University of Georgia
Furman
Lady Bulldogs Outlast Furman 58-51, Remain Unbeaten
December 20, 2014 | Women's Basketball
Shacobia Barbee, Marjorie Butler and Coach Landers talk about Georgia's 11th win of the season, over Furman.
g43 Dec. 20, 2014
Athens, Ga. --- The No. 15 Lady Bulldogs were able to hold off upset-minded Furman with a 58-51 win over the Paladins at Stegeman Coliseum on Saturday, December 20.
With the win, Georgia was able to remain undefeated and improved to 11-0 on the season. Furman fell to 9-4.
Shacobia Barbee paced the Lady Bulldogs with her ninth career double-double and her second of the season, posting a career-high 25 points and 12 rebounds. Both tallies led the team, as did her five steals. Barbee was the only Lady Bulldog that shot over 50 percent from the field, hitting 11-of-20 attempts, including 3-of-6 from beyond the arc.
Merritt Hempe was the only other Lady Bulldog that scored in double figures, registering 14 points and 11 rebounds to earn her second career double-double.
"You really have to tip your hat to Furman and the way they played," Georgia head coach Andy Landers said following the game. "I thought defensively they played well, and unfortunately as we tried to attack them defensively, we missed shots early -- a lot of shots early. I think it affected confidence. For the most part other than Shacobia, we missed shots for the rest of the day. It's hard to win basketball games if you don't score and we had a difficult time scoring it inside, outside and we were very poor at the free throw line as well. But again, Furman played it well defensively and we played it well defensively. Now, if you flip that and go to the other end and look at how we defended, it was the total opposite. We were tough as nails, we got on the floor after balls, we rebounded the ball and we took a couple charges. We made a lot of plays in the last three minutes and we doubled on the post, so defensively we were very, very good."
Georgia took a 24-21 lead into the locker room at halftime despite shooting just 29.7 percent from the field. The Lady Bulldogs connected on just seven of their first 28 shots from the field and were 0-for-8 from beyond the arc and 0-for-5 from the free throw line through the first 15 minutes of play. Conversely, Furman connected on seven of its first 13 shots, including four 3-pointers.
Furman tied the game up at 35-35 on a Kelsey Ellis 3-pointer at the 13:18 mark and then took the lead on a Sarah Durdaller jumper on the Paladins' next possession. The teams traded blows until Krista Donald put Georgia up 53-51 with a lay in at the 4:34 mark.
Barbee delivered a clutch 3-pointer to extend the Lady Bulldogs' lead to five with 1:53 remaining. Georgia's defense then forced turnovers on the next two Furman possessions forcing the Paladins to foul Marjorie Butler with less than 30 seconds remaining.
Butler hit both ends of one-and-one down the stretch to close the game out and keep the Lady Bulldogs undefeated.
Durdaller was the only Furman player to score in double digits, finishing the game with 19 points on an incredible 8-of-11 shooting. Brittany Hodges and Whitney Bunn, Furman's two leading scorers entering the game, were held to four and eight points, respectively.
The Lady Bulldogs will have just one day off before returning to action on Monday, December 22 when they host Belmont at Stegeman Coliseum. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.
Georgia Lady Bulldog Basketball
Post-Game Notes & Quotes
No. 15/17 Georgia vs. Furman
Saturday, December 20, 2014 • Stegeman Coliseum • Athens, Ga.
Notes
• Georgia improves to 11-0 all time versus Furman, including a 7-0 mark in Athens.
• The Lady Bulldogs equaled their seventh-best start in program history, tying the 2001-02 and 2013-14 teams at 11-0. Georgia's best start ever was 16-0 in 2009-10.
• The Lady Bulldog basketball program is nine wins away from reaching their 900th victory in program history.
• Andy Landers is 14 victories away from his 950th win as a collegiate head coach.
• Shacobia Barbee is 225 points from 1,000 career points.
• Shacobia Barbee posted both a career- and season-high 25 points. Barbee's previous bests were 24 points versus Georgia Tech on Nov. 23 this season.
• Merritt Hempe equaled her career high of 11 rebounds collected against Kentucky on Jan. 30, 2014.
Lady Bulldogs In Double Digits
• Shacobia Barbee notched her eighth double-digit scoring output of the season and 36th of her career with 25 points.
• Shacobia Barbee grabbed her third double-digit rebounding output of the season and 15th of her career with 12 rebounds.
• Shacobia Barbee notched her second double-double of the season and ninth of her career with 25 points and 12 rebounds.
• Merritt Hempe reached her fifth double-digit scoring output of the season and 18th of her career with 14 points.
• Merritt Hempe grabbed her first double-digit rebounding output of the season and second of her career with 11 rebounds.
• Merritt Hempe notched her first double-double of the season and second of her career with 14 points and 11 rebounds.
Georgia Head Coach Andy Landers
On today's game...
"You really have to tip your hat to Furman and the way that they played. I thought defensively they played well, and unfortunately as we tried to attack them defensively, we missed shots early - a lot of shots early. I think it affected confidence. For the most part other than Shacobia, we missed shots for the rest of the day. It's hard to win basketball games if you don't score and we had a difficult time scoring it inside, outside and we were very poor at the free throw line as well. But again, Furman played it well defensively and we played it well defensively. Now, if you flip that and go to the other end and look at how we defended it, it was the total opposite. We were tough as nails, we got on the floor after balls, we rebounded the ball and we took a couple charges. We made a lot of plays in the last three minutes and we doubled on the post, so defensively we were very, very good."
On Shacobia Barbee...
"Cobi's two threes were terrific. You know, her being settled all day was important because everybody was struggling and she just kind of stayed the course. She and Tiara never really got caught up in it."
Furman Head Coach Jackie Carson
On today's game…
"I am extremely proud of our team. They were prepared. They did a good job executing our game plan. I think Georgia's athleticism bothered us at the end. It's tough to win when you give up 27 'O' boards. I think our execution was really good with first shots. It was the second, third, fourth and sometimes fifth shots that kind of doomed us. When they hit the three off of 4 'O' boards, I knew it was going to be tough for us to overcome. I am extremely proud of our team. Georgia has tremendous athleticism. Girls that have been under Coach Landers know the expectations. That's a team that can make a deep run in the NCAA tournament and if anythings, it's taught our team that we can compete against anyone."
On what they learned from this game...
"I think it's just that our girls can compete against some of the best in the country. These young ladies, Coach Landers and the tradition of Georgia basketball is just outstanding. We are trying to build that back at Furman. This is our fifth season and the first time that all of our recruits are on the floor. Everyone has been in our system. I think that regardless of who our opponent is, if we do the things that makes us Furman women's basketball, we can compete against anyone."
