Georgia basketball: Bulldogs look more mature, still falls in overtime to Alabama

the Georgia basketball team looked much better Saturday against Alabama than it did in its loss to Florida on Wednesday. Though the Bulldogs still lost in overtime.

The complaint about the Georgia basketball team after Wednesday’s embarrassing, comeback loss to Florida was that the team lacked maturity. Understandable for a freshman-filled team in November, almost inexcusable for the middle of SEC play in February.

For much of Saturday’s home game against Alabama, that immaturity hampered the Bulldogs again. Turnovers, bad ball movement and occasional lethargic defense allowed the Crimson Tide to lead for almost the entire first half. Good first half shooting by Sahvir Wheeler and Toumani Camara was the only reason the Dawgs were in the game.

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Then, Georgia came out of the second half looking like a different team. They moved the ball much better, turnovers were less frequent and open shots were more frequent. The Bulldogs had the lead for a little while, Alabama never pulled away when it regained the lead, and Georgia even found a way to tie the game with a clutch jumper by Rayshaun Hammonds to force overtime.

Yes, the Dawgs went on to lose. Yes, some of the maturity issues crept back in during the overtime period. But the freshman-filled Bulldogs responded, and that’s a good sign that maybe this team is turning the corner. They’ll still probably need to win the SEC Tournament to make the NCAA Tournament field, but for 23 minutes of late-game play, Georgia showed its potential again, and this time, it showed its potential in “winning time.”

Unlike Wednesday, Georgia lost because of basketball errors. Because a three-pointer rotated around the inside of the rim before spinning out when the Dawgs had a small lead late in regulation. Because the Bulldogs lack height in the post. Because Alabama put Georgia in position to commit fouls more than Georgia did to Alabama.

It’s a big loss in conference play. It hurts. But once that hurt wears off and you look at the 24 points and eight assists by Wheeler, the 20 points by Hammonds and the 12 points by Camara, or even the eight points off the bench by Tye Fagan, you can see a team worthy of patience.