Sports

Both teams have opened the quarter with a sense of urgency by throwing the ball down field. That is what we were all wanting in the press box. This game needs a little more excitement. UCF has a drive going as night falls. They gain a first down at the UGA twenty six yard line.

UCF Scores a touchdown and is now up 10-6 with 9:01 left in the game. Also, rely on my Twitter for the remainder of the game. I will soon leave to make it to the post game press conferences. That is @dayneyoung on twitter http://twitter.com/#!/dayneyoung It has been a pleasure to update this and I will update and recap the game as I can.  Please look at the Twitter for updates as soon as I can give them to you. It has been a pleasure. Live from Memphis, I’m Dayne Young for WUOG.

Dawgs-6  UCF-10

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Georgia pulled off a 64-57 victory over Eastern Kentucky in a game Coach Fox said his team was “lucky to get a win.” While Georgia came into this game on a seven-game win streak, EKU had lost their last three, averaging just 52 points during the stretch. What was perhaps seen as a final tuneup game before SEC play begins on January 8th, turned into a back-and-forth struggle to the end.

Georgia opened the game well, scoring six unanswered points in the paint. Their first 14 points continued in that fashion and it seemed Georgia would be well on their way to another victory. But as any observer would have noticed this season, Georgia hasn’t shown it can consistently kill off weaker competition.

EKU managed to turn the game into a jump-shooting contest and Georgia were more than happy to oblige despite their obvious size advantage. The game began slipping away from Georgia, as sloppy turnovers and poor shooting allowed EKU to grow in confidence and get back into the game. Georgia led by just one at halftime, 34-33.

The start of the second half didn’t yield much better results from Georgia. EKU stormed out to a 6-2 run thanks to two Georgia turnovers. EKU held the lead until the 11:46 mark in the second half and tied the game again with just 7:17 remaining. It was only then that Georgia finally returned to what got them the early lead: easy points in the paint. Trey Thompkins took over the late stages of the game shooting 4/5 from the field and hitting two free throws. Combined with some wizardry from Gerald Robinson, a monster Travis-Leslieesque alley-oop followed by a behind-the-back assist, and Georgia was able put the game out of reach.

Coach Fox was “not pleased at all” with his team. “If I don’t start coaching better and we don’t start playing better, we’re going to be in for a long 2011.” Frustrated with the team’s routine of letting teams hang around, Fox said “We can’t wait until six minutes left to start playing like we’re capable.” Though none of the players were happy with the overall performance, Thompkins did add that during the final stretch he started to feel like he was getting his rhythm back. EKU Coach Jeff Neubauer was complimentary of Thompkins, stating, “He’s a special player…we tried to keep the ball away from him.”

Luckily for Georgia, they weren’t able to.

Notes: Coach Fox wouldn’t say much about the team’s upcoming game next week against Kentucky as he hadn’t studied them yet, but did add “We’re playing in the SEC East, so we have a lot of wars ahead of us.”

I talked to Gerald Robinson about his monster jam in the second half. When I told him I didn’t know he could jump like that he replied, “Come on man I can jump. Just wait, I’ll show you some more stuff. I got some more tricks up my sleeve.” Anyone care to see a dunk contest between he and Leslie?

Connor Nolte sprained his ankle during his 1 minute today. He was walking around and will be ready to go against Kentucky. Nolte was happy to say he played his last game with the mask today.

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The Dawgs are in Memphis where they will face off against the UCF Knights tomorrow in the Liberty Bowl. I got up to Memphis today and can tell you that the town is full of Dawg fans, as well as Knights. Georgia will wear white jerseys tomorrow, but one of the most famous Dawgs will not be in attendance. UGA VIII has a gastro-intestinal condition and will have Russ fill in for him. Russ has not fared well this year with a 2-4 record when he is on the sideline. He was present for the win over Georgia Tech last season.

UCF is the Conference USA Champion and has a record of 10-3 this season. They start a Freshman QB in Jeffrey Godfrey. Check back here tomorrow for my live blog of the game and much more info.

Here is a video of the Georgia Redcoat Band at the Liberty Bowl Parade. I apologize for the format of the video, I’m learning how to shoot video with my Ipod.

Georgia faced Arkansas State after an 11-day layoff in Stegeman Coliseum, pulling out the win 68-59. Coach Mark Fox was proud of his team for getting the win, particularly Chris Barnes, who Fox called “terrific”,  going 5-6 from the field and finishing with 12 points and three rebounds. Trey Thompkins led all scorers with 15 points.

Despite earning a 20-point lead deep into the second half, the game was not without some drama. Arkansas State battled back and was within two possessions of tying the game, but a steal from Jeremy Price and two free throws from Dustin Ware ensured Georgia another home victory.

Fox credited Arkansas State for battling throughout the game but was disappointed with his team for a lack of concentration with the lead. “We haven’t established the ability to play well with the lead,” Fox stated, adding, “As we get ahead, we lose attention to detail.” Barnes said the team needs to learn how to finish teams off and Gerald Robinson didn’t think his team was playing hard enough. The phrase “step on their throats” was used multiple times by both players, perhaps echoing a theme from the lengthy post-game speech.

It’s possible the 11-day layoff between games also played a role in the late comeback for Arkansas State. Fox dismissed the idea but Barnes said it did play a factor.

Fox was hopeful that experience in these situations will improve the team’s ability to finish games off. “It’s an area we haven’t matured in but that comes with experience” Fox noted. Robinson said it was something they will continue to work on in the next few games before SEC play kicks on January 8th when Kentucky comes to town.

Of course, it’s somewhat of a good problem to have. As Fox pointed out, it’s better than the opposite — playing poorly when you have a deficit.

In a lighter note, Coach Fox and Chris Barnes have a standing bet that Fox has to run the Sanford Stadium steps anytime Barnes hits two free throws in a row, a feat Barnes accomplished in the second half. Fox hoped Barnes wouldn’t remember, but the big man smiled and said, “I haven’t forgotten. I’ll be out there to watch him.” (more…)

Credit David Goldman, AP

Quotable Quotes

Head Coach Mark Fox

“Well that was certainly a hard fought basketball game.  We beat a real solid Georgia Tech team and I thought their kids played really hard, I thought our kids played extremely hard and we feel like we’re leaving here with a good win.”

On Dustin Ware

“Dustin Ware, I told my staff last night, he’s going to shot the ball well.  He shot well at practice last night and I really felt like he was going to shoot it well.  Give credit to Gerald Robinson who made a great pass, he found the open man and Dustin was ready to stick it in the basket.  That’s certainly a big basket for our program.”

On playing in close games

“You can practice special situations every day, but there’s not the consequence of losing.  The fact that we’ve been in a lot of close games, that’s good experience for us.  It certainly paid it’s dividends tonight, because late in the game we didn’t panic…I think we played like a mature group.”

Unfortunately I wasn’t able to get over to any players so you’ll just have to get those somewhere else.

Final Thoughts

Once again, it wasn’t pretty, but you’ll take it.  As my friend and co-host Josh Kinsey texted me, “A win is a win! Suck it RPI!”  Indeed, suck it RPI.

But really though, I know a lot of fans will take this win with a grain of salt considering how poorly Georgia Tech had been playing coming into this game, but I think you should take this win with some perspective:

-Tech is a little better than they seem.  Sure they lost to Kennesaw State and got blasted by Northwestern, but they also played a close game to Syracuse, then #9 in the country.  Wins and losses aside, Tech is a talented basketball team, what they lack is direction and that is why Paul Hewitt is on the hot seat every year.

-Georgia is a little worse than they seem.  But they’re getting better.  Georgia began this season with the Pre-Season SEC Player of the Year (Thompkins) and a First Team Pre-Season SEC (Leslie).  Then Thompkins got hurt.  Then Leslie had to pick up the load offensively where he usually fed off of Thompkins.  He assumed the role.  Then Thompkins came back.  Then, and now, Leslie is struggling to find his spot.  Against UAB, that wasn’t a problem because Price was able to bail him out, tonight it was Ware.  Fox admits though, Thompkins does not look “in rhythm” and Leslie is struggling a bit (he had 4 points and four fouls).  Admittedly, that’s not what you want to see out of a team like this, but compared to last Friday this team already looks better.  As opposed to a second half regression, Georgia shot 48.4% from the field and 63.6% from three, compared to 40% and 45.5%, respectively.  They came in focused in the second half and eventually won the game.  Really, you can’t ask for much else.  If you think I’m being nice, read the next bullet.

-The Bulldogs shot 7-15 (46.7%) from the free-throw line.  That. Is. Pathetic.  For any team that wants to smell March, much less the SEC title, there are two things you must do well: hit threes and hit free-throws.  After going 0-4 in the first and 7-11 in the second, I’ll admit, that’s progress.  But what’s more important is when they missed them.  Thompkins missed a one-and-one with less than a couple minutes remaining.  Robinson missed both with 4.5 seconds remaining and the score at 73-72.  Luckily Tech’s inbounds play was foiled by Travis Leslie, but still.  Good teams, not even “great” teams make their free throws.  At least when they count.  Period.

-The zone defense, while better played in the second half, is still giving these guys problems.  Without a consistent outside threat, Georgia can expect to see the 2-3 for the rest of the season.  Tech guard Brian Oliver admitted they knew Georgia wasn’t a great shooting team so they forced their hand.  And while the three party was great in the second, that kind of heat won’t be there every night.

All that aside, though.  A great win for Georgia who hadn’t won in Tech in 10 years.  This team is resilient, I’ll give them that, and they certainly entertain us, don’t they?  Hopefully these next couple games against Arkansas State, High Point, etc. will be a bit more entertaining, but for all the right reasons.

Oh yeah player of the game, of course, is Dustin Ware.

7-9 FG, 7-9 3PT, 6 assists, 21 points, and that nasty three at the end.  There were a lot of NBA Scouts watching and I’m sure Ware had them all talking.

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Quotable Quotes

Coach Mark Fox-”I thought that was a really hard fought game tonight.  Coming in I felt like UAB might be the best team we have played all year.  They play extremely well together and we knew this would [be a] real test.  They are a team that is going to win 20+ games this season.  We knew they would make a second half run and they did just that.  I was pleased that our team was able to answer late and come out with the win”

Trey Thompkins, on debuting at home-”It was great. The intensity that the crowd brings helps us so much. Sometimes we need that sixth man to lean on and we could lean on them tonight.”

Jeremy Price, on his post play-”Once I saw my team was looking for me a lot, I just had to deliver. I did what I could in the post.”

Final Thoughts

Wow, what a game, what a win.  Players and coaches will never admit how “important” a game is, but us media people will.  This was an important game for Georgia.  And not only for an NCAA resume.  If they have any plans competing or winning in the SEC, you need to be prepared to grit victories out.  Even with an abysmal second half offensively, the Dawgs were still able to win out.  Admittedly, those aren’t the best wins, but you’ll take ‘em.

-Although Trey Thomkins went down pretty hard after the Robinson lay-up, he says he’ll be fine.  Just landed on his hip wrong.  Emphasis on hip.  Not ankle.  Sigh of relief.

-Thompkins, Price, and Robinson led the team in scoring with 20, 14, 13 points respectively.  Honestly, while Trey’s 20 were important, I think Price’s were equally, if not more impressive.  Cameron Moore is 6-10 and Jeremy Price is 6-8.  However Price was easily bodying Moore up and getting easy points in the paint, including those two free-throws at the end.  While obviously Thompkins, Robinson, and Leslie are vital parts of the offense, Price needs to contribute as well.  Especially on nights when the former guys are struggling (Leslie had 4 points).

-While Leslie was lackluster offensively, Coach Fox gave him a lot of credit on the defensive side and I would have to agree with him.  Leslie split time guarding Aaron Johnson with Robinson and both did a great job, limiting Johnson to 4-9 from the field and forcing 6 turnovers from the somebody who averaged 9 assists per game.  Johnson had 3 the entire game.

-After only going to the line once in the first half, they visted the charity stripe eight times in the second half, going 7-9 for the game.  While that’s not nearly enough times, credit the Dawgs for hitting their freebies.  Sort of.

-A big concern from here is obviously the Dawgs inability to play a complete game.  Georgia was outscored by UAB 32-23 in the second half and once again showed low effort coming out of half-time quickly losing a thirteen point lead to three.  Thompkins admitted he was a bit winded, and I’m sure the same can be said about the rest of the team.

Alright, I’m out guys.  See you next week when Georgia travels down to Atlanta to face Georgia Tech.

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It’s been a solid month since the last Director’s Cut, mainly because I’ve been traveling almost every week but partly because once you’ve been run over by the Cam Newton train, it’s hard to get back up. But the latest twist in his saga has inspired a return given the bizarre nature of everything that’s going on. The Cam Newton situation is a mess. A complete and utter disaster. (more…)

The Football Jesus returns after some technical issues last week to discuss the latest in the Cam Newton saga and the gambling points in the SEC Championship game between Auburn and South Carolina.

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