Women's Basketball Tips Off Guzzardo Era vs. West Georgia

Game Information

Georgia (0-0, 0-0 SEC) vs. West Georgia (0-0, 0-0 SEC)
Monday, Nov. 2 || 5 p.m.
Stegeman Coliseum (10,523) || Athens, Ga.
SEC Network + (Matt Stewart, Niya Butts)
Listen to Jeff Dantzler on 960 AM The Ref, ESPN 103.7 FM or the Georgia Bulldogs Sports App.

SERIES VS. WEST GEORGIA
OVERALL Series Tied, 5-5
IN ATHENS Georgia Leads, 4-2
IN CARROLLTON UWG Leads, 1-3
NEUTRAL Never Met, 0-0
LAST MEETING Georgia won 83-70 (12/8/79)

Opening Tip Storylines

» Georgia welcomes the West Georgia Wolves Monday evening for a 5 p.m. tip inside Stegeman Coliseum. The season opener is part of a doubleheader with the men's basketball team, which hosts NC Central.

» The Lady Bulldogs raise the curtain on their 53rd season with a 1,108-518 (.681) overall record. That win total ranks second in the SEC (behind Tennessee) and 19th nationally among all DI women's basketball programs.

» Georgia owns a 44-9 mark in season-opening games and has won 20-straight lid-lifters dating back to the 2005-06 season (L, 84-72 to No. 6 Baylor). The Lady Bulldogs are 31-2 in season-opening home contests.

» This season marks a new era in Athens with Head Coach Ayla Guzzardo at the helm of the Lady Bulldogs. Guzzardo arrived in Athens after engineering a 19-win improvement in her lone season with McNeese State, taking the team from a 10-21 record the year before her arrival to a 29-6 mark during the 2025-26 campaign.

» This year's Georgia's roster is made up of two returners in sophomore Aubrey Beckham and senior Vera Ojenuwa.

» The Lady Bulldogs have 11 fresh faces in Athens this season. Some notable additions include: sophomore Dakota Howard (McNeese State, 12.9 ppg, 6.1 rpg), senior Jailyn Banks (Belmont, 15.4 ppg), sophomore Milan Brown (Wake Forest, 9.0 ppg, 6.3 rpg), Junior Nya Smith (Purdue, 8.0 ppg) and senior Jordana Codio (Seton Hall, 12.5 ppg, 4.3 rpg).

TEAM COMPARISON

LADY BULLDOGS Ranking: RV Head Coach: Ayla Guzzardo Career Record: 151-111 (10th season) Record at Georgia: (first season)		WOLVES Ranking: NR Head Coach: Joanna Reitz Career Record: 60-59 (5th season) Record at UWG: 60-59 (5th season)

	TEAM COMPARISON
73.6	POINTS PER GAME	73.0
44.9	FG%	42.1
33.2	3FG%	33.0
71.8	FT%	70.4
36.8	REBOUNDS PER GAME	38.3
13.8	ASSISTS PER GAME	11.3
2.7	BLOCKS PER GAME	2.4
7.9	STEALS PER GAME	8.0
62.1	SCORING DEFENSE	68.3
38.5	FG% DEFENSE	40.5
30.2	3FG% DEFENSE	33.0
+2.7	REBOUND MARGIN	+1.4
1.0	AST - TO RATIO	0.7

New Look for the Lady Bulldogs

Coach Ayla Guzzardo is kicking off her first season as head coach at Georgia and her 10th year as a collegiate head coach.

Before arriving in Athens, Guzzardo made history at McNeese State, engineering the best single-season turnaround in NCAA women's basketball. After finishing 10–21 the previous season, McNeese State exploded to a school-record 29 wins during the 2025–26 season.

Familiar Faces in Athens

Georgia has two returning players in Vera Ojenuwa and Aubrey Beckham. With 4.1 rpg, Ojenuwa is one of the stronger rebounders the Lady Bulldogs have to offer. Beckham was sidelined due to a knee injury she suffered before the season. The highly-touted Beckham was a five-star prospect and ranked No. 49 nationally in the class of 2025 by ESPN.com following a stellar high school career.

New Dawgs on the Block

Georgia signed Belmont's leading scorer Jailyn Banks in this year's transfer portal class. The incoming senior and native of Spring Hill, Tenn., led the Bruins with 15.4 ppg. The point guard tallied 21 games last season and was named the 2025 WBIT All-Tournament Team.

The Lady Bulldogs also inked 5th year Seton Hall transfer Jordana Codio. The Winter Garden, Fla. native averaged 12.5 ppg and 4.3 boards last season for the Pirates. Codio was a 2026 BIG EAST All-Tournament Team selection following a 35-point performance against St. Johns in the quarterfinals.

Incoming sophomore Milan Brown also joins the Lady Bulldog squad following an impressive freshman campaign at Wake Forest. The Baltimore, Md. native was named to the 2026 ACC All-Freshman Team after leading the Demons Deacons in rebounding, averaging 6.3 boards per game.

Double Threat Follows Guzzardo

Coach Guzzardo brings a duo of talented players with her from McNeese State in sophomore Dakota Howard and junior Tyreona Sibley.

Howard led the Cowgirls in scoring and rebounding last season, averaging 12.9 ppg and rebounds 6.1 rpg. The SLC Freshman of the Year also tallied an impressive 95 steals on the season.

Sibley averaged 8.3 ppg, 2.1 assists and 5.3 rebounds last season for the Cowgirls, playing in every game.

Defensive Identity

Coach Guzzardo's teams are known for their defensive identity. Last season, McNeese State ranked fifth nationally in points allowed per game, giving up just 52.8 points per game.

Georgia Culture

Coach Guzzardo has assembled a staff that brings together the best of her previous stops while also welcoming new coaches with fresh perspectives. Together, Guzzardo and four staff members she brought with her from previous stops tally 32 combined years of coaching experience.

Sister Dawg Duo

Freshman Alanna Beckham joins her sister Aubrey in Athens. She made four state championship appearances and was a three-time champion in her time at Hebron Christian Academy. Alanna was a McDonald's All-American nominee and averaged 17 ppg, five rebounds and four assists her senior season. She leaves her high school with a 123-5 win-loss record.

A Winning Tradition

Georgia women's basketball stands among the most elite programs in the SEC and the country. The Lady Bulldogs rank second in SEC history and 19th nationally with 1,108 all-time wins – one of just six league teams to reach the 1,000-victory mark (Tennessee, Georgia, LSU, South Carolina, Auburn and Texas). Georgia is tied for second in total conference victories (352) and third, behind Tennessee and South Carolina, with seven league championships.

Full Game Notes (PDF)

For a full game notes packet the game, CLICK HERE.

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Players Mentioned

Jailyn Banks

Alanna Beckham

Aubrey Beckham

Milan Brown

Jordana Codio

Dakota Howard

Vera Ojenuwa

Tyreona Sibley

Nya Smith

University of Georgia Athletics