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As a reminder, the stated policy of Dawg Sports regarding University of Georgia basketball is to ideally acknowledge its existence once annually. It’s not because we aren’t hoops fans. We would love to see the ‘Dawgs win every game, and in fact for my part, I can say I watch a decent amount of bulldog basketball. But harsh experience has taught us that the Hoop Hounds’ success is a bit like a timid baby deer traversing the forest floor. Adorable, but the moment you turn your eyes toward it, it dashes away in terror.
But on this morning, I am excited enough to break the rule. In case you missed it Coach White’s team down number 16 Alabama last night 98-88 in the Stege. The effort was keyed by a monster night from sophomore Kanon Catchings, who put up a career high 32 points.
If you’d have told me during the Mark Fox era that a Bulldog hoopster could score 32 points in a single game I would have wept. But this Bulldog team, now 21-9 overall and 9-8 in the SEC, is quite literally built different. They’re, and I think I’m using this word correctly….fun? The Red and Black are second only to the Crimson Tide in scoring at 90 points a game despite no player on the squad averaging over 20 points per night. Lest you get too concerned, they do still follow the grand Bulldogs basketball tradition of turning the ball over like Shriners handing out candy at a July 4th parade. But that kind of thing is a lot less damaging when you can actually shoot the basketball and rebound. Which, weirdly, it seems this team can. I’ve seen it. With my eyes.
And this emergence is even more enjoyable given that the league’s media picked the Athenians to finish 14th in the league, and placed no ‘Dawgs on the SEC first, second, or third team preseason lists. It’s fun to be right. It’s more fun to prove your doubters wrong.
Though to be fair, this season has been a bit of a revelation for Bulldog fans too. Roster turnover is now just a fact of life in college sports, perhaps nowhere more than college basketball. And Georgia came into this season without Silas Demery, Jr. (who transferred to UConn) and Asa Newell (currently doing work off the bench for the Atlanta Hawks). So perhaps the league’s scribes had some reason for skepticism.
But they fell victim to one of the classic blunders. No, not getting involved in a land war in Asia. I mean underestimating Mike White, who now sports a 77-55 record in Athens. Most importantly, that ninth conference win against the Tuscaloosers essentially clinched a spot in the NCAA Tournament, the second appearance in a row for the Classic City Canines. That last happened during the 2001-2002 tournaments. Not sure how that streak came to an end. Like Lewis Grizzard, frankly, I don’t want to talk about it.
But I digress. The Hoop Hounds will travel to Starkville on Saturday to take on a Mississippi State team that’s lost four in a row and sits at 5-12 in the SEC. Then the SEC Tournament tips off a week from today on March 11th. At some point thereafter this Bulldog basketball team is going to mildly disappoint me by bowing out of postseason play in a frustrating and/or wholly predictable manner. But before that occurs, let me go on record stating that we’ve got one heckuva basketball team in Athens.
Go ‘Dawgs!!!