Opening vs. Missouri, Georgia wants to 'make some noise' in SEC tourney

Field Level Media|published: Wed 13th March, 02:16 2024

Georgia Bulldogs head coach Mike White talks with an official as Auburn Tigers take on Georgia Bulldogs at Neville Arena in Auburn, Ala., on Saturday, March 9, 2024. Auburn Tigers lead Georgia Bulldogs 45-31 at halftime. credits: Jake Crandall / USA TODAY NETWORK

Georgia coach Mike White felt his program made progress in Year 2 of his regime.

The Southeastern Conference tournament offers the 11th-seeded Bulldogs (16-15) an opportunity to reaffirm that. They will face 14th-seeded Missouri (8-23) on Wednesday night at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn.

"Hopefully we can make some noise in Nashville," White said. "Hopefully we can play well Wednesday and advance. We'll see."

The Bulldogs closed their regular season with a 92-78 loss at No. 13 Auburn. White saw positives in how his team kept competing against the explosive Tigers after falling behind 60-39.

"It could've gotten ugly, and it has gotten ugly in this building against other teams," he said. "Auburn is terrific, they executed at a really high level. The hole that we dug ourselves early on in the game was the difference.

"I loved our fight in the second 20 (minutes). To come in here and outrebound these guys shows you that our guys left a lot out there on the floor physically."

The Bulldogs are paced by Noah Thomasson (12.8 points per game), Jabri Abdur-Rahim (12.2), RJ Melendez (9.7) and Silas Demary Jr. (9.7), who was named to the all-SEC Freshman Team.

Georgia won 75-68 at Missouri on Jan. 6, with Russel Tchewa scoring 18 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. Missouri got 18 points from Sean East II, who leads the Tigers with a 17.9 scoring average.

Tamar Bates is scoring 13.5 points per game and Nick Honor and Noah Carter each average 11.

Missouri is looking to end its season on a positive note after going 0-18 in SEC play in coach Dennis Gates' second season. A season ago, the Tigers finished 25-10 and reached the NCAA Tournament.

"The season hasn't gone how I personally wanted it to go," Gates said. "But the season is not over. It's a new season. Everybody in the country is in tournament form. The Georgia team that we face at the beginning of the year, everybody grows, develops. They're better than what their record is; they're better than what their record shows."

—Field Level Media