The Georgia men’s basketball team returns to Stegeman Coliseum Wednesday night for its second to last home game of the season against the Auburn Tigers.
At 10-17, 1-13 in conference play, the Bulldogs are in dire need of a win but so are the Tigers and for different reasons. Georgia is on a 12-game conference losing streak and trying to finish its season strong after coming up short in the last three close games. However, Auburn, ranked in the preseason Top 25, is in danger of falling back to the bubble of the NCAA Tournament with a loss.
We brought in four passionate college basketball guru’s to preview tonight’s matchup with two for each team. Here’s how Auburn super fans Miles Espy and Frank Parker see the game playing out along with Georgia diehards Wes Jackson and Wells Armes.
Down on ‘the Plains’ we have Espy who is a graduate student at Auburn University and a longtime Tiger basketball season ticket holder while Parker is an undergraduate student who also attends a number of athletic events.
In the Classic City, we have Jackson who is a graduate student at UGA that has had Bulldog athletic tickets for years and Armes, a high-school senior who runs the Georgia Hoops Fans Twitter account.
How many college basketball games have you attended this season?
Miles Espy: AU- 12 games, 11 Auburn games, watch them all
Frank Parker: AU- 1 game, watch them all
Wes Jackson: UGA- 8 games, watch them all
Wells Armes: UGA- 4 games, 3 UGA games, watch them all
Jackson Fryburger (me): 2 games, watch them all
What has been your favorite game to attend so far this season?
Miles Espy: AUB-WASH
Frank Parker: AUB-UF
Wes Jackson: UGA-Miss State
Wells Armes: Gonzaga-UNC, UGA-LSU
Jackson Fryburger (me): UGA-UMass
What will be the keys to tonight’s game in Athens?
Miles Espy: Auburn is the better team, but they have to show up. They got embarrassed by Kentucky last time out, and they can’t let one loss turn in to more losses.
Frank Parker: I think the key for Auburn tonight is to set the tempo early. In the last matchup, Auburn’s tempo was simply too much for the Dawgs. Jared Harper and Bryce Brown are going to have to play extremely well given that Austin Wiley is doubtful for the game; so the Tigers are going to have to rely on their talented guards this game.
Wes Jackson: Turnovers and finishing good shots. Too many times when we don’t turn the ball over, we settle for contested layups and bad 3’s. For Auburn… Bryce Brown… there’s a reason they lost to Ole Miss and Kentucky and he didn’t play good. When brown plays good, Auburn tends to win.
Wells Armes: On-ball defense – Georgia can’t go under screens of Jared Harper and Bryce Brown. In January’s meeting, the Tigers backcourt duo combined to go 7-13 from beyond the arc.
Auburn is one of the best teams in the SEC in forcing turnovers. They rank 2nd in steals per game. The Bulldogs can’t afford to turn the ball over and give the Tigers easy transition buckets.
Do the last few games foreshadow a potential upset tonight in Stegeman or will Auburn get back on track?
Miles Espy: I think Auburn gets on track. Georgia is trending upward, and I have to commend the Georgia players for not giving up despite their horrid conference record. Auburn is 0-3 against the two teams Georgia just lost to by 1 point, so Auburn has to be careful here. However, I think Auburn comes out motivated from last week’s terrible performance
Frank Parker: The last few games for Auburn haven’t been pretty, I’ll admit to that. If Auburn doesn’t hit their shots like the past few losses it could get dicey, but if they come out like they did against Arkansas then they’ll probably run away with it.
Wes Jackson: Georgia has shown a lot of resiliency and has played with a lot of heart, but I feel like this is coming at a bad time for Georgia. Auburn will be coming off a huge loss and will be looking to help lock up a tournament spot while Georgia is coming over two heartbreakers. That could play a huge role in the game tonight.
Wells Armes: Yes, the Bulldogs will break through and grab a win tonight. Jordan Harris has scored in double-figures in UGA’s last five games and he will provide a scoring boost again tonight.
The Bulldogs are due for a victory after two one-point losses last week. Nic Claxton and Derek Ogbeide will help UGA win the battle in the interior.
Score Prediction:
Miles Espy: 80-69 Auburn
Frank Parker: 83-69 Auburn
Wes Jackson: 74-70 Auburn
Wells Armes: 77-75 Georgia
Jackson Fryburger (me): 70-67 Georgia
Do you think Auburn will make the NCAA Tournament?
Miles Espy: Yes
Frank Parker: Yes
Wes Jackson: Yes
Wells Armes: Yes
Will Georgia get another win in conference play? If so, over Auburn, Florida, Missouri, and/or South Carolina?
Miles Espy: Yes- I think the Bulldogs end conference play with a record of 2-16 with a win against the Missouri Tigers at home. Auburn will win tonight, and Florida and South Carolina are road games against teams that are on the bubble. I don’t like the Dawgs in those spots. However, Missouri doesn’t really have anything to play for, and the Dawgs have looked good lately. I’ll take Georgia in that one.
Frank Parker: Yes- If you look at UGA’s past games, I think they’re due for another conference win. They lost by 1 point to a good Ole Miss team and talented MSU team and nearly beat LSU who is probably gonna be a top 4 seed in the tournament. I’ll pick them to beat Missouri next Wednesday in Athens.
Wes Jackson: Yes- Georgia will beat Mizzou and upset Florida in Gainesville (to capture off a sweep of Gainesville alongside our gym team who won on Friday and our women’s hoops team who will win on Thursday) to finish 3-15 in the conference, good for a rematch against Mizzou in the SECT.
Wells Armes: Yes- UGA will defeat Auburn and Missouri. I expect them to be competitive against Florida and South Carolina but I’m not picking them in those two games because the Bulldogs have struggled on the road this season.
Jackson Fryburger (me): Yes- I like the Dawgs’ chances Wednesday against Auburn with the way they have been playing lately and think an upset might be in the works. If Georgia does not pull out a win over Auburn, expect the game to still go down to the wire and be decided on a late possession. Next week in the home finale against Missouri, the Bulldogs will have an even better chance at a win and I think the pieces are falling into place for it to happen.
How far will Auburn go in the SEC Tournament and possibly NCAA?
Miles Espy: Quarterfinals and Round of 32- I have to see the matchups before I know for sure. Off the top of my head, I will predict Auburn wins on Thursday in the SEC tournament, but then they will lose on Friday to either Kentucky, Tennessee, or LSU. As for the NCAA tournament, I see Auburn ending up as a 7 or 8 seed. I think we will win our first matchup, but I expect us to be bested in the round of 32.
Frank Parker: Far- If Auburn can hit their three-point shots they can beat anyone in the country, so I’ll give them a good chance to go far in both the SEC and NCAA tournament.
Wes Jackson: Quarterfinals and Round of 32- I don’t think Auburn can get past the big 3 of LSU, UK, and Tennessee in the quarterfinals but besides that, they have the team to get to the semifinals if the bracket allows them to avoid the Big 3 before the weekend in Nashville. For the big dance, I don’t see Auburn getting past the first weekend.
Wells Armes: Quarterfinals and Round of 32- Auburn is one of those teams who could get bounced in the first week of the SEC Tournament and still make the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament. It all depends on what kind of draw they get. As of now, I’d expect the Tigers to reach the Round of 32 in the Big Dance.
Jackson Fryburger (me): Quarterfinals and Round of 64- Auburn is a very good team this season, just not a great one. The Tigers’ three-point shooting makes them competitive in just about every game but I just don’t see anything special in this year’s Auburn squad. I think the Tigers will win a game or two in the SEC Tournament but fall in the Round of 64 during March Madness.
On another topic, what do you think about the Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry moving up in 2020?
Miles Espy: I LOVE it! Honestly, the main reason I love it is that Georgia fans hate it, and I like watching them be upset. It also spreads out the Georgia and Alabama games, which may prove helpful for the Gus Bus.
Frank Parker: As an Auburn fan, it benefits us greatly. Playing UGA and Alabama in 3 weeks is rough no matter who you are, especially with the games this past season being both away from Jordan-Hare. I think it’s gonna provide both teams with a great mid-season test to really see what their programs are made of.
Wes Jackson: I’m ticked about the moving of the game. Auburn in November is a tradition. There’s nothing like getting ready for a night game against Auburn in Sanford with a chill in the air and the leaves changing. The best memories against Auburn has come under the lights, something a 3:30 game in early October doesn’t provide. However, it will be nice wrecking the Gus Bus even earlier in the season. I think the SEC’s goal is to “cheapen” the rivalry in order to get rid of permanent cross-divisional opponents when the new schedule rotation begins in 2026.
Wells Armes: I am fine with the transition. People have said it helps Auburn but I think it helps the Bulldogs just as much for a different reason. Georgia will be switching the Auburn and Tennessee dates. Facing the Volunteers late in the season will bode well in the SEC East race for the Bulldogs. With the Bulldogs having much more depth currently than the Volunteers right now, UGA is more built to withstand injuries and should have an advantage in that game.
Jackson Fryburger (me): It’s too early to tell what Georgia, Auburn, and Tennessee will look like in the middle of 2020 but the Tigers appear to have caught another significant break with the schedule change right now. It’s hard for me to see this change benefitting Georgia for a while, considering the Bulldogs have to travel to Tuscaloosa at some point in 2020. I think Auburn should have to travel to Athens in back-to-back seasons to fix the scheduling conflict and ‘return the favor’ that Georgia provided in 2013 after the SEC expanded to 14 in 2012.
