Oklahoma and Georgia will meet for just the fourth time in men's basketball on Saturday at Lloyd Noble Center. The game will be televised on the SEC Network beginning a 2:30 p.m. CT.
The Sooners (12-12, 2-9) are coming off a narrow 92-91 win at Vanderbilt last Saturday that snapped a lengthy nine-game losing streak and gave Oklahoma its first win in over a month. The game wasn't nearly as close as the final score indicated.
OU held a 21-point lead with just under five minutes to go and had to hold off a furious late rally by the Commodores to taste a long-awaited victory. A loss to Vanderbilt would have tied a program record 10 consecutive losses that has stood for 62 years since 1964.
Georgia (17-7, 5-6) has lost four of its last five games, including an 86-66 home loss to Florida on Wednesday. It was the Bulldogs' third straight loss at home. In SEC play this season, the Dawgs actually have a better road record (3-2) than they have at home (2-4).
The sample size is small, but Oklahoma has won two of the three previous games between the two teams. This will be the first time they meet as compatriots of the SEC.
What to know about Georgia
Georgia has been in and out of the top 25 this season with a high ranking of 18th. The Dawgs are not currently ranked, but have an NCAA NET ranking of 35, well within the 68-team projected NCAA Tournament field. ESPN Bracketology guru Joe Lunardi currently has the Dawgs as a 10 seed in this season's NCAA Tournament.
Georgia is the highest scoring team in the SEC, averaging 91.9 points a game and leads the SEC in both turnover margin (3.87) and blocked shots (6.91 per game). The Dawgs own a victory margin of plus-13.6 points, third-best in the conference. Three Georgia starters average 10.5 or more points a game, led by sophomore Jeremiah Wilkinson, who averages 17.1 per contest.
People are beginning to call Georgia the "Dunkyard Dogs" in reference to the team's high number of rim-rattling dunks. Heading into its game earlier this week, nearly 19% of Georgia's field goals had been dunks at the basket (145-of-274), which leads the nation. The high priest of the Bulldog dunk parade has been 6-foot-11 Somto Cyril. He started the week credited with 59 dunks, 21 more than any other Georgia player and third-most in Division-I basketball.
Georgia has a deep rotation and plays at one of the quickest paces in the nation. The Bulldogs lead all 365 Division-I programs in fast-break points with 22.3 per game.
What to know about Oklahoma
OU's primary scoring leaders all season have been the combination of Xzayvier Brown (16.6 per game) and Nigel Pack (15.9). Both are transfers this season (Pack from Miami and Brown from St. Joseph's). Over the last five games, Pack has averaged 18.6 points and Brown 17.6. Notre Dame transfer Tae Davis has averaged 15.0 points in the previous two games.
The Sooners have scored 85 points or more in 12 of 24 games this season. They are 10-2 when they score at least 85 points. Although the OU men average 83.0 points per game overall this season, they have reached that scoring level just three times in 11 SEC games.
Oklahoma is just 1-4 this season at home against SEC opponents and 7-0 against everyone else.
Oklahoma has led for at least 22 minutes in five of its last seven games, including 30 minutes in a home loss to Texas. The Sooners were on the losing end in six of the seven games. They led for all but 15 seconds in registering a one-point win over Vanderbilt.
Prediction for Oklahoma vs Georgia
The Sooners continue to struggle closing out games. They had to hold on for life against Vanderbilt on Saturday despite being up by 21 points with just five minutes to go. There's really no excuse for being outscored 32-12 in the closing five minutes of any game. They're all of a sudden also having trouble winning at home. OU has lost its last four home games after recording an 80-66 home win against Ole Miss on Jan. 3.
Having said all of that, I believe the Sooners gained a renewed sense of confidence in what they were able to accomplish against a top-25 Vanderbilt team that had lost just three times all season prior to facing OU. They've also received a week's rest since last playing. Georgia has not played well over its last five games. I believe Oklahoma will get the job done on Saturday and pick up a second straight SEC win.