Georgia Returns To Action, Travels To Arizona State

Saturday, December 14

Tempe, Ariz.

8:00 PM

University of Georgia

Arizona State

Georgia Returns To Action, Travels To Arizona State

December 13, 2019 | Men's Basketball

Game Notes

Georgia Basketball Game Notes
Georgia (6-2) vs. Arizona State (7-2)
Saturday, December 14 at 8:00 p.m. ET
Desert Financial Arena (14,100) in Tempe, Ariz.
Radio: Georgia Bulldog Sports Network Flagship: WSB AM 750 Atlanta. (Scott Howard, play-by-play; Chuck Dowdle, analyst; Tony Schiavone, producer) | Affiliates
TV: None
Video: Pac-12 Network (Ted Robinson, play-by-play; Don MacLean, analyst)
Satellite: XM & Internet: 374
Series Record: ASU leads, 2-0
Last Meeting: ASU, 76-74, on 12/15/18

No.	Name	PPG	RPG

Georgia Bulldogs
Coach: Tom Crean
17-23 in 2nd season at UGA
373-254 in 20th season overall
0	Donnell Gresham Jr.	7.3	5.6
6-3; 195; R-Sr.-Grad.; St. Paul, Minn.
4	Tyree Crump	10.1	2.9
6-1; 185; Sr.; Bainbridge, Ga.
5	Anthony Edwards	20.6	5.4
6-5; 225; Fr.; Atlanta, Ga.
20	Rayshaun Hammonds	14.8	8.9
6-9; 235; Jr.; Norcross, Ga.
24	Rodney Howard	1.9	1.6
6-11; 245; Fr.; Ypsilanti, Mich.

No.	Name	PPG	RPG

Arizona State Sun Devils
Coach: Bobby Hurley
80-60 in 5th season at ASU
122-80 in 7th season overall
2	Remy Martin	20.0	3.7
6-0; 170; Jr.; Chatsworth, Calif.
2	Rob Edwards	12.2	3.7
6-5; 205; R-Sr.; Detroit, Mich.
5	Elias Valtonen	3.7	2.8
6-7; 195; Soph.; Eura, Finland
20	Khalid Thomas	2.6	1.7
6-9; 210; Jr.; Portland, Ore.
23	Romello White	12.0	10.0
6-8; 235; R-Jr.; Atlanta, Ga.

TEAM COMPARISON

2019-20 STATISTICS	GEORGIA	ARIZONA STATE
Points Per Game	86.1	75.7
Opp. Point Per Game	76.4	64.0
Scoring Margin	+9.8	+11.7
Field Goal Pct.	.480	.429
Opp. Field Goal Pct.	.448	.398
3-Point Pct.	.320	.314
3-Pointers Per Game	7.3	6.6
Opp. 3-Point Pct.	.372	.289
Free Throw Pct.	.682	.704
Free Throws Per Game	16.4	16.9
Rebounds Per Game	41.6	37.6
Opp. Rebound Per Game	34.0	39.4
Rebound Margin	+7.6	-1.9
Assists Per Game	15.5	11.4
Turnovers Per Game	14.9	12.0
Assist-to-Turnover Ratio	1.04	0.95
Turnover Margin	+1.0	+5.9
Steals Per Game	9.3	9.3
Blocks Per Game	3.9	3.4

The Starting 5...

Anthony Edwards is the only freshman ranked among the nation's top-50 scoring leaders. As of Thursday, Edwards ranked No. 26 among D-I scoring leaders.
UGA has eight 90-point outputs in Tom Crean's first 40 games in Georgia. The Bulldogs had eight 90-point outings in the 249 games prior to Crean's arrival.
Six Bulldogs scored in double-digit against The Citadel. The last time UGA did so was a 92-62 win over Appalachian State on Dec. 22, 2002.
The point tallies of Anthony Edwards (24) and Sahvir Wheeler (19) in the season opener were the second- and third-best ever by a freshman in their UGA debut.
Georgia's celebrated freshman class – ranked among the top-10 groups nationally by every recruiting service – features five of the nation's top-100 prospects.

The Opening Tip

Georgia returns to action for the first time in 10 days on Saturday when the Bulldogs travel to Tempe to face Arizona State. The contest will be UGA's first true road game of the 2019-20 regular-season campaign.

Anthony Edwards and Rayshaun Hammonds scored 21 and 19 points, respectively, in Georgia's last outing, a 95-59 victory over N.C. Central on Dec. 4. The Bulldogs have not played since then while Final Exams were conducted at UGA.

Georgia is 6-2 on the season. The Bulldogs are averaging an SEC-best 86.1 points per game to date. That tally ranked No. 3 nationally through games of Wednesday (Dec. 11).

Edwards, a preseason All-American and leading candidate for National Freshman of the Year accolades, boasts a 20.6 ppg scoring average. Through Wednesday, that ranked No. 26 nationally and tops among D-I freshmen. Edwards also is averaging an SEC-best 2.3 steals per game.

Entering Tonight's Game . . . Among UGA's career Leaders

Tyree Crump is...
• 4 3FGs from No. 11 K. Caldwell-Pope
• 27 3FGs from No. 10 Jody Patton
• 8 3FGAs from No. 10 K. Caldwell-Pope
• 22 3FGAs from No. 9 Bernard Davis

Series History

Arizona State has won the two previous meetings between the Bulldogs and the Sun Devils on the hardwood by a combined three points.

Last Dec. 15 in Athens, Georgia dropped a 76-74 decision to No. 20 Arizona State before a crowd of 9,028 at Stegeman Coliseum. The Bulldogs led for 35:19 of the contest, including an 18-point edge late in the first half; however, the Sun Devils thwarted Georgia's upset attempt.

Tyree Crump and Rayshaun Hammonds paced the Bulldogs with 19 points apiece, while Nicolas Claxton grabbed 13 rebounds.

Crump scored 11 points of a 20-3 run late in the first half. However, the Sun Devils ended the first half and began the second on a combined 9-0 surge to pull within single digits.

Georgia remained ahead until a Remy Martin jumper at the 2:43 mark. ASU led 73-70 with 1:37 left before a Claxton dunk and a Tye Fagan reverse layup made it 74-73 with 25 ticks on the clock. Luguentz Dort scored the game-winner with 11 seconds remaining. After Arizona State added a free throw, Claxton's potential game-tying shot fell short as time expired.

In the only other meeting on Dec. 29, 1989, the Sun Devils defeated UGA, the eventual 1990 SEC Champions, 62-61, in the title game of the Tribune Classic in Tempe.

Alex Austin's double-double of 16 points and 10 rebounds led four Sun Devils in double figures. Litterial Green and Alec Kessler scored 12 points apiece for Georgia, while Marshall Wilson chipped in 11 and Jody Patton added 10.

Georgia raced to a 39-23 halftime lead before Arizona State rallied. The trip to Tempe provided a pair of one-point outings for Georgia. The previous day, the Bulldogs topped Wisconsin, 65-64, in the opening round.

Scouting The Sun Devils

Arizona State returns three starters and six additional letterwinners from last year's team that advanced to the NCAA Tournament.

Remy Martin paces the Sun Devils with a 20.0 ppg scoring average, while Rob Edwards and Romello White chip in double-digit averages of 12.2 and 12.0 ppg, respectively. White, an Atlanta native, is hauling in a team-high 10.0 rebounds per game.

Arizona State improved to 7-2 on the year with an 88-79 win over Prairie View A&M on Wednesday. The Sun Devils' setbacks are to Colorado in the season opener in Shanghai and to No. 7 Virginia in the Hall of Fame Tip-Off Tournament in Uncasville, Conn.

Last Time Out...

Anthony Edwards scored 21 points, 19 of those in the first half, as Georgia topped N.C. Central, 95-59, on Dec. 4 in Athens.

Edwards' first-half outburst helped the Bulldogs grab a 50-35 lead at the intermission, and Georgia cruised through the second half.

Rayshaun Hammonds added 19 points, Tyree Crump chipped in a season high 16 points and Christian Brown notched a career-best 11 points for the Bulldogs.

The Bulldogs used a 13-0 run midway through the first half to double up the Eagles, 24-12, with 10:08 left in the half. That margin grew to 21 points later in the period, and Georgia led by 20-plus points for the final 17:54 of the contest.

The contest against the Eagles represented one of 14 games Georgia will play this season against teams that were featured in Joe Lunardi's final preseason edition of ESPN.com's Bracketology released on Nov. 4.

Bulldogs Scoring At Torrid Pace

Georgia enters this weekend's action averaging an SEC-high 86.1 points per game. That tally also ranked No. 3 nationally as of Thursday (through games of Dec. 11).

Some additional nuggets contained within the Bulldogs' 689 points over the first eight outings of the season include:

UGA now has eight 90-point performances in Tom Crean's first 40 games in Athens (four in 2018-19 and four in 2019-20). The Bulldogs reached the 90-point plateau just eight times in 249 games prior to Crean's arrival.

UGA has three of the top-7 scoring outputs in the SEC this season – No. 3 (100 points vs. Delaware St.) and co-No. 6 (95 points vs. The Citadel and N.C. Central).

UGA has four 90-point outputs in eight games to date. We trust you can do the math on that. The rest of the SEC has 12 90-point performances in 111 games (10.8 percent).

Georgia already has four 90-point games...as many as the Bulldogs had in 32 games last season. FYI, the last time UGA had five 90-point outputs was the aforementioned 2005-06 campaign (when the Bulldogs had six), and the school record for 90-plus outings is eight during Georgia's run to the 1990 SEC Championship.

UGA scored 91, 95 and 100 points in the first three games this season – the first time the Bulldogs scored 90 or more points in three consecutive games since December 2006. That season, the Bulldogs defeated Gardner-Webb, 96-67, on Dec. 2; topped No. 16 Gonzaga, 96-83, on Dec. 16; and bested Jacksonville, 93-77, on Dec. 19.

Some Individual Scoring Info

In addition to Georgia's point production as a team, Bulldogs have posted some significant individual scoring efforts to date.

Anthony Edwards' 37 points against No. 3 Michigan State (which featured a 33-point second half explosion) is the highest single-game tally by any SEC player this season.

Six UGA players posted double-figure scoring outputs against The Citadel on Nov. 12 – the first time a half-dozen Bulldogs scored 10 or more points since a Dec. 22, 2002, matchup against Appalachian State. Anthony Edwards had 29 points; Tyree Crump and Donnell Gresham Jr. added 13 apiece; and Rayshaun Hammonds, Amanze Ngumezi and Sahvir Wheeler each chipped in 10.

Edwards' 24 points and Wheeler's 19 points in the season opener against Western Carolina represented the second- and third-best tallies ever by a UGA freshman in their collegiate debut and most by a Bulldog freshman since 1979.

Edwards, Wheeler Lead The Way Among NCAA's Freshman Leaders

Through games of Dec. 11, Georgia's Anthony Edwards was the only freshman ranked among the nation's top-50 scoring leaders and one of just six featured in the top 100 as outlined below.

Top Freshman Scoring Averages
Rk.	Player, school	GP	Avg.
26.	Anthony Edwards, Georgia	8	20.6
51.	Cole Anthony, N. Carolina	9	19.1
60.	Landers Nolley, Va. Tech	10	18.6
63.	Vernon Carey, Duke	10	18.5
96.	Onyeka Okongwu, USC	10	17.4
97.	Jordan Dingle, Penn	8	17.4

Edwards ranks second among all D-I freshmen in steals per game. His 2.25 average is No. 43 nationally. De'Shawn Phillip of Maryland-Eastern Shore is the only freshman with a better average (2.36 spg), which ranks No. 33 overall nationally.

Sahvir Wheeler's average of 4.6 assists per game is eighth-best among the nation's freshmen...and No. 81 overall.

Edwards Earns Honors

Anthony Edwards was tabbed National Freshman of the Week by CBSSports.com and SEC's Freshman of the Week on Dec. 1 following the Maui Jim Maui Invitational.

Most notably, Edwards poured in 37 points against No. 3 Michigan State on Nov. 26, including a 33-point explosion in the second half. Edwards' effort equaled the No. 11 single-game scoring tally in Georgia's history and represented the most points by a Bulldog freshman since Jacky Dorsey scored 41 versus LSU on Jan. 20, 1975.

Puppies Prominent In SEC Stats

Two Georgia freshman are featured multiple times among SEC statistical leaders entering this weekend.

Anthony Edwards is first in steals (2.3 spg), second in scoring (20.6 ppg), third in 3-point percentage (.375) and seventh in 3-pointers per game (2.6 3FGspg).

Sahvir Wheeler is second in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.18 a-to-TO) and seventh in assists per game (4.6 apg).

The Collegiate Canine Strikes

All of graduate transfer Donnell Gresham Jr.'s career-high statistics came from his 90 games played during four seasons at Northeastern...until the Georgia Tech game.

Gresham connected on 11-of-13 trips to the free throw line against the Jackets, topping his previous marks.

Gresham scored 13 points versus Tech, his second double-digit output as a Bulldog and his 31st as a collegiate canine.

The Saint Paul, Minn., native notched 29 double-digit scoring performances in his four seasons as a different breed of dog – a Northeastern Husky.

Feel Free To Call Him "Ty-3"

Tyree Crump continued a familiar theme to his scoring this season, with 18 of his 28 made field goals coming from behind the 3-point arc.

More than two-thirds of Crump's made shots from the floor at UGA have come on shots from 3-point range.

Crump has knocked down 145 3-pointers in his three-plus seasons in Athens. That accounts for 68.1 percent of his 213 made field goals at Georgia.

Among Georgia's career leaders, Crump currently ranks No. 12 in 3-point makes and No. 11 in 3-point takes. Next up on both ledgers is current L.A. Laker Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. Crump four successful 3-pointers from KCP at No. 11 and eight shot attempts from behind the arc shy of him for No. 10.

Fans Flocking To Stegeman

A combined 42,890 members of the Bulldog Nation have attended Georgia's first five home dates of the 2019-20 campaign.

That is the second-largest tally for the initial quintet of outings at Stegeman Coliseum during the 2000s. In 2002-03, Georgia welcomed a total of 43,962 spectators for the first five home dates that season.

The Bulldogs' best first five-game home attendance mark to begin a season was 49,941 in 1981-82, Dominique Wilkins' third and final season at UGA. At that point, the Coliseum's seating capacity was 11,200 (it's 10,523 today) and – no disrespect to this year's foes but – that quintet of outings included matchups against the likes of Georgia Tech, Kentucky, Vanderbilt and LSU

Last season, the Bulldogs broke their total attendance record by more than 9,000 fans.

Fagan Perfect In Career-High Day

Tye Fagan scored a career-high 11 points against Dayton in the opening round of the Maui Jim Maui Invitational in an extremely efficient fashion. Fagan connected on 5-of-5 shots from the field against the Flyers, including his only 3-point attempt on the day.

Before that, Fagan's top offensive performances as a Bulldog were early last season. He notched eight points in three of the first four games of his freshman year – against Temple, Sam Houston State and Illinois State.

Dogs' Freshmen Among UGA's Best

Georgia's recruiting class was consistently ranked among the nation's top-10 groups – No. 5 by ESPN.com, No. 6 by rivals.com and No. 10 by 247Sports.com.

Headlining the class is Anthony Edwards. The Atlanta native, who tabbed the nation's best prospect by some, announced his commitment on national television on Feb. 11. He is the Bulldogs' highest rated recruit ever.

Dominique Wilkins was the most hyped recruit in Georgia history in 1979. Individual rankings for that class are believed to be unavailable. It also featured future stars such as Ralph Sampson, Isiah Thomas, James Worthy, Clark Kellogg and Sam Bowie.

In the internet age, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is the highest ranked player in the 247Sports.com composite to enroll at UGA at No. 12 in 2011. Louis Williams signed with the Bulldogs as the No. 6 prospect in the 2005 composite but opted to enter the NBA Draft.

The Bulldogs' highest recruiting class ever was a quintet listed at No. 2 in 1992 when UGA inked four of the nation's top-100 prospects – Shandon Anderson, Terrell Bell, Pertha Robinson and McDonald's All-American Carlos Strong – in the fall. Georgia then added Cleveland Jackson, the national Junior College Player of the Year, in the spring signing period.

Additional top classes at Georgia include those in 1979 and 1980 which featured four McDonald's All-Americans between them. The Bulldogs signed Wilkins and Terry Fair in 1979 and followed that with Vern Fleming and James Banks a year later.

UGA's Freshman Class Also Among the nation's Largest

The Bulldogs' class of nine freshmen ranks as the third-largest in Division-I hoops for the 2019-20 season.

Navy, TCU and Utah sport a nation-leading 11 freshmen on their rosters. Air Force has 10 freshmen. In addition to Georgia, Louisville and Memphis also have nine freshmen.

On this list, "freshman" is defined as a player who is a freshman eligibility wise who is competing at that school for the first time this season...so there are some redshirts.

A Historic String Of Success

The Bulldogs' five-game winning streak over Georgia Tech marks only the fifth time in 196 meetings that Georgia has captured five consecutive victories over the Yellow Jackets on the hardwood.

The Bulldogs' longest streak in the series is seven consecutive wins twice in spans from 1908-21 and 1980-85. The second-longest is five games three times, covering 1929-31 and 1939-41 and the current 2015-19 stretch.

The first four wins over Tech in the current streak were by double figures. The only other time UGA posted four consecutive, double-figure Ws over GT was more than a century ago between 1908-09 and 1913-14.

The past two seasons have provided signature moments for Georgia's seven four-year seniors.

Prior to last December, only four four-year letterwinners for the Bulldogs finished their careers with a perfect record against Tech – James Banks, Vern Fleming, Richard Corhen and Gerald Crosby.

That fraternity more than doubled when Mike Edwards, Turtle Jackson, Derek Ogbeide, Connor O'Neill and E'Torrion Wilridge joined the fold at McCamish Pavilion last year and added two more brothers in 2019 in Tyree Crump and Jordan Harris.

It should be noted that UGA and GT played two or more times every season from 1924-82. Since then, they have met once per year, making an undefeated run a little less taxing.

Georgia recorded 30 assists on the Bulldogs' 40 made baskets in their 100-66 win over Delaware State on Nov. 15. That was UGA's most assists since the Bulldogs had 32 against S.C. State on Nov. 21, 2006.

Six Double-Digit Bulldogs

A half-dozen Georgia players posted double-figure scoring outputs against The Citadel on Nov. 12 – the first time six Bulldogs scored 10 or more points in just under 17 years. Anthony Edwards had 29 points; Tyree Crump and Donnell Gresham Jr. added 13 apiece; and Rayshaun Hammonds, Amanze Ngumezi and Sahvir Wheeler each chipped in 10.

Prior to that, you had to go back 536 games – to a 92-62 win over Appalachian State on Dec. 22, 2002 – to find a contest with six Bulldogs scoring in double figures. In that outing, Steve Thomas scored 18 points, followed by Ezra Williams (13), Chris Daniels (12), Jarvis Hayes (11), Rashad Wright (11) and Jonas Hayes (10).

Earliest. Opener. Ever.

The Bulldogs' Nov. 5 contest against Western Carolina was the earliest opening contest in Georgia's 115 seasons of basketball. The previous mark for an initial outing was against Wofford on Nov. 8, 2013.

Edwards, Wheeler Star In Debut

Anthony Edwards and Sahvir Wheeler poured in 24 and 19 points, respectively, in the season opener against Western Carolina on Nov. 5. Those tallies represent the second- and third-most points ever by a freshman in their first game in a Bulldog uniform as outlined below.

Edwards came within a bucket of Dominique Wilkins' school record against Troy on Nov. 30, 1979.

Since NCAA rules change to allow freshmen to compete in basketball beginning with the 1972-73 season, 23 Bulldogs have scored in double figures during their first collegiate contest at UGA.

Top Tally Debuts By UGA Freshmen
Year	Player	Points
1979	Dominique Wilkins	26
2019	Anthony Edwards	24
1979	Terry Fair	19
2019	Sahvir Wheeler	19
1998	D.A. Layne	18
2007	Jeremy Price	18
2004	Sundiata Gaines	17
2017	Rayshaun Hammonds	17
2011	Kentavious Caldwell-Pope	15