Rick Barnes said after Tennessee’s loss at Florida that there were no “gimmies” left on the Vols’ SEC schedule.
That holds true even on its home floor where No. 6 Tennessee (15-1, 2-1 SEC) will return for the first time in more than a week to host No. 23 Georgia (14-2, 2-1) at Food City Center on Wednesday.
TALK ABOUT IT IN THE ROCKY TOP FORUM
The Vols dropped from their top spot in both major polls after splitting its first two road conference games last week—a 30-point loss to the Gators that was followed with a gutsy road triumph over Texas.
Tennessee leaned on its bench in that win, as Darlinstone Dubar’s critical minutes paid off with the go-ahead 3-pointer late while veteran guard Zakai Zeigler closed the door in a 74-70 finish.
The Vols finding new ways to win with their leading scorer in Chaz Lanier in a slump could be key for them going forward.
Tennessee’s next challenge is trying to capitalize on that momentum against a Bulldogs team coming off of back-to-back ranked wins and back in both major polls for the first time in 22 years.
Here is a closer look at the match up.
GAME INFORMATION
Who: No. 23 Georgia (14-2, 2-1 SEC) at No. 6 Tennessee (15-1, 2-1)
When: Wednesday, Jan. 15 | 8 p.m. ET
Where: Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center | Knoxville
TV: SEC Network (Brian Custer, play-by-play; Richard Hendrix, analyst)
Radio: Vol Network (Bob Kesling, play-by-play; Bert Bertelkamp, analyst)
Series: 162nd meeting all-time (Tennessee leads, 99-62)
Line: Tennessee, -11.0
KenPom Projection: Tennessee 70, Georgia 59
PROJECTED LINEUPS
NUMBERS EDGE
POINTS PER GAME
Georgia 79.9
Tennessee 77.1
FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE
Georgia 48.4%
Tennessee 46.3%
THREE-POINT PERCENTAGE
Tennessee 34.6%
Georgia 33.0%
MORE FROM VOLREPORT: Three thoughts on Tennessee basketball ahead of hosting Georgia
ASSISTS
Tennessee 16.1
Georgia 14.4
REBOUNDS
Tennessee 39.7
Georgia 39.3
BLOCKS
Georgia 5.9
Tennessee 5.1
PREGAME NOTES
--Tennessee has played Georgia 161 previous times with the Vols winning 99 times— the second-most games that they have won over an opponent all-time behind Vanderbilt (131 wins). The series dates back to Jan. 17, 1913.
-- Tennessee and Georgia are meeting as ranked teams in the Associated Press Top 25 for the first-time ever. The last time the Vols played a ranked Bulldogs team was Feb. 8, 2003. Tennessee won, 78-72 in Knoxville.
MORE FROM VOLREPORT: Where Tennessee basketball stands in latest NET rankings
-- Tennessee has turned the tide in its series against Georgia. After going 2-9 in previous 11 games, the Vols have won six of the last seven meetings. Tennessee was ranekd in six of those games and unranked in its lone loss—its last in the series on Jan. 15, 2020 in Athens.
-- Georgia finished 20-17 in head coach Mike White’s second season a year ago. The Bulldogs reached the NIT semifinals before being picked to finish 12th in the SEC in the preseason media poll.
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