Tag: sec basketball news

Georgia basketball lands JUCO All-American transfer

Dalen Rignal, a JUCO transfer from Cowley College in Arkansas City, has decided to transfer to Georgia. Details here.

Georgia basketball added a JUCO All-American to its roster on Tuesday when forward Dalen Ridgnal announced his transfer to UGA. 

The 6-foot-6, 200 pound forward from Cowley College in Arkansas City, Kansas earned All-American honors in his sophomore season of 2020, averaging 21.1 points and 12.8 rebounds per game. Ridgnal started all 29 games and recorded a triple-double in all but six games. 

Ridgnal joins former Virginia Cavaliers guard Jabri Abdur-Rahim, former Florida Atlantic forward Jailyn Ingram, former USC guard Noah Baumann and the former University of Illinois at Chicago forward Braelen Bridges as transfer additions for the Dawgs.

Georgia basketball drops season finale to No. 8 Alabama 89-79

Georgia heads to the postseason after a season finale loss to No. 8 Alabama 89-79 . Details and more here.

Georgia basketball finishes the season with a 14-11 record (7-11 in the SEC) with Saturday’s 89-79 loss at home to No. 8 Alabama.

The 2021 SEC regular-season champions beat the Bulldogs 115-82 on Feb. 13 in Tuscaloosa, but Georgia played much better today in Athens, even leading 36-30 at halftime before being outscored 59-43 in the second half.

Georgia was led by sophomore guard Sahvir Wheeler, who finished with 18 points in 38 minutes and added 10 assists, extending the single-season UGA record for assists in a season to 180.

Georgia sophomore forward Toumani Camara added 13 points and 7 rebounds and freshman guard K.D. Johnson was the only other Bulldog to score in double digits with a 16-point performance off the bench.

Four Alabama starters scored in double-digits. Senior guard John Petty Jr. led the Crimson Tide with 15 points and added 7 rebounds and sophomore guard Jaden Shackleford was Alabama’s second-leading scorer, finishing with 14 points, 6 rebounds and 2 assists.

Georgia may have been able to hang with Alabama a bit longer if it weren’t for the Bulldogs’ free throw shooting woes. UGA shot just 13 of 23 from the line.

With the loss today, Georgia has secured the 10th seed in the SEC tournament and will play the 7th seed on Thursday at 7 p.m. against an unnamed team.

 

 

Check out the “UGA Football Live with J.C. Shelton” podcast here! J.C. is joined by Georgia legend Rennie Curran in this special episode.

 

 

 

 

Former UGA basketball star Nic Claxton drops career-high vs. Spurs

Former Georgia basketball star Nic Claxton is breaking out for the Brooklyn Nets. Details here.

Former Georgia basketball center Nic Claxton put up a career-high 17 points on 7-of-9 shooting in 17 minutes played as the Brooklyn Nets defeated the San Antonio Spurs 124-113 on Monday night.

Just last week, Claxton made his season debut after missing the Nets’ first 32 games due to knee tendinopathy, now, the Greenville, S.C., native is making a serious impact.

Claxton followed Monday night’s career-best performance with another big game in a win versus the Houston Rockets on Wednesday night.

In just 16 minutes played, the Nets’ 2019 second-round pick put up 16 points on 7-of-8 shooting and added eight rebounds.

Claxton’s efficiency of late is hard to ignore and it’s great to see the former Bulldog back in action after battling injuries the last two seasons.

In his time at Georgia (2017-2019), Claxton averaged 8.4 points per game and 6.4 rebounds per game, while earning second team All-SEC honors in 2019, when he led the SEC in blocks (81) and blocks per game (2.5).

You can catch Claxton and the Nets next game at home on Thursday, March 11 at 7:30 p.m. versus the Boston Celtics.

 

 

Former UGA basketball star Nic Claxton returns to action for Brooklyn Nets

The 2019 second round pick has returned for the Brooklyn Nets. Details here.

After missing 32 games with knee tendinopathy, former Georgia basketball center Nicolas Claxton made his season debut with the Brooklyn Nets in Tuesday’s 128-117 win over the Sacramento Kings.

In his first game appearance since Feb. 28 of last year, Claxton scored 5 points and added one rebound and one assist in 14 minutes.

Claxton was drafted with the No. 31 pick in the second round of the 2019 NBA Draft, but didn’t get the start to his professional career the way he had hoped, battling knee and shoulder injuries for the last two seasons.

Claxton played only 15 games in his rookie year and split time between the Nets and their G League affiliate, the Long Island Nets, before undergoing surgery to repair an injured hamstring right before last year’s ‘bubble’.

In his time at Georgia (2017-2019), Claxton averaged 8.4 points per game and 6.4 rebounds per game, while earning second team All-SEC honors in 2019, when he led the SEC in blocks (81) and blocks per game (2.5).

Check out Claxton and the Nets’ next game on Saturday versus the Dallas Mavericks at 8:30 p.m. ET on ABC.

 

 

 

UGA basketball left out of SEC/Big 12 Challenge

The Georgia Bulldogs basketball team will no be participating in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge this season.

The Georgia Bulldogs basketball team will no be participating in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge this season. The Dawgs are one of four unlucky SEC basketball programs who won’t participate.

The SEC has 14 basketball teams while the Big 12 has only ten. This means that four SEC teams have to sit out each season. The SEC/Big 12 Challenge is expected to take place on Jan. 30, 2021.

The most interesting games in the series will be Texas at Kentucky, Auburn at Baylor, and Kansas at Tennessee. Last season’s college basketball season ended too soon. Hopefully this season will go smoother.

Here are the SEC’s ten match-ups with the Big 12:

Instead of the SEC/Big 12 Challenge, the Dawgs will face off against the Memphis Tigers. UGA upset Memphis last season in what was the high point of the season for the Bulldogs. Georgia loses an elite player in Anthony Edwards to the NBA Draft this offseason.

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Nations No. 1 PF, Georgia native Jabari Smith to announce commitment Friday

Jabari Smith of Tyrone, Georgia is set to make his college decision this Friday, choosing between UGA, Auburn, LSU, UNC and Georgia Tech.

5-star power forward Jabari Smith is set to commit between Georgia, Auburn, LSU, Georgia Tech and UNC on Friday, according to reports by TiptonEdits and later  confirmed by ESPN.

Smith is rated as the No. 1 power forward and the No. 1 recruit in the state of Georgia in the 2021 recruiting class, according to 247Sports.

Georgia basketball coach Tom Crean has experience in keeping star basketball players in-state and signing them to play for the Bulldogs.

Possible 2020 NBA No. 1 overall pick Anthony Edwards did just that for the Bulldogs last year when the Atlanta native signed with Georgia and was named SEC Freshman of the Year in his one season with the Bulldogs.

247Sports currently predicts Smith will sign with Auburn.

Check back here Friday for updates on Smith’s commitment.

Watch: Georgia basketball’s Anthony Edwards talks NBA Draft, possibility of playing for Hawks

Anthony Edwards sits down with Bleacher Report to discuss the NBA Draft and how he should be the No. 1 overall pick.

The NBA will be holding its annual Draft Lottery this Thursday, August 20 at 8:30 pm and we will be watching to find out which teams will have a shot at drafting Georgia basketball star Anthony Edwards as he tries to become UGA’s first-ever No. 1 NBA draft pick.

Edwards was a one-and-done for the Bulldogs, but his dominant play was something DawgNation will be able to look back on with pride.

He led the Bulldogs in 2019 with 19.1 points, 5.2 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game and was named the 2019 SEC Freshman of the Year – the first Bulldog to win the award.

Here’s Edwards as he sits down with Bleacher Reports Taylor Rooks to talk about the upcoming draft and how he would feel about possibly staying home in Georgia to play for the Hawks.

Watch the interview here.

Georgia basketball star Anthony Edwards joins Lebron James, signs with Klutch Sports Group

Per Klutch Sports Group’s Twitter account, Georgia basketball star Anthony Edwards has signed with the agency who also represents Lebron.

Former Georgia basketball star, 2019-20 SEC Freshman of the Year Anthony Edwards, has signed with Klutch Sports Group, according to their Twitter.

Klutch Sports Group is a sports agency founded by Rich Paul – known most famously as agent to NBA superstar Lebron James – and has been in the news most recently for the signing of Atlanta Hawks star Trae Young and now Edwards, the potential No. 1 pick of this year’s NBA Draft.

Rich Paul and Klutch Sports Group also represents NBA players like Anthony Davis, John Wall, Ben Simmons and Draymond Green with Edwards now being the youngest athlete signed.

Edwards was a one-and-done at Georgia. In 2019, he was the nation’s leading freshman scorer at 19.1 ppg and was named second-team All-SEC by both the coaches and the AP.

DawgNation, mark your calendars for October 16, as Edwards looks to become the first Bulldog drafted No. 1 overall in the NBA Draft.

Report: NCAA to allow voluntary football, basketball workouts

According to Pete Thamel of Yahoo Sports, the NCAA voted Wednesday to allow athletes back on campus. Dates and details here

According to Pete Thamel of Yahoo Sports, the NCAA voted Wednesday to allow athletes back on campus starting June 1 for voluntary football and basketball workouts.

Thamel wrote:

“An NCAA vote Wednesday cleared the return of student-athletes to campus in football, men’s basketball and women’s basketball on June 1 through June 30, multiple sources told Yahoo Sports.”

The decision ends the COVID-19 lock-down on athletic activities on campuses through May 31 and is, though just a small step towards normalcy, great news for sports fans and athletes around the country.

Sources reportedly told Yahoo Sports that the Division 1 council will vote on other sports besides football and basketball as soon as possible.

As far as testing procedures, it will be up to the individual school’s and state’s procedures and guidelines, according to Yahoo Sports’ sources.

“It will be up to the schools and political decision-makers to develop protocols on the tests, which cost approximately $100 each,” Thamel added. ““No one wants to get into that,” said a source. “They want to leave it to your own campus and state.””

The 2020 college football season is set to begin August 29 and Georgia football is scheduled to start its season in Atlanta versus Virginia on Sept. 7. What that will look like remains to be known. Last week, NCAA President Mark Emmert said:

“All of the commissioners and every president that I’ve talked to is in clear agreement: If you don’t have students on campus, you don’t have student-athletes on campus. That doesn’t mean [the school] has to be up and running in the full normal model, but you have to treat the health and well-being of the athletes at least as much as the regular students. … If a school doesn’t reopen, then they’re not going to be playing sports. It’s really that simple.”

If the season does go on, most likely there will be a very limited number of people involved and judging by Emmert’s comments and the NBA’s reported plan of resuming their season without fans, we could also see a start to the football season without people in attendance.

Georgia men’s basketball announces new season attendance record

For the second consecutive year, Georgia’s men’s basketball has surpassed Stegeman Coliseum’s annual attendance record.

For the second consecutive year, Georgia’s men’s basketball has surpassed Stegeman Coliseum’s annual attendance record.

Attendance spiked following Tom Crean’s 2018 appointment as the Bulldogs’ head coach. When Crean managed to secure the commitment of 2019’s top high school prospect Anthony Edwards, excitement built further for Georgia basketball fans.

So, an average season with an above-average NBA prospect ended on a sour note against rival Florida. Georgia fans have every right to feel dejected.

Win or lose, however, Georgia faithful kept buying tickets to hoot and holler for the Dawgs. The Steg was packed and, oh my, was it loud.

A sure sign of an impassioned fanbase, the majority of the home crowd stayed until each game’s final whistle all year.

Mind you, that’s not just because of the fans’ recognition of the inevitably horrific post-game traffic splitting from Carlton Street toward either Lumpkin Street or East Campus Road.

The 2019-2020 Bulldogs’ hopes aren’t dead. There’s still an entire conference tourney left to be played.

Crean’s squad, which entered the campaign with high hopes, needs to win next week’s SEC Tournament to qualify for the NCAA Tournament. Unless conference tournament results prove otherwise, the Dawgs are considered a bubble team for the National Invitation Tournament (NIT).

In that case, a conference quarterfinal or semifinal would ostensibly improve Crean and company’s chances, but after such an up-and-down season, nothing can be guaranteed (always the case in the sports) or even predicted (always the case in Georgia sports).

Should the Bulldogs receive an NIT invite, they have the opportunity of hosting another game in Athens, potentially adding to the season’s attendance record.