Georgia started the 2017-18 season on a good note with a convincing 79-54 win at home over Bryant.
The Bulldogs were led by Yante Maten, with the co-SEC Preseason Player of the Year scoring 21 points and grabbing 12 rebounds on the night.
Standout freshman Rayshaun Hammonds scored 17 points on 7-of-9 shooting in his Georgia debut.
Ring the bell! Georgia takes the season opener at home.
#UGA-79. BRY-54. FINAL #UGAvsBRY #GoDawgs pic.twitter.com/Xdyh3zljJy
— Georgia Basketball (@UGABasketball) November 11, 2017
Mark Fox had 11 players play double-digit minutes in the game, and the Bulldogs used that depth to hold Bryant to just 25.8 percent shooting from the floor.
Adam Grant scored 24 points for the Bulldogs.
Lovell’s Analysis
I’ve said over the past few weeks that this Georgia team is growing on me.
It was easy to look at this team on paper and wonder how fair it could go with J.J. Frazier out of the picture, but thus far, the Bulldogs are gelling nicely.
Maten will be the best player on the floor most nights, and it’s the contributions from Hammonds and others that’ll give Georgia a chance to win a lot of games.
Although it’s too early to tell how the backcourt situation could shake out, Fox has options. The 14 assists to 17 turnovers needs to improve, but that should get better as these guards get more comfortable in their new roles.
The Bulldogs should be able to continue building momentum against inferior opponents in the early part of the non-conference schedule.