Hosting their Second Home Game in a Row, The Dawgs take on Georgia Tech

The 5-3 Georgia Bulldogs will take on the 4-2 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets at their home in Stegman Coliseum.

Athens, GA– At 7:30 tonight, the 5-3 Georgia Bulldogs will take on the 4-2 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets at their home in Stegman Coliseum. This is the second of five consecutive home games hosted by the Dawgs who are currently 4-0 at home. On the other hand, the Yellow Jackets are currently 0-1 away after suffering a road loss to Cincinnati in November.

The Dawgs are coming off three straight wins, most recently being a clean 80-69 win against Mercer last Friday. Georgia Tech will be the fourth ACC opponent the Dawgs have faced and the fifth Power 5 opponent overall. The Yellow Jackets, have already started conference play with an impressive 72-68 win over seventh-ranked Duke this weekend. With the Duke win and a 67-59 win over twenty-first-ranked Mississippi State, the Yellow Jackets are currently 2-0 against ranked opponents. Despite this, the Dawgs are still favored by -5.5.

Offensively for the Dawgs, the Mercer game saw a change in the leading scorer for the season. Jabri Abdur-Rahim now leads averaging 13.1 points per game. RJ Melendez was the leading score for the Dawgs against Mercer (18 points on the game) and was able to capitalize off some 3-pointers shooting 50% from the arch. Look to Abdiur-Rahim to put up points for the Dawgs and Melndez if his shooting percentage keeps trending in the current direction.

Georgia guard Silas Demary Jr. (4) during Georgia’s game against Wake Forest at Stegeman Coliseum in Athens, Ga., on Monday, Nov. 6, 2023. (Tony Walsh/UGAAA)

For the Yellow Jackets, junior guard Miles Kelly leads the team in points averaging 18.8 points per game. Kelly has 100 FG attempts throughout the entire season and averages the second-most minutes of any player. He also leads the team in rebounds averaging 6.7 per game 2.5 of them being offensive rebounds. Kelly looks to be to go-to guy for the Yellow Jackets so it is critical the Dawgs minimize his impact.

Grad student Russell Tchewa leads (and had led the entire season) the Dawgs in rebounds averaging 6.1 per game and should be a big defensive threat for the Dawgs. Tchewa and senior Justin Hill who is first for the Dawgs in assists (averaging 2.5 per game) will play a key role for UGA in distributing the ball around the court.

A win tonight against a skilled Georgia Tech team with some good wins against ranked opponents will mean a lot to the Dawgs especially because the Yellow Jactekts are the last Power 5 team UGA will face before starting conference play this January. For the Yellow Jackets, a win on the road would set some confidence for road games which is important as their next home game will be against their second conference opponent (FSU). 

Other Georgia News:

• Georgia Football Roster Movement Tracker - A Crazy Offseason Set to Ensue
• Georgia Opens as Multiple Score Favorite Over Florida State in Orange Bowl
• Georgia Ranks No. 6 in Final CFP Rankings

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