ATHENS — The Georgia Bulldogs men’s basketball team fought back to defeat the USC Upstate Spartans 74-65 on Tuesday night in Stegeman Coliseum.
Senior forward Yante Maten led the Georgia offense with 22 points and 14 rebounds, which marked his 18th double-double of his Georgia career and second straight on the season.
Junior guard William Jackson II and freshman forward Rayshaun Hammonds posted 13 points as well. Jackson’s total was a new career high, due to three free-throws in the final 20 seconds of the game. He also tied his career assists with four. Hammonds posted his second consecutive double-digit point total as a freshman.
“We came and competed well,” said Georgia head coach Mark Fox. "We need games like that to grow, and my hat is off to their team on their effort. But that game is very good for us, and I think it is a good experience for us."
Going into the half, Georgia (2-0) led 34-30. The Bulldogs took the advantage early with a lay-up from junior forward Derek Ogbeide, which they maintained for the entirety of the half. The first half points were dominated by Jackson with 10, as Georgia channeled balanced scoring with 10 of the 11 players on the court posting numbers on the board.
Georgia started the second half strong with a 10-5 run and three buckets from Maten, Ogbeide, and Hammonds. USC Upstate (1-2) had a 14-1 run to give them the lead, started by junior guard Deion Holmes’ three-pointer. Georgia fought back for the lead, 53-52, with a dunk from junior forward E’Torrion Wilridge and Maten’s tip-in. With 6:21 remaining in the game, the Bulldogs took back the lead with a Hammonds jumper followed by a lay-up assisted by Maten.
Maten continued the momentum for the Bulldogs scoring nine points, complimented by three free-throws by Jackson, enabling the Bulldogs to clinch the game 74-65.
The Spartans entered the game shooting 43.1 percent, and Georgia held them to 37 percent. The Bulldogs also outscored the Spartans in free-throws with 17 to their five, with 15 in the second half alone. Two other players posted career highs as well. Wilridge recorded five assists and Hammonds inked two steals.
The Bulldogs return to Stegeman Coliseum on Sunday at 1 p.m. against Texas A&M Corpus Christi.
