22. Georgia (14-2)
Coming into this week, Georgia hadn’t lost a game in regulation and had been showing up when it mattered most. They survived a tough effort from Auburn last weekend and had some decent wins along the way, but we really weren’t going to get the full picture on these Bulldogs into SEC play began. We certainly got some of that picture with two road games this past week.
There’s no shame in losing in Gainesville, though the Bulldogs were certainly disappointed with a 92-77 loss at Florida. Marcus Millender looked good with 18 points off the bench alongside Dylan James’s 16-point effort in bitter defeat. Fortunately, Georgia survived Saturday’s road test, coming back from a halftime deficit to win 75-70 at South Carolina. Kanon Catchings emerged with 20 points and Somto Cyril added 18 points in a solid bounce back effort.
Every SEC road test will be a war even for the best teams in this league. While the Bulldogs certainly could’ve played better in Florida, they at least showed us something with that late effort against the Gamecocks and it’s enough to keep our attention for another week. They’ll thankfully be staying at home in Athens this upcoming week, hosting Ole Miss and Arkansas in two interesting tests.