Fresh off of a defeat of the Starkvillian Bulldogs, the Rebels will travel to Athens to take on the Bulldogs of Georgia this afternoon in a crucial road SEC match. At first glance, this seems like a game the Rebels should be able to handle considering Georgia's 10-8 (1-3) record, but Ole Miss has struggled mightily on the road giving cuase for caution even amongst its most optimistic basketball fans.
Georgia has played a pretty tough schedule. Losses to Cal, Xavier, Cincy, Florida, and Vanderbilt aren't exactly terrible. Losses to Colorado, and Georgia Tech though, aren't too impressive. Neither are victories over Tennessee, Wofford, South Dakota State, and Delaware State. Judging by their schedule alone, Georgia is a mediocre basketball team, and their wins and losses serve as evidence enough of this.
In scoring, the Bulldogs are led by Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (14.2 ppg), a 6'4" guard out of Greenville, GA. Gerald Robinson Jr., a transfer to Georgia from Tennessee State, also averages double-digit points for Georgia (13.5 ppg). Donte Williams, a 6-9 forward, rounds out the three most productive players on the Georgia offense, averaging 8 points, 5 rebounds, and a block per game.
Georgia, philosophically, is similar to Ole Miss this season in that defense seems to be a higher priority. They are currently forth in the league in total defense, with their opponents averaging 63 ppg. They are more guard oriented than Ole Miss, though, which is exactly what Ole Miss needs to consider schematically in order to win. The gameplan against Mississippi State - assuming it was a plan - saw the offense flow through Reginald Buckner and Terrence Henry. If those two, along with DeMarco Cox and Murphy Holloway, can have active roles in controlling the offense, with Jalen Kendrick and Nick Williams in the guard spots, Ole Miss should take this one.
The game's on at 3:00 PM Central on the SEC Network. Watch it and join in on the open thread fun.
SCORE PREDICTION: Ole Miss 71 - Georgia 70