ATHENS -- Coach Mark Fox has no illusions about the team he's taking over in his first season at Georgia.
It's difficult enough rebuilding a team that finished last in the Southeastern Conference with a 3-13 record. The Bulldogs endured an 11-game losing streak, their worst since 1974-75, before closing their 12-20 season by dropping five of seven.
With the season opener against New Orleans looming Nov. 13 at Stegeman Coliseum, Fox's biggest challenge lies in helping Georgia generate offense.
The Bulldogs ranked last in the SEC and 234th nationally by scoring 64.9 points per game. They have just one returning player, sophomore forward Trey Thompkins, who averaged double digits (12.4 points) last season.
"Our biggest concern is going to be our ability to score and our ball care," Fox said this week. "This is a team that wasn't very offensive, but our guys are up to the task of wanting to improve every day in practice. It's our job as a staff to put them in position to be successful. Ultimately, we will get there."
Fox is encouraged by the warm reception given by players who grew tired of losing under his predecessor, Dennis Felton, and former interim coach Pete Herrmann.
"We are not having to fight any kind of battle to get our players motivated," Fox said. "They are out there working hard every day, and what's encouraging to me and my staff is that we haven't had any bad days. We've seen improvement each time out."
Senior center Albert Jackson believes Fox, whose Nevada teams won or shared four Western Athletic Conference titles and made three NCAA tournament appearances in five years, brought credibility to a team embarrassed by poor results.
"I love the direction we're heading in," Jackson said. "Coach Fox and his staff have built an atmosphere that makes it easy for us to learn what they want us to do. They're tough, but they're always supporting us, too."
Competing in the SEC East Division against programs with national pedigree (Kentucky, Florida, Tennessee) and others with better stability (Vanderbilt, South Carolina), Fox doesn't aim too high when discussing the Bulldogs' chances this season.
However, the 22nd men's basketball coach in Georgia history seems to greatly appreciate the opportunity to compete in the SEC. He began his career at Nevada as an assistant in 2000-01.
"We obviously have a lot more resources in the SEC than in the WAC," Fox said. "The SEC is a terrific league where we all are trying to play at the highest level possible. Everyone is hungry and we are all trying to represent the conference well. I believe that this is one of the premier conferences in the country and that hopefully we can send half of our conference to the NCAA tournament."
Georgia's turnover margin was another major problem last season as the Bulldogs averaged 17.6 miscues, worst in the SEC and a staggering 322nd in the nation.
Point guard Dustin Ware, however, began to improve after adjusting to the speed and size of opponents, starting the last 13 games and becoming the first Georgia freshman with 100 assists since Rashad Wright in 2001. Ware ranked second among SEC freshmen with an assist-turnover ratio of 1.4.
In Fox's defensive system, Ware and the other guards (DeMario Mayfield, Travis Leslie, Ricky McPhee, Ebuka Anyaorah and Vincent Williams) must help frontline teammates when opponents drive from the perimeter in their halfcourt offense.
Jackson thinks one reason Georgia had problems rebounding in Felton's system was that he and other big men were out of position after stepping forward to attack the ball.
"In this defense, there's not as much of an emphasis on preventing the pass," Jackson said. "On the wings, when a guy is driving from the middle, we don't have the post player leaving his spot, particularly if you don't know where your help is coming from behind you."
Thursday
June 12th, 2025
10:01AM
