ATHENS - Ezra Williams wanted a chance to win the game, even if he had to take the ball away from one of his teammates.
Williams jerked the ball out of Chris Daniels hands and hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer, giving Georgia a 73-70 victory over Tennessee on Saturday night.
``The ball was rolling around, and Chris and I grabbed it at the same time,'' Williams said of the final play. ``I took it from him, and I just stepped back and shot it.''
Referee John Clougherty immediately signaled the basket was good, but officials huddled briefly at the scorer's table before allowing Williams' game winner. Williams finished with 22 points for Georgia (14-2, 3-0 Southeastern Conference), and Daniels added 19.
Ron Slay had 21 points for the Volunteers (6-8, 1-2), whose last six losses have been by a total of 15 points. Vincent Yarbrough added 19.
``I told the guys I really had no explanation,'' said Tennessee coach Buzz Peterson. ``They fought and scrapped. They fought hard. It's hard to me to explain to them why we lost.''
The final possession started with Rashad Wright losing the ball on a drive to the basket. The ball bounced around in the lane before rolling toward the sideline, where Daniels and Williams chased it down.
``When the ball came out, I was about to pick it up and shoot it,'' Daniels said. ``The next thing I knew, I heard somebody say, 'Give it here.' Next thing I know, the shot was going in.''
The hectic final seconds capped a frantic final minutes, with the Volunteers rallying from nine points down to take a 67-66 lead on Marcus Haislip's tip-in.
Daniels made two free throws to put the Bulldogs up 1, and after Wright's steal, Jarvis Hayes made a jumper for a three-point lead.
But Slay made a wide-open 3-pointer his first in three games with 15.8 seconds to tie it at 70, setting up Williams' heroics.
Hayes had 16 for the Bulldogs, off to their best start since 1923.
Georgia won despite shooting 30 percent from the field and getting outrebounded 52-42.
``We're very fortunate to have the win,'' said coach Jim Harrick. ``Sometimes you want games like this in the league, and hopefully you can win some of them.''
Georgia's Fred Gibson, a football star who joined the basketball team Jan. 2, helped the Bulldogs take their nine-point lead, scoring four straight points at one point in the second half. Gibson made two free throws and added a leaning jumper in his first significant playing time of the season.
But Georgia missed seven of its next eight shots, allowing the Volunteers to get back in the game with a 13-3 run. Slay had seven points during the spurt.
``I felt good the entire game,'' Peterson said. ``They did everything we asked them to.''
Georgia took an 11-point lead in the first half but failed to take advantage of Tennessee's growing foul trouble. The Volunteers committed their 10th foul with 10:46 left in the half, but the Bulldogs shot just two more free throws before the break.
Meanwhile, Tennessee went on an 18-3 run that featured four straight dunks to take a four-point lead.
Georgia managed to go back in front by halftime, with Hayes hitting a late 3-pointer for a 37-34 lead.
Friday
May 9th, 2025
4:25AM
