ATHENS, Ga. – The Georgia men’s basketball team led wire-to-wire in its 76-66 win over Arkansas, helping secure the Bulldogs’ 10th win in a row on Wednesday evening before 7,820 spectators inside Stegeman Coliseum.
Justin Hill led the Bulldogs (12-3, 2-0 SEC) in scoring off the bench with 19 points and three 3-pointers. Noah Thomasson added 15 points while RJ Melendez had 10 points and five rebounds. Georgia outscored the Razorbacks (9-6, 0-2 SEC) in points off turnovers by a 25-10 margin. The Bulldogs’ 10-game win streak is tied for the fourth-most consecutive wins in program history and the longest win streak since the 1947-48 season. Georgia is also 2-0 in SEC play for the first time since the 2013-14 season.
“Arkansas obviously is a really good program, and it’s a really good win for us. I do not like the way we’re always executing,” Bulldogs head coach Mike White said. “Don’t always love our shot selection. But I like our level of confidence right now. You need it normally against the best, the best defensively in college basketball.”
Record Summary for the 2023 Capital One Orange Bowl Champion Georgia Bulldogs
The Bulldogs swung momentum their way early using a 14-2 run, highlighted by a dunk from Blue Cain in transition to force a timeout from the Razorbacks with just over three minutes to go in the first half. Georgia maintained its energy to build a 34-24 halftime lead, marking only the third time that the team had led by double figures at the half in conference play in the past three seasons.
Despite Thomasson knocking down back-to-back shots from beyond the arc to open the second half, Arkansas began to chip into Georgia’s lead, shrinking it to three points with 6:41 remaining. Jabri Abdur-Rahim’s first 3-pointer of the day gave the Bulldogs a 65-59 advantage at the final media timeout. Silas Demary Jr. connected on a long ball that put Georgia up eight with under a minute to go, helping to secure the team’s 12th win of the season.
Georgia will continue conference play inside Stegeman Coliseum against No. 5 Tennessee on Saturday, Jan. 13 at noon ET. The contest will be nationally broadcasted by ESPN2. The Bulldogs will be looking for their first home win against the Volunteers since Jan. 15, 2020.
Five Fast Facts
• The Georgia bench contributed 40 of the team’s 76 points, led by Justin Hill’s 19, a new season best.
• The Bulldogs’ 10-point halftime lead, 34-24, marks the third time in the last three seasons Georgia’s built at least a 10-point halftime lead in conference play.
• Georgia’s win on Wednesday night marks its first win over Arkansas since its 99-89 victory on Feb. 29, 2020.
• The Bulldogs are 10-0 inside Stegeman Coliseum this season and 23-4 in Mike White’s two seasons at the helm of the program.
• Noah Thomasson scored 15 points, marking the sixth time in the last seven games he’s reach double-digit scoring and the 59th time in his career.
Photo/GeorgiaSportsCommunications
