MBB Notes: Bulldogs Look For Historical W Against Rider

Georgia Basketball Game Notes

Georgia (9-3) vs. Rider (5-5)
Wednesday, December 28, 2022 at 7:00 p.m.
Stegeman Coliseum (10,523) in Athens, Ga.
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: SEC Network + (Jeff Dantzler, pbp; Marcus Thornton, analyst)
Audio Stream: georgiadogs.com
Satellite: SiriusXM: 382; SXM App: 972
History: First Meeting
Last Meeting: N/A

No.	Name	PPG	RPG

Georgia Bulldogs
Coach: Mike White
9-3 in 1st at UGA
252-131 in 12th season overall
0	Terry Roberts	13.8	4.0
(6-3; 180; Sr.; North Amityville, N.Y)
3	Kario Oquendo	14.0	3.9
(6-4; 220; Jr.; Titusville, Fla.)
12	Matthew-Alexander Moncrieffe	6.8	4.8
(6-8; 215; Jr.; Toronto, Ontario)
13	Mardrez McBride	4.8	2.8
(6-2; 180; 5th Year; Augusta, Ga.)
23	Braelen Bridges	7.7	4.2
(6-11; 245; 5th Year; Atlanta, Ga.)

No.	Name	PPG	RPG

Rider
Coach: Kevin Baggett
166-157 in 11th season at RU
166-157 in 11th season overall
2	Allen Powell	9.4	1.4
(6-2; 175; Sr.; Philadelphia, Pa.)
5	Mervin James	12.2	6.5
(6-7; 215; Sr.; St. Thomas, V.I.)
13	Ajiri Ogemuno-Johnson	5.9	4.8
(6-8; 210; Grad.; Delta State, Nigeria)
15	Allen Bertrand	7.4	3.4
(6-5; 200; Sr.; Philadelphia, Pa.)
55	Dwight Murray Jr.	19.3	5.1
(6-0; 180; Sr.; Austell, Ga.)

TEAM COMPARISON

2022-23 STATISTICS	GEORGIA	RIDER
Points Per Game	70.8	72.1
Opp. Point Per Game	63.3	68.5
Scoring Margin	+7.4	+3.6
Field Goal Pct.	.436	.435
Opp. Field Goal Pct.	.414	.421
3-Point Pct.	.321	.353
3-Pointers Per Game	6.6	6.1
Opp. 3-Point Pct.	.295	.357
Free Throw Pct.	.751	.767
Free Throws Per Game	14.8	13.2
Rebounds Per Game	38.7	37.6
Opp. Rebound Per Game	30.6	34.7
Rebound Margin	+8.1	+2.9
Assists Per Game	12.7	11.9
Turnovers Per Game	14.8	11.0
Assist-to-Turnover Ratio	0.85	1.08
Turnover Margin	-1.6	+1.2
Steals Per Game	7.2	5.9
Blocks Per Game	3.7	2.7

The Starting 5...

UGA wraps up its non-conference slate by hosting Rider in its first game after a week-long holiday break.
With a victory, UGA would reach a double-digit win total before January for just the 4th time in 118 seasons.
UGA has used 8 different starting fives in its first 12 games and only 3 Bulldogs have played in every outing.
UGA's bench has scored 311 points with a +183 (15.3 ppg) margin over its opponents' reserves to date.
UGA won 6 games in November, which matched the Bulldogs' win total for the entire 2021-22 season.

The Opening Tip

Georgia completes its non-conference slate against Rider on Wednesday with a chance to obtain a significant milestone in program history. The Bulldogs are 9-3 on the season and with a victory would become just the fourth team in 118 seasons of Georgia Basketball to post a double-digit win total before the calendar flips to the New Year.

The Bulldogs are playing their first game in a week, since a 72-65 win over Chattanooga. Following the Rider game, the Bulldogs have another weeklong break between before opening SEC action against Auburn on Jan. 4.

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

Justin Hill is…
• 3 assists from 250 for his career

Braelen Bridges is...
• 32 points from 1,000 for his career
• 20 rebounds from 500 for his career

Jailyn Ingram is...
• 33 points from 1,500 for his career
• 5 rebounds from 700 for his career

Series History With Rider

Georgia's matchup will be the first-ever between the Bulldogs and the Broncs.

In fact, Georgia has very little history with any of the teams currently competing with Rider in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. The Bulldogs are 2-2 versus four of the 11 MAAC schools, with 1-0 records against Manhattan and Marist and 0-1 marks versus Iona and Niagara.

Scouting The Broncs

After beginning the season with a 1-4 record, Rider has won four of its last five games to get back to .500. Most recently, the Broncs defeated Marist, 77-71, last Thursday to improve to 2-0 in the MAAC.

Dwight Murray Jr. leads Rider offensively at 19.3 points per game, while Mervin James is contributing averages of 12.2 points and a team-high 6.5 rebounds.

Last Time Out

Kario Oquendo's season-high 22-point outburst led Georgia in a 72-65 come-from-behind victory over Chattanooga last Wednesday at Stegeman Coliseum.

Terry Roberts, Braelen Bridges and Jailyn Ingram all contributed double-digit scoring outputs. Roberts chipped in 14, while Bridges and Ingram added 12 and 10, respectively.

It wasn't just Oquendo's point total but when he scored that was vital. The junior from Titusville, Fla., put up 16 second-half points and nine in the final 6:02 as Georgia turned a five-point deficit into a seven-point margin of victory.

The Mocs led for 34:48 of the contest – 19:48 of the first half and 14:40 of the opening 15:35 of the second stanza.

Chattanooga was up 60-55 with 6:19 remaining before an Oquendo 3-pointer ignited a 15-3 surge. He accounted for nine points during that run.

Dogs Look For Historical W

Georgia enters the Ridger game with a 9-3 record. A victory over the Broncs would mark this just the fourth time in 118 seasons that the Bulldogs reached the double-digit win plateau prior to the New Year.

The three previous teams to obtain that standard all went on to compete in "March Madness." Interestingly, each of the squads in that trio – from the 1996-97, 2001-02 and 2010-11 seasons – notched 11 victories before January arrived.

Numerous other Georgia squads came up just shy of the pre-January double-digit qualifier. Eleven editions of the Bulldogs recorded nine victories before the calendar flipped, most recently doing so 2019-20. Of those, four teams were 9-1, two were 9-2, three were 9-3, one was 9-4 and one was 9-5.

Two Top Teams At The Stripe

Rider and Georgia are among the top-50 teams in the nation on converting trips to the free throw line.

Through games on Christmas day, the Broncs (.767) and Bulldogs (.751) ranked No. 21 and No. 47, respectively, among the 352 teams competing at the Division-I level this season.

A Very Productive Bench

Georgia's reserves have come off the bench to score 311 points in the first 12 games of the season, accounting for 36.6 percent of the 849 points put up by the Bulldogs.

Georgia's bench has outscored its opponents' reserves 311-128, a massive +183 margin (15.3 ppg).

The Bulldogs have won the "bench battle" in each game, providing a "+20" margin in five contests and a season-high "+25" (27-2) tally versus ETSU. Georgia's highest single-game bench scoring effort was 36 points versus UAB.

Bulldogs Switching Starters

Georgia has mixed and matched eight Bulldogs to comprise eight different starting lineups over the first 12 games.

No player has started every game, although three – Matthew-Alexander Moncrieffe, Kario Oquendo and Terry Roberts – have gotten the nod for every game they've played.

Only three Bulldogs – Jabri Abdur-Rahim, Braelen Bridges and Mardrez McBride – have played in every contest, and six Bulldogs have missed a combined 16 outings due to injury or illness. In fact, the Notre Dame game – the 11th contest of the campaign – was the first outing when every player on Georgia's roster was available for action.

Dogs Match 2021-22 Win Total

While a 6-win season will certainly never be celebrated, it is worth noting that Georgia notched is sixth victory of the 2022-23 season with a Nov. 30 "W" over Hampton.

With that, the Bulldogs matched their win total for the entire 2021-22 campaign during the first 24 days of Mike White's first season.

Valuing The Basketball

Georgia recorded more turnovers than assists in each of its first six games, to the tune of combined tallies of 62 assists to 99 TOs. That equated to an unimpressive 0.63 assist-to-TO ratio.

In the Bulldogs' six outings since, they produced positive ratios against ETSU, Hampton, Florida A&M, Georgia Tech and Chattanooga and were even in assists-to-TOs versus Notre Dame. In those contests, Georgia has delivered a combined 90 assists and committed 79 turnovers.

While the coaching staff is extremely eager to trim the TO total dramatically, that 1.14 assist-to-TO effort in the last six outings is significantly better than the first half-dozen games.

Bridges Earns SEC POTW

Braelen Bridges was named SEC Player of the Week on Dec. 19, a day after his 18-point performance in a Holiday Hoopsgiving win over Notre Dame.

Bridges was a perfect 9-of-9 from the field against the Fighting Irish and scored 18 points in just 18 minutes of playing time. He scored a point per minute played in each half, putting up eight points in eight MP in the first half and 10 points in 10 minutes of action in the second stanza.

Bridges became the Bulldogs' first SEC Player of the Week honoree since Toumani Camara was recognized on Dec. 21, 2020. Overall, Bridges is the 29th Georgia player to earn SEC Player of the Week accolades since the award's inception in 1985. Those Bulldogs have combined to secure 40 SEC Player of the Week certificates.

Healthy M-A Makes A Difference

Matthew-Alexander was hindered after suffering an ankle sprain in the Bulldogs' season opener against Western Carolina. The junior from Ontario missed two games before returning to play in the next four contests. He then had two more DNPs prior to the Georgia Tech contest.

Moncrieffe has been extremely efficient in Georgia's last three outings, posting his first double-digit outing as a Bulldog with 11 points against the Yellow Jackets and immediately topping that with 15 points versus Notre Dame. He then grabbed a season- and game-high seven rebounds against Chattanooga.

Moncrieffe is a combined 12-of-13 from the field – an almost unfathomable 92.3 percent – against GT, ND and UTC.

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 seven charges in seven games played this season.

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 37 charges in his last 38 games...and 45 in his last 49 outings...though we think – with respect to the folks with whistles on game days – several more should have gone his way.

White Earns Win No. 250

Mike White captured the 250th victory of his head coaching career with Georgia's Dec. 2 win over Florida A&M.

White compiled a 101-40 record in four seasons in Louisiana Tech from 2011-15. That included a trio 27-win efforts in each of his final three seasons, which helped give White the best winning percentage (.716) of any coach in program history.

In seven campaigns at Florida from 2015-22, White posted a 142-88 record. He reached 100 victories with the Gators in 158 games, the second-fastest pace ever by a Florida basketball coach behind only Billy Donovan (154 games). Under White, the Gators were one of only four programs to record a victory in the four NCAA Tournaments contested between 2017-21.

White quickly added the final seven wins with the Bulldogs to reach 250. In fact, Georgia's victory over the Rattlers topped UGA's win total during the entire 2021-22 season.

Dogs Get Defensive

Georgia held its opposition a trio of outings from Nov. 27-Dec. 2 to under 55 points, which was a first for the Bulldogs in 12 seasons. During that span, Georgia defeated ETSU, 62-47; Hampton, 73-54; and Florida A&M, 68-46.

That marked the first time the Bulldogs held three consecutive opponents under 55 points since Dec. 2010, a span covering 388 games. That season, Georgia defeated High Point, 85-38 on Dec. 21; Mercer, 56-53 on Dec. 23; and Charleston Southern, 70-55 on Dec. 28.

Ingram Proves Impactful

Jailyn Ingram, one of just five seventh-year seniors in college basketball this season, made his 2022-23 debut in the second half of Georgia's 62-47 win over East Tennessee State.

The Madison, Ga., native entered the game at the 14:15 mark of the second half and the Bulldogs leading 39-36. A quick glance at the box score would lead one to believe Ingram's 4:02 of PT were quite pedestrian – 0-of-1 on FGs, one foul, one foul drawn and one steal. But the far right side of his linescore was more telling – "+9."

"I just thought we were flat," Mike White said. "When you do put him out there for the first time, you're experimenting... So, you're tooth-and-nail against East Tennessee State – close game, early second half – and one of the guys on staff suggested it. The last few days he's gotten to the point where we said, 'We're about ready to give him a chance in a game.' Athletically, from a conditioning standpoint, he's looked better and better. It could've gone the other way of course, but he was an inspiration to his teammates. I thought he was probably the biggest factor in the game."

Ingram was a huge factor in the Hampton game as well with a more statistically emphatic performance. He scored 14 points, largely due to knocking down 4-of-5 3-pointers, in 20 minutes of PT.

While those were Ingram's first two games of the 2022-23 season, he upped his collegiate GP total to 133. He played five seasons at Florida Atlantic – including a red-shirt campaign in 2018-19 – before transferring to Georgia. Ingram started the first nine games of the 2021-22 season and was the Bulldogs' leading rebounder when he tore the ACL in his right knee with 14:21 left in a Dec. 7 victory over Jacksonville.

Hill Named All-Tourney

Justin Hill was named to the Beach Bracket's all-tournament team at the Greenlight Sunshine Slam presented by Discount Tire.

The junior from Houston averaged a team-high 14.5 points against Saint Joseph's and UAB by shooting 61.5 percent from the field and an even more impressive 71.4 percent from 3-point range.

Hill put up 12 points against Saint Joseph's, including a shot clock-beating 3-pointer with 2:28 left after the Hawks cut Georgia's 23-point halftime lead to 54-46.

Hill then led the Bulldogs offensively for the first time this season with 17 points versus UAB.

A Homecoming For Kario

Kario Oquendo was productive in his homecoming trip to the Sunshine State for the Sunshine Slam. Oquendo is from Titusville, Fla., just under an hour south of Daytona Beach.

Oquendo scored a game-high 17 points in Georgia's win over Saint Joseph's and put up 12 points against UAB.

Oquendo averaged 21.2 points and 8.3 rebounds in leading Astronaut High School to a 20-6 finish in 2019. He was named Brevard County Class 5A Player of the Year by area coaches that season and also was tabbed All-Cape Coast in both 2019 for Astronaut and in 2018 while playing at Titusville High.

Roberts Pops For 20...Twice

Terry Roberts recorded back-to-back 20-point outings against Miami (Ohio) and Bucknell, scoring 22 and 20 points , respectively, in those contests.

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.

A Big-Time Beginning

Freshman KyeRon Lindsay, who was rated as the nation's No. 87 prospect in the Class of 2022 by 247Sports.com, 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).

In his first three outings of college basketball, Lindsay averaged 8.0 points and a team-best 7.0 rebounds per game while shooting a stellar 66.7 percent from the floor.

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.

"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."

James, a 6-9, 190-pound power forward, helped lead Winter Haven High 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.

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. Over three seasons, Jordan compiled 1,257 points, 434 rebounds, 128 blocks, 109 assists and 104 steals for the Falcons.

Oquendo Named All-SEC

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

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, which made Oquendo the SEC's leading returning scorer from conference action last season.

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

A "March Madness" Pedigree

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

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."

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.

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 and Morgan County High graduate, spent five seasons at Florida Atlantic before returning to his home state prior to the 2021-22 season.

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 for the Owls, which are 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

MBB Notes: Bulldogs Look For Historical W Against Rider

Next Event

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

University of Georgia Athletics

MBB Notes: Bulldogs Look For Historical W Against Rider

Next Event

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

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