Georgia Heads to Missouri To Tackle Tigers

Georgia Lady Bulldogs Game Notes

Georgia (10-7, 1-3 SEC) vs. Missouri (10-7, 1-3 SEC)
Thursday, Jan. 18 || 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT
Mizzou Arena (15,061) || Columbia, Mo.
Radio: Georgia Bulldog Sports Network (Jeff Dantzler) WXKT 103.7 FM or 960 AM The REF and the Georgia Bulldog App | Affiliates
TV: none
Video Stream: SEC Network + (Ben Arnet and Jordan Roundtree)
Audio Stream: georgiadogs.com
Social: @UGA_WBB
History: Georgia leads, 12-6 (Full History)
Last Meeting: - Georgia won 62-51 (1/25/23)

TEAM COMPARISON

GEORGIA LADY BULLDOGS
Head Coach: Coach ABE
Career Record: 404-176 (19th year)
Record at Georgia: 32-19 (2nd year)

MISSOURI TIGERS
Head Coach: Robin Pingeton
Career Record: 570-345 (29th season)
Record at Mizz: 235 -188 (14th season)

GEORGIA	2023-24 STATISTICS	MISSOURI
66.5	POINTS PER GAME	75.4
41.2	FG%	45.5
27.2	3FG%	36.5
63.9	FT%	75.1
42.9	REBOUNDS PER GAME	38.9
14.4	ASSISTS PER GAME	15.5
3.5	BLOCKS PER GAME	2.3
8.8	STEALS PER GAME	7.4
63.8	SCORING DEFENSE	69.2
35.5	FG% DEFENSE	40.1
32.3	3FG% DEFENSE	29.1
+4.0	REBOUND MARGIN	+2.2
0.9	AST - TO RATIO	1.0

Opening Tip

» Georgia heads to Columbia, Mo., for its second-straight SEC road matchup. Tipoff is slated for 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT on the SEC Network +.

» The Lady Bulldogs have won four-straight against the Tigers, including two in a row in Columbia.

» Georgia fifth year senior forward Javyn Nicholson leads the SEC and ranks fifth nationally with 11 double-doubles this season. Her eight-straight double-doubles from Dec. 6 through Jan. 11 were the most for a Georgia player since Janet Harris in 1982-83.

» Nicholson has scored in double figures in every game this season and has led Georgia in scoring eight times.

» Junior guard Asia Avinger is coming off the best game of her UGA career. She scored 22 points during Sunday's game against Florida.

» Fifth-year guard Taniyah Thompson has made the most of the first starts of her UGA career. She has scored in double figures in back-to-back games, including 17 against Alabama last week.

» Georgia ranks third in the SEC in field-goal percentage defense, holding teams to just 35.5 percent shooting.

» The Lady Bulldogs' bench averages 23.5 points per game, which is the third-highest mark in the conference.

» Georgia is in its second season under the leadership of Coach ABE. ABE's successful first year included a NCAA tournament appearance, 22 wins, and a fifth-place finish in the final SEC standings.

» The Lady Bulldogs were the only SEC squad to not have a single player enter the transfer portal this past offseason.

» Coach ABE's teams have won 20 or more games in 11-straight seasons, while her 12 NCAA tournament appearances rank third among active SEC coaches, only behind Kim Mulkey (LSU) and Dawn Staley (South Carolina).

Four Top-100 Signees the Most Since 2017; All Four Nominees for McDonald's All-America Team

Georgia has already signed four top-100 players in the 2024 class. Indya and Summer Davis — twin sisters from Farmington Hills, Michigan — along with Mia Woolfolk (Midlothian, Virginia) and Trinity Turner (Orlando, Fla.) signed with the Lady Bulldogs earlier this year. All four players are four star prospects and ranked in the top-100 nationally, marking the first time since 2017 the program has signed four top-100 players.

It was announced earlier this week that each of the four signees were named nominees for the prestigious McDonald's All-America Team.

Henderson Returns

Georgia redshirt freshman Savannah Henderson made her first appearance of the season during the team's outing against Wofford on Dec. 30. Henderson suffered a season-ending injury last year at the beginning of what was a promising start to her freshman year. She has now played in three games this year.

Avinger Posts First Double-Double

Lady Bulldog junior guard Asia Avinger posted her first career double-double with 11 points and 10 assists against Wofford. She has now scored in double figures 40 times in her career.

Avinger and Chapman Rank Among SEC's Best

Georgia guards Asia Avinger and Chloe Chapman rank among the SEC's leaders in assists per game with 4.5 and 3.6, respectively. Avinger's 1.95 assist-to-turnover ratio ranks eighth best among league players.

400 Wins

Georgia head coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson reached the 400-win mark of her career earlier this year. She is one of five active SEC coaches to record 400 or more wins.

Chloe's Career Day

Chapman played the best game of her career in the team's win against Columbia. She scored a career-best 15 points and knocked in a career-high three 3-pointers in the win. Prior to the Columbia game, Chapman had not hit more than one 3-pointer in a game in her career. She also hit a pair of 3's against Furman and finished with 10 points and 10 boards against the Paladins.

Year Two with Coach ABE

Georgia is in its second season under the leadership of head coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson. Coach ABE led the Lady Bulldogs to 22 wins – the most for the program in five years – and a NCAA tournament win against Florida State, marking Georgia's first NCAA tourney victory against a Power 5 opponent in 10 seasons. In addition, Georgia went 5-0 against rivals Florida, Auburn and Georgia Tech.

The Lady Bulldogs won seven of their last nine SEC games last year, with the only losses coming to top-5 teams South Carolina and LSU on the road.

20-Win Streak

Last year marked the 11th-straight season a Coach ABE led team has earned 20 wins or more. She has also guided her teams to 12 NCAA tournament appearances, which is the third-highest mark of any coach in the SEC, only behind Dawn Staley at South Carolina and Kim Mulkey at LSU.

Familiar Face, New Name

Jordan Cole returns for her fifth year in the red and black. Formerly Jordan Isaacs, she changed her legal last name to Cole after her stepfather, Brian Cole, adopted her on Oct. 4, 2023.

"I've created an identity behind the last name Isaacs, who I am on the court and off the court and just me as a person. It's very safe and familiar," said Jordan, who started 25 games last season. "I hate to see it go, because it is a part of me, who I became and who I'm going to become, but I definitely think this is the next big step in my life. It's going to open new doors for me, it's going to help me put myself out there. Me and the coaching staff ... we made a joke that this is just a new version of me, like a new player, new person. There's nothing wrong with Jordan Isaacs, but there's always room for growth."

First Verse

Georgia welcomed one true freshman this year in Arizona product Miyah Verse. A member of ESPN's Super 60 as one of the top 60 prospects nationally, Verse prepped at national powerhouse Arizona Elite Prep and Mountain Ridge High in Peoria, Ariz.

Verse was also a track star in high school, earning the state title in the discus throw. Her brother Jared is a defensive lineman on the Florida State football team.

Stealing the Show

Georgia led the SEC in steals last season with 10.5 per game. It marked the 10th time in the last 13 years that Coach ABE's teams have led their respective conference in steals. It was also the first occasion since the 2005-06 season – a span of 17 years – that Georgia led the SEC in steals.

Before taking the head coaching job at Georgia, Coach ABE's UCF squad led the nation in scoring defense for two straight years from 2020-22.

Create What You Can't Have

Georgia guard Chloe Chapman is the founder and CEO of Create What You Can't Have (CWUCH) -- a successful fashion merchandising company.

"CWUCH was created to represent originality. This is for people who aspire to be unique and have their own style. High quality clothing for streetwear lovers." -- Chloe Chapman

All in the Family

Miyah Verse's brother, Jared Verse, is a junior defensive lineman on the Florida State football team. The highly recruited prospect was a first-team All-American selection by The Athletic during the 2022 football season. Verse leads FSU with 4.5 sacks this year.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Asia Avinger

Chloe Chapman

Jordan Cole

Savannah Henderson

Javyn Nicholson

Taniyah Thompson

Miyah Verse