Georgia's revival may be coming late, but at least it is coming.
For the first time since late December, the Bulldogs have put together consecutive wins after knocking off Mississippi State 70-68 in overtime in Starkville.
The win was Georgia's first on the road in SEC play and followed a 22-point rout of Arkansas earlier in the week in Athens.
Georgia is now 3-7 in the SEC, alone in 10th place, and 12-12 overall.
Georgia got 20 points out of freshman guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and big plays from senior guard Gerald Robinson down the stretch, but the main impetus behind the win was rather basic.
"They're not a team of great depth," coach Mark Fox said, referring to Mississippi State. "We tried to force them to run the floor and we tried to force them to defend.
"I don't think that we played beautiful offense, but I think that we played pretty smart and gave ourselves a chance to win."
Georgia will try to extend its winning streak to three in a row when it visits South Carolina in the first of two meetings with the Gamecocks.
"We're growing up as a club," senior guard Gerald Robinson said. "The young guys are starting to learn, and we're starting to get into a really nice rhythm. Everybody is starting to learn how to play at this level."
NOTES, QUOTES
--Georgia played a kind of hybrid zone defense against Mississippi State that even coach Mark Fox had trouble explaining.
"It's totally different from what we've played," he said. "I'm not really sure how to describe it to you. We just played a variation of our zone. We had to do some really awkward things."
Mississippi State shot 46 percent against Georgia, which is better than average, and was only 8-of-23 from three-point range.
"They shot the three pretty well," Fox said of Georgia's zone. "But it gave us a chance to stay in the game. It helped us slow down their interior play."
--Senior G Gerald Robinson, who had scored 27 points in the win over Arkansas in the previous game, had only five points through the first 40 minutes against Mississippi State but scored the tying basket at the end of regulation, then scored eight of Georgia's 11 points in the overtime to key the 70-68 win.
Robinson hit his only two field-goal attempts and was 4-of-5 from the free-throw line in the extra period.
Georgia's other three points came on a three-pointer by freshman G Kentavious Caldwell-Pope that gave Georgia a 68-66 lead with 1:08 left.
--Georgia did an excellent job taking care of the basketball, committing only four turnovers, a season low. Since being charged with a season-high 16 turnovers in the win over Tennessee on Jan. 18, Georgia has averaged only 7.7 turnovers over a six-game span.
QUOTE TO NOTE
"We are really playing well, and we're playing together, playing complete basketball. I'm truly proud of them." -- Coach Mark Fox, praising his team after the win at Mississippi State.
THIS WEEK'S GAMES
--at South Carolina, Feb. 15
F Malik Cooke and G Bruce Ellington are 1-2 in scoring for the Gamecocks. Ellington has picked up his pace after missing most of the first two months of the season while with the football team. He is scoring in double figures in conference play.
--vs. Vanderbilt, Feb. 19
The Commodores are the most experienced team in the league with all five starters returning from last year. C Festus Ezeli will be a tough assignment for the Bulldogs inside. G Kentavious Caldwell-Pope could be up against one of the SEC's top defenders in Vandy's Jeffery Taylor.
FUTURES MARKET
G Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is facing a challenge from senior G Gerald Robinson in his bid to become the first freshman to lead Georgia in scoring since Jumaine Jones did it in 1998. Through 24 games, Caldwell-Pope was averaging 14.5 points a game, Robinson 14.0. Robinson was within three points of taking the team lead in scoring after getting 27 against Arkansas, when Caldwell-Pope scored 18, but Caldwell Pope came back with 20 against Mississippi State to Robinson's 13.
PLAYER NOTES
--Sophomore F Marcus Thornton had nine rebounds, one off his season-high of 10 recorded against South Dakota State back in November, in the win over Mississippi State.
--Kentavious Caldwell-Pope had eight rebounds, a season-high, to go with his 14 points against State.
--Sophomore F Donte' Williams scored 11 points against State, his first game in double figures since getting 11 against Tennessee on Jan. 18. He had seven rebounds, giving him 16 in his last two games.
--Senior G Dustin Ware bounced back from a scoreless effort in the win over Arkansas to score 11 points against State, his fourth time in double figures in his last five games.
