	3.3	4.7

The Starting 5...

UGA will face Saint Joseph's for the first time ever on Monday evening in the Greenlight Sunshine Slam.
The Sunshine Slam is a homeoming for Kario Oquendo, whose hometown is an hour south of Daytona Beach.
Former walk on Jaxon Etter has taken 5 charges in 4 games...and 35 in 35 GP including last season.
5 of UGA's 6 new transfers – Anselem, Hill, Holt, Moncrieffe & McBride – have played on NCAA Tourney teams.
UGA has signed a top-25 recruiting class comprised of 2 top-100 prospects according to ESPN.com.

The Opening Tip

Georgia will face Saint Joseph's in the opening round of "Beach Bracket" play in the Greenlight Sunshine Slam presented by Discount Tire on Monday evening. The Bulldogs and Hawks will meet at the Ocean Center in Daytona Beach, Fla., at 8:30 p.m. in a matchup set to be televised nationally on the CBS Sports Network.

The tourney features two four-team brackets in Daytona. The other half of the "Beach includes UAB and South Florida. The "Ocean Bracket" quartet is comprised of Albany, Austin Peay, Bucknell and Presbyterian.

All eight teams will also play an on-campus contest with an opponent from the other bracket, which was last Friday's victory over Bucknell for the Bulldogs.

Keepin An Eye On: Entering Today's Game . . .

Mike White is...
• 4 wins from 250 for his career

Braelen Bridges is...
• 114 points from 1,000 for his career
• 59 rebounds from 500 for his career

Jailyn Ingram is...
• 70 points from 1,500 for his career
• 16 rebounds from 700 for his career

Non Series History With SJU

The 2022-23 campaign is the 118th in Georgia Basketball history and the 114th for Saint Joseph's.

Entering Monday's matchup in the Greenlight Sunshine Slam, the Bulldogs and Hawks have combined to play 5,687 games between them. But, they've never faced each other.

Five years ago, UGA and SJU both competed in the 2017 Wooden Legacy tournament in Fullerton, Calif. The Bulldogs and Hawks were in opposite sides of the eight-team bracket and any potential meeting was dismissed during the opening round after Georgia defeated host Cal State Fullerton, 64-57, and Saint Joseph's dropped a 75-71 decision to Washington State.

Scouting The Hawks

Saint Joseph is 2-1 on the season, bouncing back from a 81-55 setback to No. 3 Houston in its opener to sweep Lafayette and Albany in a two-game homestand.

The Hawks return a trio of starters – Cameron Brown, Ejike Obinna and Erik Reynolds II – and nine letterwinners from a year ago. Obinna, a transfer from Vanderbilt, and Reynolds produced matching 12.1 ppg scoring averages during the 2021-22 season, while Brown chipped in 8.3 ppg.

Following a 32-point explosion against Albany, Reynolds' 22.3 ppg scoring average ranked No. 13 nationally on Friday. Brown was also averaging double digits at 14.7 ppg, as well as a team-high 8.7 rpg.

Last Time Out

Terry Roberts posted his second-consecutive 20-point outing to lead Georgia in a 65-61 win over Bucknell last Friday night at Stegeman Coliseum.

Roberts added season highs of nine rebounds, six assists and 31 minutes for the Bulldogs. Jabri Abdur-Rahim chipped in a season-high 10 points.

After trailing by as many as eight points early on, Georgia tied the game on a pair of Roberts free throws with three seconds left in the opening half.

The Bulldogs grabbed their first lead at 36-34 with 15:26 remaining and later used a 17-2 run to build a 55-41 advantage at the 8:09 mark.

Georgia led by a dozen points at 60-48 before Bucknell rallied to pull within 63-61 with eight seconds on the clock. Roberts sank a pair of free throws to ice the win.

A Homecoming For Kario

The Sunshine Slam will serve as a homecoming of sorts for Kario Oquendo.

Oquendo is a native of Titusville, Fla., and starred at Astronaut High School, which is just under an hour south of the Ocean Center in Daytona Beach.

As a junior in his final season of prep basketball, Oquendo averaged 21.2 points and 8.3 rebounds in leading the War Eagles to a 20-6 finish in 2019.

Oquendo was named Brevard County Class 5A Player of the Year by area coaches that season. He also was tabbed All-Cape Coast in both 2019 for Titusville and 2018 while playing at Titusville High.

Oquendo enrolled at Florida SouthWestern College in January 2020 and bypassed his senior year of high school hoops.

Etter Still Taking Charges

Former Jaxon Etter has made quite the name for himself on defense.

The senior from Woodstock, Ga., who was awarded a scholarship on Nov. 2, has taken five charges over Georgia's first four games.

That comes after drawing 30 offensive fouls in 31 games last season and eight in the last 11 games of his sophomore year.

All told, Etter has now been on the receiving end of 35 charges in his last 35 games...and 43 in his last 46 outings...though we think – with respect to the folks with whistles on game days – several more should have gone his way.

Roberts Pops For 20...Twice

Terry Roberts recorded back-to-back 20-point outings in Georgia's last two games, scoring 22 points against Miami (Ohio) last Monday before popping for 20 in last Friday's win over Bucknell.

Roberts' contributions weren't limited to the scoring column. He led the Bulldogs with three assists, two steals and a block against the RedHawks and then contributed team-high efforts of nine boards, six assists and two steals in the win over Bucknell.

Lindsay Off To Solid Start

Freshman KyeRon Lindsay, who was rated as the nation's No. 87 prospect in the Class of 2022 by 247Sports.com, has made an immediate impact at Georgia.

The Denton, Texas, product tied for team-high rebounding honors with six boards in the opener versus Western Carolina. With Matthew-Alexander Moncrieffe out of action due to an injury at Wake Forest, Lindsay made his first start in Winston-Salem and scored 10 points. He followed with his first collegiate double-double – 14 points and 10 rebounds – against Miami (Ohio). Lindsay chipped in seven points and five boards in the victory over Bucknell.

In that quartet of outings, Lindsay has averaged 7.8 points and a team-best 6.5 rebounds per game while shooting a stellar 65.0 percent from the floor.

Hey I know That Dude!

The Saint Joseph's bench features a familiar face for Georgia Basketball fans. Assistant coach John Linehan spent the previous three campaigns with the Bulldogs before returning to his hometown during the offseason.

Linehan joined the Georgia staff in 2019 after stints at Hartford (2017-19), Brown (2016-17) and Drexel (2015-16).

One of the top defenders in NCAA history, Linehan was a four-year letterwinner at Providence, setting an NCAA record with 385 career steals. He enjoyed a successful pro playing career, primarily in France, before serving as a graduate assistant at Temple in 2014-15 and moving into the coaching ranks.

Bulldogs Sign Top-25 class

Georgia opened the NCAA's early signing period on Wednesday, Nov. 9 with a bang, inking a top-25 recruiting class comprised of two of the nation's top-100 prospects.

Lamariyon "Mari" Jordan and Dylan James were ranked No. 72 and No. 94 nationally by ESPN.com, respectively. Together, they gave Georgia the No. 25-ranked recruiting class on ESPN.com when the signing period began.

"It's an exciting day for us to be able to sign two players that we targeted and invested a lot of time and energy in," Mike White said. "Both of these guys are excited to be Bulldogs. Mari grew up right down the road from Athens and has always admired this university. He is a high-energy player who possesses much versatility and has a very good positional size Dylan has tremendous length for a guy who shoots the ball the way that he does. He also has the ability to post. Like Mari, he has a chance to be a very good defender as well."

James, a 6-9, 190-pound power forward, helped lead Winter Haven High School to the semifinals of the 2022 Florida Class 6A state tournament. He was selected as the Lakeland Ledger's Player of the Year after averaging 15.2 points, 8.5 rebounds, 3.4 blocks, 2.0 assists and 1.3 steals per game last season for the Blue Devils, who finished 23-8 overall. James helped Winter Haven compile a 23-9 record as a freshman before playing at The Rock School during his sophomore year.

James' and his Winter Haven teammates began the 2022-23 season ranked No. 67 nationally by MaxPreps.

James also was ranked as the nation's No. 94 prospect by 247Sports.com, as well as No. 115 by On3.com and No. 133 by Rivals.com.

Jordan, a 6-6, 185-pound small forward, was tabbed first-team All-State for Class 6A by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution as a junior after averaging 19.7 points, 5.9 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.4 blocks and 1.2 steals per game for Dacula High School. Over three seasons, Jordan has compiled 1,257 points, 434 rebounds, 128 blocks, 109 assists and 104 steals for the Falcons. He was voted the Region 8-6A Player of the Year and named second-team All-Gwinnett County by the Gwinnett Daily Post as a junior.

Jordan will spend his senior season playing at Norcross High School, where he has already been tabbed second-team preseason All-State by the Georgia High School Coaches Association (GHSA).

Nationally, Jordan is ranked No. 101 by 247Sports.com and No. 137 by Rivals.com.

Dogs, White In Season Openers

Georgia opened its 118th season of intercollegiate basketball on Nov. 7 with a 68-55 victory over Western Carolina.

The Bulldogs improved to 85-33 in the initial contests of those campaigns, including an even more impressive 39-6 mark in openers at Stegeman Coliseum.

Georgia's most significant win in an opener at the Coliseum also was its first. In the Bulldogs' initial opener on Dec. 3 1964, UGA bested No. 13 North Carolina, 64-61.

Mike White is now 9-3 in season openers – 2-2 at Louisiana Tech, 6-1 at Florida and 1-0 at Georgia.

Oquendo Named All-SEC

Kario Oquendo was tabbed second-team preseason All-SEC in balloting of the league's 14 head coaches announced on Nov. 2.

Oquendo was the Bulldogs' scoring leader, both overall and in SEC play, last season. He averaged 15.2 points overall and upped his contributions to 18.3 points per game in league play. Oquendo is the SEC's leading returning scorer from conference action last season.

Oquendo notched 10 20-point performances, with eight of those versus league competition. He poured in a season-high 33 points at Texas A&M, equaling the highest single-game output in league play during the 2021-22 season.

The junior from Titusville, Fla. also built a reputation as one the nation's top in-game dunkers, appearing on ESPN's Top-10 plays three times last season – No. 3 on Nov. 16 against S.C. State, No. 6 on No. 23 versus Northwestern and No. 3 on March 1 against Tennessee.

Bridges Finds Bottom Of Net

Braelen Bridges converted on 63.4 percent of his shots from the floor for Georgia last season. That not only led the SEC and ranked No. 7 nationally, it was one of the most efficient campaigns ever for UGA and in league history.

The Union Grove High School product knocked down 161 of his 264 field goals in his first year as a Bulldog in 2021-22.

Among the best single-season field goal percentages for the Bulldogs and within the SEC, Bridges' effort ranks No. 2 and No. 17 all-time, respectively.

Bridges became the first Bulldog to pace the SEC in shooting efficiency since Lavon Mercer did so in 1980 at 61.1 percent. Interestingly, Mercer set the UGA record (64.3 percent) in 1979 but did not lead the SEC that season.

A "March Madness" Pedigree

Five of Georgia's six first-year transfers played for teams that reached the 2021 or 2022 NCAA Tournaments at their previous school.

Justin Hill (Longwood) and Jusaun Holt (Alabama) both took part in the "Big Dance" last spring.

Frank Anselem (Syracuse), Madrez McBride (North Texas) and Matthew-Alexander Moncrieffe (Oklahoma State) all had tickets punched to the 2021 edition of "March Madness."

Ingram Offers Experience

According to research by Middle Tennessee's SID staff, Jailyn Ingram is one of five seventh-year men's players in Division-I basketball this season.

The Madison, Ga., native spent five seasons at Florida Atlantic before returning to his home state. Ingram played in 122 games for the Owls from 2016-21, including a redshirt campaign in 2018-19. All told, he recorded 1,334 points and 630 rebounds while at FAU, the No. 6 and No. 3 totals in program history.

Ingram played in nine games last season for Georgia before suffering a season-ending injury on Dec. 7 against Jacksonville. He received an additional red-shirt from the NCAA to return to the Bulldogs this season.

That makes Ingram among of quintet of players – including a well-traveled Nittany Lion – competing for a seventh college basketball season this winter as outlined below.

7th-Year Super Duper Seniors
Name	Schools
Jailyn Ingram	FAU, Georgia
DeAndre Dishman	EKU, MTSU
Juan Munoz	Longwood, Hawaii
DeJuan Clayton	Coppin State, Cal
Michael Henn	UC-Davis, Cal Baptist, Portland, Denver, Penn State

A Doubleheader Opener

Both Georgia's men's and women's basketball program began their seasons with a double dip at Stegeman Coliseum on Monday, Nov. 11.

The Lady Bulldogs, who are also under a first-year head coach, defeated Coastal Carolina, 78-61, in the first outing.

Katie Abrahamson-Henderson, more commonly known as "Coach Abe," was on the sidelines for the first time in Stegeman Coliseum. She also for the Lady Bulldogs from 1985-87. Prior to returning to Athens, "Coach Abe" compiled a 370-156 (.703) record over 17 seasons as a head coach and led teams to postseason bids in 14 of 16 possible seasons, including 11 NCAA Tournament appearances.

The last time the Bulldogs and Lady Bulldogs hosted a season-opening twin bill was 19 years ago on Nov. 21, 2003.

That evening Lady Bulldogs opened what culminated as an "Elite Eight" campaign by besting Georgia State, 87-48.

The Bulldogs then topped Western Carolina, 78-67, in Dennis Felton's first outing as Georgia's head coach. Damien Wilkins led a trio of Bulldogs in double figures with 16 points to counter a 44-point explosion from WCU's Kevin Martin. Martin went on to score more than 12,000 points during a 12-season NBA career with Sacramento, Houston, Oklahoma City, Minnesota and San Antonio.

Players Mentioned

Jabri Abdur-Rahim

Frank Anselem-Ibe

Braelen Bridges

Jaxon Etter

Justin Hill

Jusaun Holt

Jailyn Ingram

Mardrez McBride

Matthew-Alexander Moncrieffe

Kario Oquendo

Terry Roberts