Alabama is coming off of an emotional, physical win over Tennessee last time out and rival Auburn rolls into Tuscaloosa on Saturday, setting up a potential trap game in Athens tonight. It’s not really fair to refer to Georgia that way since they are the 33rd ranked team in the nation per KenPom and will be playing at home, but it would be very easy for Alabama to get caught here.
Mike White has Georgia playing some good basketball down the stretch. They’ve won three of their last four, the lone blemish
an 8-point loss at ranked Vanderbilt, with a road win at Kentucky and double-digit home victories over Texas and South Carolina. The Dawgs are a 9-seed in the NCAA tournament according to ESPN Bracketology and 13-4 at Stegeman Coliseum. This one is going to be far from easy.
Alabama will have a length advantage in this one. Georgia is led in scoring by 6’1” Cal transfer Jeremiah Wilkinson who isn’t the most efficient guy at 42% from the floor, but has posted a solid 35.8% from outside the arc and tends to find himself on the line quite often. Point guard Marcus Millinder goes only 5’11” but shoots 39% from three and averages 4 assists to go with his 12 points. Wing Blue Cain is from Knoxville and has both the looks and name to match. Nothing he does on the floor is particularly smooth but he’s one of those guys who will randomly pop off from three then go ice cold for three games.
Down low, Aiden Sherrell will have his hands full with sophomore Somto Cyril, who is a load at 6’11” and 260 lbs. Cyril averages 5.5 boards and 2.4 blocks per game in 21 minutes, which have been limited by frequent foul trouble. Cyril hasn’t taken a three all year and mostly hangs out in the dunker’s spot on offense when he isn’t setting picks. His running mate is 6’9” BYU transfer Kanon Catchings, who is a solid three point shooter and averages 10 points with four boards.
Both of these teams are about even in rebounding on the season, grabbing almost exactly as many as they allow. These are the two worst in the SEC at keeping opponents off the offensive glass, though pace of play does play a role in that and both squads love to run.
Three Keys to Victory:
Start fast
Georgia has played better overall at home than on the road, and you can bet that they will be looking to notch a resume win with Alabama in town. This is a small, fast team that in theory should be a great matchup for the Tide but is dangerous if Alabama comes out flat. It wouldn’t hurt to knock down a few early threes to put Georgia on its heels.
Be Smart with the basketball
Georgia has excelled at taking the basketball away and protecting the rim, as evidenced by their SEC leading 8.2 steals and 6.2 blocks per game. As we saw against Tennessee, Alabama can look very bad when they get lazy with the ball and very good when they are disciplined with it. Alabama’s ball movement has been inconsistent and will need to be at its best in Athens.
Win the glass
You could put this on there every game for Alabama, and we generally do. The good news for Sherrell is that he won’t have to be terribly concerned with his man shooting the basketball, but the Tide will need him to be a force on the boards along with Amari Allen. The Tide guards will enjoy a size advantage as well and will need to make their contribution. Houston Mallette in particular has come up with some big boards down the stretch.
How to Watch:
What: Alabama at Georgia
Where: Stegeman Coliseum, Athens, GA
When: Tuesday March 3, 5:30pm CT
TV: ESPN News
Roll Tide.
