Dogs Trek To Wake Forest For NIT's Second Round

Sunday, March 24

Winston-Salem, NC

4:00 p.m.

University of Georgia

Wake Forest

March 22, 2024 | Men's Basketball

Game Notes

Georgia Basketball Game Notes

2024 NIT Men's Basketball Tournament
Game 35: Georgia (18-16) vs. Wake Forest (21-13)
Sunday, March 24 - 4:00 p.m.
Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum (14.655) || Winston-Salem, N.C.
Radio: Georgia Bulldog Sports Network (Flagship: WSB AM 750); (Scott Howard, play-by-play; Chuck Dowdle, color analyst; Adam Gillespie, producer) | Affiliates
TV: ESPN (Wes Durham, play-by-play; Cory Alexander, color analyst)
Video Stream: ESPN+
Audio Stream: georgiadogs.com
Satellite: SiriusXM 381
History: UGA leads, 5-3 (Full History)
Last Meeting: - UGA, 80-77, on 11/10/23

Georgia Bulldogs Head Coach: Mike White Record at UGA: 34-32 (2nd season) Career Record: 281-160 (13th season)				Wake Forest Demon Decons Head Coach: Steve Forbes Record at WFU: 71-43 (4th season) Career Record: 369-157 (18th season)
INDIVIDUAL		TEAM	STATISTIC	TEAM		INDIVIDUAL
Thomasson	12.7	74.9	Points Per Game	78.4	18.0	Salis
Tchewa	.552	.429	Field Goal Pct.	.477	.551	Reid
Abdur-Rahim	2.1	8.0	3-Pointers Per Game	8.1	2.2	Salis
Abdur-Rahim	.356	.337	3-Point Pct.	.371	.405	Salis
Abdur-Rahim	.887	.721	Free Throw Pct.	.796	.855	Reid
Tchewa	6.6	35.7	Rebounds Per Game	384.1	7.8	Reid
Hill	3.2	11.8	Assists Per Game	12.4	3.6	Miller
Thomasson	2.33	1.05	Assist-to-Turnover Ratio	1.15	1.46	Miller
Anselem	0.6	3.1	Blocks Per Game	4.2	1.5	Carr
Demary Jr.	1.5	6.5	Steals Per Game	5.8	1.4	Miller
Thomasson	28.2		Minutes Per Game		35.4	Sallis

The Starting 5...

Georgia travels to Wake Forest on Sunday to face the Demon Deacons in the second round of the NIT and the second time this season.
On Nov. 10 in Athens, the second game of the 2023-24 campaign, Noah Thomasson's 21-point performance led five Bulldogs in double figures in an 80-77 win over Wake Forest.
With Tuesday's 78-76 win over Xavier, Georgia improved to 9-8 in games that were one-possession contests in the final 5:00 and 7-5 in matchups that were separated by three points or less in the final 30 seconds of regulation.
Mike White improved to 9-0 in first-round games of the NCAA Tournament and NIT with Tuesday's victory over Xavier. All told, White is 14-8 (.636) in the postseason, 6-4 in NCAAs and 8-4 in NITs.
Georgia entered the weekend ranked No. 20 nationally in bench scoring at 28.8 ppg. The Bulldogs' bench has outscored the opponents' reserves in 27 of 34 games en route to compiling a season scoring margin of +345...or +10.2 ppg.

The Opening Tip

The Georgia Bulldogs will trek to Winston-Salem, N.C., to face Wake Forest's Demon Deacons in the second round of the NIT on Sunday at 4:00 p.m. Georgia enters the contest at 18-16 after Tuesday's 78-76 win over Xavier in Athens.

That outing continued a common storyline for the Bulldogs this season.

All told, half of Georgia's 34 contests were one-possession games in the final 5:00. Georgia is 9-8 in those. Of those, 12 were still within three points in the final 30 seconds of regulation. The Bulldogs are 7-5 in those.

The first of those nail-biters was an 80-77 win over Wake Forest back on Nov. 10 in Athens.

Reflecting on that contest begs the reminder that Georgia was the only Power conference team in the nation that: 1) opened the season with back-to-back matchups against other Power conference programs; and 2) faced Power conference opposition in four of its first five games.

The 2023-24 campaign also has been a streaky one for Georgia, which recorded double-digit winning streaks both overall (10 from No. 24-Jan. 10) and at home (10 from Nov. 11-Jan. 10).

Graduate transfer Noah Thomasson is the Bulldogs' leading scorer at 12.7 ppg and also paces Georgia with 24 double-digit and four 20-point performances.

Jabri Abdur-Rahim is scoring at a double-figure pace for the Bulldogs as well at 12.2 ppg, largely due to sporting team-high shooting percentages of .356 from 3-point range and .887 at the free throw line. However, Abdur-Rahim missed the last five games due to an injury, the first DNPs of his career at Georgia. Prior to that, Abdur-Rahim had played in 93 straight contests.

RJ Melendez upped his scoring average to exactly 10.0 ppg with his 14-point evening against Xavier that also featured four steals.

A balanced offensive attack features four more Bulldogs contributing between 7.2-9.7 ppg.

Keeping An Eye On…

Jabri Abdur-Rahim is among UGA's career leaders...
• 3 3FGs from co No. 13s Ty Wilson and Ray Harrison
• 9 3FGs from No. 12 Kentavious Caldwell-Pope
• 2 3FGAs from No. 14 Turtle Jackson
• 9 3FGAs from No. 13 Sundiata Gaines

Noah Thomasson is among UGA's season leaders...
• 2 3FGs from co-No. 11s Anthony Edwards and Levi Stukes
• 5 3FGs from No. 10 D.A. Layne
• 8 3FGAs from No. 8 Kentavious Caldwell-Pope

UGA's NIT History

The Bulldogs are making their 15th appearance in the NIT and now have a 14-14 all-time record in the tournament.

Georgia earned its first postseason bid of any kind to the 1981 NIT and also participated in 1982, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1993, 1995, 1998, 1999, 2004, 2007, 2014, 2016 and 2017.

The Bulldogs' best NIT finishes came in 1982 and 1998 when they advanced to the semifinal round. Georgia lost to Purdue, 61-60, in the 1982 semis. The Bulldogs fell to Penn State, 66-60, in the 1998 semis but bounced back to defeat Fresno State, 95-79, in the third-place consolation contest.

Series History With Wake

Georgia owns a 5-3 advantage in all-time meetings with Wake Forest in a series that dates back well over a century to Feb. 1913.

The Bulldogs and Demon Deacons met on in the second game of each of Georgia's past two seasons on Nov. 10, 2022 and Nov. 11, 2023. The home team won each contest.

Last fall in Athens, Noah Thomasson's 21-point performance led a quintet of Bulldogs in double figures in an 80-77 win at Stegeman Coliseum. Jabri Abdur-Rahim added 17 points, Russel Tchewa chipped in 11 and Silas Demary Jr. and RJ Melendez both notched 10.

After trailing by as many as eight points early, the Bulldogs used a 20-4 surge en route to building a 40-36 halftime advantage. Georgia pushed its lead to as many as 13 points at 73-60 with 7:34 remaining. The Demon Deacons rallied and pulled with three with 43 seconds left but could not complete the comeback.

Last season in Winston-Salem, Wake withstood a furious late-game rally by Georgia to secure an 81-71 victory.

The Demon Deacons led by 19 points at halftime and withstood several attempts by the Bulldogs to chip away at that margin. Georgia finally made some headway with an 18-4 surge that cut the gap to eight with 1:21 left; however, Wake connected on 8-of-9 trips to the free-throw line thereafter.

Scouting The Demon Deacons

Wake Forest improved to 21-13 overall with an 87-76 win over Appalachian State in the opening round of the NIT on Wednesday. The Demon Deacons finished 9-11 in ACC action, tying for fifth.

Four Demon Deacons have started every game this season and are scoring at a double-digit pace. Hunter Sallis is averaging a team-high 18.0 ppg, while Kevin Miller adds 15.6 ppg, Cameron Hildreth chips in 13.9 ppg and Andrew Carr contributes 12.9 ppg. Efton Reid paces the Demon Deacons on the glass at 7.8 ppg.

Last Time Out

Georgia built a 23-point second-half lead and then withstood an Xavier rally to secure a 78-76 win over the Musketeers on Tuesday at Stegeman Coliseum.

Silas Demary Jr. led four Bulldogs in double digits with 16 points, including the decisive layup with 25.4 seconds remaining. RJ Melendez and Justin Hill scored 14 and 10 points off the bench for Georgia, leading the Bulldogs to a 35-7 scoring edge among reserves.

Georgia led 65-42 following a Jalen DeLoach layup with 13:25. Desmond Claude sparked Xavier's comeback, scoring 17 of his game-high 30 points thereafter. The Musketeers closed to within 76-74 at the 1:35 mark and regained possession before a Melendez steal led to Demary's layup.

"The way we played the first 30 minutes, I thought we played really, really well, as well as we've played all year," head coach Mike White said. "We've got another opportunity potentially Saturday or Sunday, correct? Maybe we can put together 40 (minutes) of playing at that level."

There is no Denying Bulldogs Are Better

Georgia wrapped up the regular season with the same records as a year ago – at 16-15 overall and 6-12 in the SEC. However, most who have watched the Bulldogs this season would agree they have made considerable improvement.

For any doubters, there is quantifiable data.

Of note, the Bulldogs' scoring differential in conference games went from -13.0 ppg in 2022-23 to -3.9 ppg this season. Georgia did so after – according to KenPom, not us – the Bulldogs played the fifth toughest SEC schedule this winter...as opposed to the ninth hardest in 2022-23.

Georgia's improvement is validated even more within Ken Pomeroy's and other popular metric assessments. Entering the NIT, six of the most commonly utilized computer models had the Bulldogs up between 29-82 positions higher nationally from last season – an average of 53.9 spots per metric.

	22-23	23-24	Diff.

Overall.	16-15	16-15	–
SEC	6-12	6-12	–
Torvik	159	77	+82
KenPom	154	90	+64
BPI	148	85	+63
NET	152	100	+52
SOR	119	96	+33
KPI	121	92	+29
Avg.	142.2	88.3	+53.9

Mike White Continues Impressive Postseason Record

With Georgia's win over Xavier, Mike White improved to 9-0 in opening-round games of the NCAA Tournament and NIT. All told, White is now a combined 14-8 in those postseason tournaments – 6-4 in the NCAAs and 8-4 in the NIT.

While at Florida, White was the only SEC coach to lead his teams to NCAA bids in every tournament between 2017-21...and the Gators were a lock for the canceled edition of "March Madness" in 2020.

Florida also was one of only six Division I programs to win a game in each of those four NCAA tourneys from 2017-21 along with Kansas, Gonzaga, Michigan, Villanova and Florida State. Headlining those bids was the Gators' trip of the 2017 "Elite Eight."

In the NIT, White was 5-3 at Louisiana Tech including road wins at Florida State in 2013, Georgia in 2014 and Texas A&M in 2015, 2-1 at Florida and 1-0 at Georgia.

White's postseason success dates back to his career as a four-year starter at Ole Miss, where he helped the Rebels to their first back-to-back NCAA Tournament bids in 1997 and 1998 and added a third straight in 1999. White lists dribbling out the clock against Villanova for the first Ole Miss NCAA Tournament win ever during his senior season in 1999 as the most memorable moment of his playing career.

Demary Returns To Home State

Expect a large and loud crowd of family and friends at Sunday's game to support Raleigh native Silas Demary Jr.

Demary Jr. played at Millbrook High School as a freshman and sophomore and helped lead the Wildcats to a perfect 19-0 record and the Class 4A state championship in 2021. He made two key plays in the closing seconds of a 67-65 win over Ardrey Kell High in the state title tilt – converting a pair of free throws with just over 10 seconds left and then stealing the ensuing inbounds pass and scoring on a layup to clinch the win.

Demary Jr. played his junior season at Liberty Heights Athletic Institute in Charlotte and his senior year at Combine Academy in Lincolnton.

Bulldogs' Bench Providing Productivity

Georgia entered this weekend ranked No. xx nationally in benching scoring at 28.8 ppg – 38.5 percent of the Bulldogs' scoring average of 74.9 ppg.

The Bulldogs' reserves have outscored their counterparts in 27 of 34 games, including 16 straight from the season opener against Oregon on Nov. 6 to a Jan. 20 trip to No. 8/10 Kentucky.

Georgia sports an impressive +345 scoring margin in bench points – an advantage of +10.2 ppg.

Bulldogs, Deacons Differ On Number Of Starting Sets

Eleven Bulldogs have been used to comprise 11 different starting fives this season. Russel Tchewa and Noah Thomasson are the only 34-game starters, while Silas Demary Jr. started every game other than "Senior Day."

Georgia mixed and matched seven players to form three different starting quintets over the first 10 outings. The Bulldogs then settled into the same starting unit for the next 10 contests.

Over the last 11 regular-season games, Georgia used eight different sets of starters.

Eight Demon Deacons have been used to comprise three starting lineups this season. Andrew Carr, Cameron Hildreth, Kevin Miller and Hunter Sallis have gotten the nod for all 34 games.

Georgia's Magic Number Is On The "Other" End of The Floor

The 13th and final rule Dr. James Naismith listed when creating basketball was "The side making the most goals in that time shall be declared the winner." Quite simply, the team that scores the most points wins.

For Georgia, the number of points the opposing team scores has been an extremely strong indicator of success during Mike White's two seasons with the Bulldogs.

Georgia is 27-2 when holding its opponents under 70 points during White's tenure...and 7-30 when opponents reach the 70-point plateau. The losses on that ledger were a 66-67 setback at LSU on Feb. 27 and a 61-55 decision at South Carolina in the 2022-23 regular-season finale.

Another Nail-Biter For The Bulldogs

Georgia's NIT victory over Xavier was not decided until the final horn, upping the number of "close games" for Georgia this season to 17.

Of the Bulldogs' 34 games to date...
• 17 have been a one-possession game in the last five minutes. Georgia is 9-8 in those games.
• 15 have been a one-possession game in the last 90 seconds. Georgia is 7-8 in those games.
• 12 have been a one-possession game in the last 30 seconds. Georgia is 7-5 in those games.

Bulldogs' Freshmen Making Their Mark

Georgia's freshmen have made a impressive impact this season, particularly in SEC play.

Blue Cain, Silas Demary Jr. and Dylan James have all got a starting nod in the Bulldogs' last five games – the first time a trio of freshmen started for Georgia since Anthony Edwards, Toumani Camara and Sahvir Wheeler did so in the 2020 SEC Tournament.

Cain and Demary are two of only SEC eight freshman who logged 20.0 mpg in conference outings this season. James has seen his playing time jump significantly of late, averaging 16.0 mpg in the last 12 games.

Demary, who was named to the league's All-Freshman team in balloting of league coaches, leads all SEC freshman in games started, both overall (33) and in SEC action (17). The lone game he was not on the floor for the opening tip was against Texas A&M on "Senior Day." Demary was one of only five freshmen in the SEC who averaged double figures in conference action at 10.5 ppg.

Cain, who made his first career start at LSU on Feb. 27, was one of just 10 SEC freshmen who scored 6.5 ppg or more in league games. He has done much of his damage from 3-point range, with 43 of his 95 field goals (45.3 percent) coming from behind the arc.

In addition to his increased playing time, James is averaging 4.5 ppg and 3.4 rpg in Georgia's last 12 contests, more than double the 2.1 ppg and 1.4 rpg he contributed in seven games played during the Bulldogs' first 22 outings of the season.

Some Big Numbers for UGA "Seniors"

Georgia honored seven players on "Senior Day" against Texas A&M, even though the group features a trio of graduate transfers.

Those Bulldogs included first-year grad transfers RJ Sunahara, Russel Tchewa and Noah Thomasson; second-season seniors Frank Anselem-Ibe, Justin Hill and Matthew-Alexander Moncrieffe; and third-year senior Jabri Abdur-Rahim.

That septet – we googled it – of Bulldogs has combined to comprise some pretty massive statistics as NCAA basketball players. Those totals, with the D-I statistical leader, are listed below.

Stat	No.	Leader
Seven Seniors' Totals
Games played	781	Tchewa	138
Games started	437	Tchewa, Thomasson	94
Minutes	17,030	Thomasson	3,329
Points	6,925	Thomasson	1,458
Rebounds	3,047	Tchewa	22
Assists	1,140	Hill	416
Blocks	371	Anselem-Ibe	54
Steals	482	Hill	110

Hill Continues Milestone Stretch

Justin Hill has notched a trio of significant statistical markers over the past nine games.

During his 17-point performance against Missouri in the SEC Tournament, Hill surpassed 1,300 points for his career. More significant than reaching the milestone was the setting. Hill's jumper at the 3:36 mark to top 1,300 points also ignited the Bulldogs' 12-0 run to end the game.

On Feb. 21 at Vanderbilt, Hill delivered the 400th assist of his career. He now has 416 which, entering this weekend ranked No. 90 on the NCAA's career leaders ledger of Division I players.

On March 2 against Texas A&M, Hill collected the 400th rebound of his career.

Thomasson Making Moves Among UGA's 3-Point Leaders

Noah Thomasson has now connected on 70-of-206 3-point attempts this season, tallies that rank among the most by a Bulldog during a single season.

With six 3-pointers in the last three games, Thomasson went from No. 19 to No. 13 among Georgia's all-time season leaders.

The Houston native's 206 shots from behind the arc is No. 7 among all Bulldogs.

Tchewa's Numbers, Efficiency Increase Considerably In SEC play

Russel Tchewa increased his production and efficiency considerably during SEC action. Nine of his 12 double-figure scoring outputs and all six of his double-digit rebound counts came during league play. Those outings produced Tchewa's team-leading five double-doubles on the year.

After averaging 6.1 ppg in 13 non-conference games, Tchewa upped that to 9.3 ppg against SEC foes – an increase of 3.2 ppg.

After averaging 6.3 rpg in November and December, he grabbed 7.2 rpg in league outings – an increase of 0.9 rpg.

After shooting 49.1 percent from the field in non-conference action, Tchewa converted on 59.4 percent versus conference competition – an increase of 10.3 percent.

Tchewa's playing time also saw a significant jump during 2024. He logged 22.2 minutes of action in non-conference contests but then played 28.1 mpg in the SEC – an increase of 5.9 mpg.

Individual Scoring In SEC Action Up

Four Bulldogs boosted their point production from non-conference outings to SEC competition, led by Russel Tchewa's increase of 3.2 ppg as outlined below.

Player	Non	SEC
SEC Individual Increases
Noah Thomasson	12.5	13.4
Silas Demary Jr.	8.5	10.5
Justin Hill	8.5	9.1
Russel Tchewa	6.1	9.3

Bulldogs Notch Fourth Road Win

Georgia's victory at Vanderbilt represented the Bulldogs' fourth road win of the season.

"Good for you" would probably be the best passive, aggressive, condescending response.

It is good for the Bulldogs, considering it took Georgia 37 road games (as in a 4-33 record) over four seasons to win four road games prior to this season. The four road Ws in 2023-24 are the most Georgia has recorded in a season since the 2017-18 campaign.

A Lot Of Entertaining Outings During The Losing Streak

Georgia's losing streak from Jan. 27-Feb. 17 featured six competitive and dramatic contests.

The Bulldogs rallied from 21 points down to force overtime at Florida before falling 102-98.

Georgia then owned double-digit leads over both No. 24/22 Alabama and South Carolina before the Tide and Gamecocks rallied. The Bulldogs led for a combined 56:55 of those contests – 33:49 against Alabama and 23:06 versus South Carolina.

Georgia trimmed a 13-point deficit to three before Mississippi State surged to victory.

The Bulldogs matchup at Arkansas on Feb. 10 featured three ties and five lead changes in the final 3:47 before the Razorbacks secured a three-point decision.

Georgia again led for more than half the game – 21:11 to be exact – and built an 11-point, first-half edge over Florida in Athens before the Gators rallied in the second stanza.

Abdur-Rahim, Melendez Own Top-5 Season FT Percentage Marks

Jabri Abdur-Rahim and RJ Melendez now own two of the five best single-season free throw percentages in Georgia history. A minimum of 50 makes are required for inclusion on the Bulldogs' all-time single-season free throw percentage leaders' ledger.

Abdur-Rahim surpassed that standard during the Mount St. Mary's game on Dec. 20, just the 11th outing of the season. He has now connected on 118-of-133 (.887) free throws, the third-best percentage in school history.

Melendez met the 50 makes standard versus No. 24/22 Alabama on Jan. 31. He is currently 59-of-67 at the line this season, an 88.1 percent conversion rate that is No. 5 all-time among Bulldogs.

Jabri Sets Game Mark, Joins Career Percentage Line Leaders too

In addition to his aforementioned season efforts, Jabri Abdur-Rahim shares Georgia's best game free throw percentage and is among the best career converters too. Minimums of 9 and 125 made free throws are needed to be featured among UGA's those rankings.

Abdur-Rahim's school-record 10-of-10 effort against Mount St. Mary's tied Georgia's single-game record, the 15th time a Bulldog converted on nine or more FTs in a single contest.

Abdur-Rahim has connected on 238-of-285 FTs while at Georgia, a sizzling 83.5 percent that currently has him at No. 2 all-time among Bulldogs.

"Don't Look, Ethel!"...Of Bulldogs' Winning Streaks & Stuff

Georgia's 2023-24 season has been of the streaky nature.

Georgia put together a 10-game winning streak from Nov. 24-Jan. 10, tying the fourth-longest in program history and the longest in 75 years since the 1947-48 season.

Within their 12-3 start, the Bulldogs were 10-0 at Stegeman, equaling the seventh-longest home winning streak and the fifth-longest home streak since in 1964.

A Challenging Slate Out Of The Gate

Georgia was the only Power conference team to open the 2023-24 season with back-to-back outings against other Power conference programs. The Bulldogs began the year against Oregon in a Naismith Hall of Fame Series date at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas before hosting Wake Forest.

The Power heavy schedule didn't stop there.

Georgia played four of its first five, five of its first seven and six of its first nine games against Power conference foes. The Dogs faced Miami and Providence at the Baha Mar Hoops Bahamas Championship and earned wins at Florida State on Nov. 29 and over Georgia Tech on Dec. 5.

Cain, Demary Make Their Marks In Collegiate Debuts

Blue Cain and Silas Demary Jr. made key contributions for Georgia in their collegiate debuts against Oregon in the Naismith Hall of Fame Classic.

Demary became the first true freshman to get a starting nod for the Bulldogs in a season opener since Anthony Edwards in 2019. The Raleigh, N.C., native produced a thorough linescore of eight points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals.

Cain became the first true freshman to notch a double-digit scoring output in the season opener since Edwards and Sahvir Wheeler did so in 2019. Cain posted 12 points off the bench by connecting on 5-of-11 shots from the field and matched Demary for the team high with two steals.

Newest Bulldogs Rated Highly

Georgia was one of three programs with both its freshman and transfer recruiting classes ranked among the nation's top-20 groups by On3.com. The Bulldogs' five transfers were tabbed as at No. 11, while the freshmen were featured at No. 18.

All four of Georgia's freshmen were rated as top-100 prospects in the Class of 2023 by various recruiting services. Their highest individual rankings were: Blue Cain at No. 53 by On3.com, Silas Demary Jr. at No. 56 by Rivals.com, Dylan James at No. 78 in the 247Sports.com and Mari Jordan at No. 87 by ESPN.com.

Designer Genes

We believe that Georgia Basketball's family tree may be the most athletic in the country. Almost every Bulldog has immediate family who competed at the collegiate or professional levels, including:

Jabri Abdur-Rahim – his dad, Shareef, was a 2000 Olympic Gold Medalist, 2002 NBA All-Star and current president of the NBA's G League; and five of his uncles (Amir, Muhammad, Tahir, Bilal and Malik) played college basketball.

Blue Cain – his mom, the former Myriah Lonergan, played basketball at George Washington and is in GWU's Athletic Hall of Fame; his dad, Chris, played golf at Duke; and his sister, Sophie, is a senior setter on Appalachian State's volleyball team.

Jalen DeLoach – his brother, Kalen, is in his third season as a starting linebacker at Florida State; and his sister, Taylor, was a Big Ten champion in the 400-meter relay at Ohio State.

Silas Demary Jr. – his dad, Silas Sr., played at Virginia State and was the 2005 Arena Football League Defensive Player of the Year for the L.A. Avengers.

Justin Hill – his dad, Keith, played basketball at Michigan State and New Mexico State, where he helped the Aggies reach the NCAA Tourney; his mom, the former Donna Holt, played basketball at Virginia, where she was 1988 ACC Player of the Year and was named to the ACC's Silver Anniversary team in 2002;

Dylan James – his brother, Dorian, is a redshirt senior of North Florida's basketball team; and two additional siblings – brother Darius and sister Charla – played basketball at Lynn University.

Markel Jennings – is distant cousins on his dad's side with NFL players Vernon and Vontae Davis, who both were multiple Pro Bowl selections.

Brandon Klatsky – his dad, Brian, played college basketball at DIII Skidmore; and his brother, Alex, is a redshirt senior on Florida's basketball team.

Jaden Newell – his brother, Asa, the No. 8 overall prospect in 247Sports.com Class of 2024 composite rankings, has signed to join him in Athens next season.

RJ Sunahara – his dad, Reed, was a two-time All-American in volleyball at UCLA and is the current women's volleyball coach at West Virginia; his mom, the former Laura Rekstis, played volleyball at Cincinnati; his grandfather, Peter Rekstis, played football at Cincinnati; his uncle, Chet Moeller, played football at Navy and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2010.

Noah Thomasson – his dad, Leon, played football at Texas Southern and for the Atlanta Falcons; and he's distant cousins with Spud Webb on his mom's size.