WBB Game Notes: No. 24 Georgia Hosts Auburn in Play4Kay Pink Game

Thursday, February 11

Athens, Ga.

7:00 PM

University of Georgia

Auburn

WBB Game Notes: No. 24 Georgia Hosts Auburn in Play4Kay Pink Game

February 10, 2021 | Women's Basketball

Game Notes

#24/25 Georgia Lady Bulldogs (14-4, 6-4 SEC) vs. Auburn Tigers (5-13, 0-10 SEC)
Thursday, Feb. 11 | 7 p.m. ET
Stegeman Coliseum (10,523 - capacity around 20% this season) | Athens, Ga.
Radio: Bulldog Sports Network (Jeff Dantzler) 960 AM The REF, WXKT 103.7 FM in Athens
TV: None
Video Stream: SEC Network + (Matt Stewart and Christy Thomaskutty)
Audio Stream: georgiadogs.com

JONI TAYLOR - HEAD COACH

SIXTH SEASON // RECORD: 112-62 (.644)

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS

2018 Werner Ladder Naismith National Coach of the Year Semifinalist
Two-time Atlanta Tip-Off Club Georgia College Coach of the Year
2016 Spalding Maggie Dixon National Rookie Coach of the Year
Three WNBA Draft picks
Led Georgia to a 26-7 record in 2017-18, marking the team's most wins in a single season since 2006-07
Georgia hosted the NCAA first and second rounds in Athens for first time since 2003 during the 2017-18 campaign
Five All-SEC honorees and two SEC Scholar-Athletes of the Year
Created the award-winning Beyond Basketball group

No.	Name	PPG	RPG
Georgia Lady Bulldogs Most Recent Starters
2	Gabby Connally	10..9	2.0
G; 5-6; Sr.; San Antonio, Texas
23	Que Morrison	10.9	4.9
G; 5-7; Sr.; Riverdale, Ga.
11	Maya Caldwell	7.2	2.9
G; 5-11; Sr.; Charlotte, N.C.
20	Jordan Isaacs	4.1	3.2
F; 6-0; So.; Alpharetta, Ga.
14	Jenna Staiti	14.3	7.6
C; 6-4; R-Sr.; Cumming, Ga.

Women's Basketball Fan Attendance Policy

Due to social distancing protocols, Stegeman Coliseum will be operating at a reduced capacity of approximately 20% with ticket opportunities in blocks of two or four seats only.
Fans will be required to wear face masks at all times while in Stegeman Coliseum.
No fans are allowed on the court level of Stegeman.
All seating is reserved for the 2020-2021 women's basketball season.
Tickets are mobile for the 2020-21 season. Tickets for Thursday's game ARE still available. Visit www.georgiadogs.com/tickets to purchase a mobile ticket.

Opening Tip Storylines

Georgia returns home after back-to-back road trips to host the Auburn Tigers at 7 p.m. Thursday in Stegeman Coliseum.
The contest is the Lady Bulldogs' annual Play4Kay Pink Game, with fans encouraged to wear pink in honor of breast cancer awareness.
Georgia is ranked No. 24 in the Associated Press Poll, No. 25 in the Coaches Poll and No. 21 in the NET rankings. The Lady Bulldogs have three wins against teams ranked 25th or better in the NET rankings.
The Lady Bulldogs have won six of the last seven meetings against Auburn and have not lost in Athens to the Tigers since a 44-26 defeat back in 2015. Georgia defeated Auburn, 76-44, earlier this year.
The Tigers are led by one of the best players in the SEC and in the country. Unique Thompson averages a double-double of 17 points and 13 rebounds per game.
Auburn head coach Terri Williams-Flournoy was an assistant coach at Georgia from 1996-2002. During her time on Coach Andy Landers' staff, she helped Georgia capture two SEC regular season titles, a SEC tournament championship in 2001 and a NCAA Final Four berth in 1999.
Georgia senior guard Que Morrison was named the SEC Co-Player of the Week following her performance at Alabama. Morrison scored a career-high 25 points, including 19 in the second half. The Riverdale, Ga., native also totaled a career-best five steals.
Georgia is the only SEC team to rank in the top-5 of the league in every defensive category -- scoring defense (2nd; 59.3 ppg), field-goal percentage defense (4th; .371), 3-point field goal percentage defense (3rd; .258), steals (4th; 9.5 per game) and blocked shots (2nd; 6.1 per game).
The Lady Bulldogs lead the SEC in free-throw percentage, knocking in 76.1 percent from the stripe this season.

Series Breakdown

Overall: Georgia leads, 32-19
In Athens: Georgia leads, 19-5
In Auburn: Tied, 11-11
Neutral Sites: Auburn leads, 3-2
Current Streak: Georgia has won six of the last seven meetings
Last Meeting: Georgia won, 76-44 (1/3/21) in Auburn
Largest Margin of Victory: 34 points,Georgia won, 95-61 (1/18/86)
Largest Defeat: 30 points, Auburn won, 82-52 (1/13/08)
Full Series History

Historical Hidden Figures

In honor of Black History Month, the SEC is highlighting pioneers and trailblazers in our sport. Cynthia Collins and Bernadette Locke (Mattox) were the first two African-Americans recruited to enroll at UGA and play for the Lady Bulldogs on scholarship. They were teammates on Andy Landers' first Georgia team in 1979-80. Each set a standard of excellence for countless Lady Bulldogs and young women who followed.

In The Paint And On The Move

Georgia has been an improved team on the offensive end compared to last season, upping its points per game by nearly 10 points and scoring 80 or more points five times.

Two reasons for that success include scoring in transition and in the paint. The Lady Bulldogs have outscored their opponents in transition in all but two games and have owned an advantage in the paint in 11 of 18 contests.

Turnovers Improve Against Tide

Georgia committed a season-low 13 turnovers in the win against Alabama last Thursday. The Lady Bulldogs took care of the ball when it mattered most, committing just four turnovers in the second half and overtime period.

Steady Staiti Reaching 1,000

Lady Bulldog senior center Jenna Staiti needs just 88 points to reach the 1,000 point mark for her career. This past Thursday, Staiti crossed the 500-rebound mark. She is looking to become just the eighth Lady Bulldog to record 1,000 career points, 500 rebounds and 150 blocks. All seven of the previous Georgia players to accomplish that feat (Katrina McClain, Tracy Henderson, Tammye Jenkins, Christi Thomas, Tawana McDonald, Angel Robinson and Caliya Robinson) earned All-SEC honors.

Staiti Is SEC's Top Shot-Blocker

Jenna Staiti leads all SEC players and is fourth nationally with 54 total blocks (3.0 per game). Staiti has totaled five or more blocks three times and has swatted three or more shots in 12 games.

Morrison Does It All

Senior guard Que Morrison is one of the top all-around players in the SEC. The four-year starter ranks in the top-15 among SEC players in assists (3.4 per game), steals (2.2 per game) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.5). The 2020 SEC All-Defensive Team selection has stepped it up offensively this season, scoring over 20 points twice this year -- both for the first time in her career.

Georgia Plays Deep Rotation

The Lady Bulldogs feature one of the deepest teams in the SEC. Georgia has played 10 or more players in all but two games (vs. Georgia Tech and LSU) and 11 or more players in 12 of 18 contests this season.

Lady Bulldogs Hit 60 Percent

Georgia has shot over 60 percent from the field twice this season, doing so in games against Mercer and Appalachian State. Prior to this season, Georgia had not shot 60 percent or better in a game since 2009.

Georgia Senior Guards Heat Up

Seniors Que Morrison and Gabby Connally combined to hit 12 three-pointers and totaled 67 points in Georgia's three wins against Florida, Tennessee and Ole Miss. The two combined to hit just five 3-pointers in the first two SEC games of the year.

Options at the Post

Georgia has relied on a deep rotation of post players this season. Against Florida, Javyn Nicholson came off the bench and scored eight points in the first half after Jenna Staiti got into foul trouble. It was Maori Davenport and Malury Bates who led the Georgia frontcourt against Tennessee as the two combined to play 33 minutes in the final two quarters.

Winning on the Road

The Lady Bulldogs are 6-2 on the road this season, including wins in its first three games of the year — the first time in school history Georgia has accomplished that feat. Georgia's win at Tennessee was its first in Knoxville since 1996.

Coombs Georgia's Newest Defensive Back

Redshirt junior guard Mikayla Coombs grew up wanting to play football, and she has certainly carried that passion over to the basketball floor. Coombs is one of Georgia's top defensive players as she currently ranks ninth in the SEC in total steals with 33. In two games against Tennessee and Ole Miss , Coombs has hit 9-of-14 from the field (64 percent), scored 19 points, totaled seven rebounds, 12 assists and four steals.

Block Party for the Bulldogs

The Lady Bulldogs are second in the SEC and sixth nationally with 110 total blocks.

Georgia One of League's Most Unselfish

The Lady Bulldogs average 15.8 assists per game, which ranks third in the SEC. Georgia has totaled a conference-best 285 dimes during the 2020-21 campaign.

Reaching 100

Georgia scored 107 points against Appalachian State on Dec. 22. That total marked the most points by a Georgia team since the 2000-01 campaign and was the first time the Lady Bulldogs have reached the 100-point mark since 2007.

Barker Named SEC Freshman of the Week ... Again

Sarah Ashlee Barker has been named SEC Freshman of the Week twice this season. She earned her most recent honor after scoring 11 points, including nine off a trio of 3-pointers in the second quarter, against Ole Miss.

Barker has made several key plays for the Lady Bulldogs this season.

With 2:19 left in the overtime period against Georgia Tech, Barker broke open a tie game with a made jump shot to put her team up 65-63. The Lady Bulldogs did not give up the lead the rest of the way en route to a 75-69 win. Barker then hit a 3-pointer in the fourth quarter against Oklahoma, giving Georgia its largest lead of the game at 14.

Georgia Reaches 1,000-Win Milestone

With its win against East Carolina on Dec. 3, Georgia became one of just two SEC programs (Tennessee) and one of 16 nationwide to reach the 1,000-win mark. The team commemorated the milestone with a special social media video narrated by Andy Landers and Joni Taylor.

Taylor, Connally Reach Important Marks Against Tech

Georgia defeated Georgia Tech this year to improve the Lady Bulldogs' record to 36-7 against the Yellow Jackets. The win also marked the 100th of Coach Taylor's career. Senior guard Gabby Connally reached the 1,000-point mark with a first-half basket against Tech.

Staiti's Streak

Jenna Staiti had one of the best late season stretches of any player in the SEC last season, averaging 19.4 points and 9.4 rebounds per game over the last nine contests. That trend has continued into the 2020-21 campaign. She has now scored in double figures in 24 of her last 27 games and has nine double-doubles during that time.

With 172 blocks , Jenna Staiti ranks eighth on Georgia's all-time blocked shots chart. Tawana McDonald owns the UGA career record with 297 in her career.

Connally Reaches Career Top-10

Georgia senior Gabby Connally has moved into eighth place on UGA's career 3-pt field goals made chart. Connally has totaled 166 during her time at Georgia.

Two-Sport Star in Rare Company

Sophomore guard Chloe Chapman is one of only six Lady Bulldogs to play two sports while at UGA. Below is a list of these elite athletes.

All-Time Lady Bulldog Two-Sport Athletes
Tina Price -- 1975-78 -- Women's basketball/Tennis
Donna Noonan – 1975-77 – Women's basketball/Golf
Beth Timmons – 2000 – Women's basketball/Swimming
Maria Taylor – 2007 -- Women's basketball/Volleyball
Stephanie Paul – 2019-20 – Women's basketball/Track (discus)
Chloe Chapman – present – Women's basketball/Soccer

Georgia Seniors Earn Degrees

Each of Georgia's four seniors -- Gabby Connally, Maya Caldwell, Que Morrison and Jenna Staiti -- will wear the SEC graduate patch this season after earning their degrees. The four Lady Bulldogs are all pursuing master's degrees, with Connally focusing on public administration, Cadwell in non-profit management and leadership, and Morrison and Staiti in sport pedagogy.

Georgia Led League in Honor Roll Selections

The Georgia Lady Bulldogs led all Southeastern Conference basketball teams (women or men) with nine players on the league's Academic Honor Roll this past winter.

Each winter, student-athletes from across the conference are recognized for having a 3.0 GPA or above for either the preceding academic year or a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher.

One of Peach State's Best Joins 2021 Signing Class

Jillian Hollingshead, a 6-foot-5 forward from Powder Springs, Ga., added to an already impressive 2021 signing class for the Lady Bulldogs. She was the fourth signee of Georgia's class, joining fellow top-40 prospect Reigan Richardson (Huntersville, N.C.) as well as Alina Sendar (Amsterdam, Netherlands) and Kimora 'Kimmie' Jenkins (Long Island, N.Y.).

Hollingshead was ranked as the No. 5 forward in the nation according to espnW and was also ranked No. 22 in the ESPN HoopGurlz Terrific 25 for the 2021 class.