Georgia basketball: Two players to watch Saturday against Vanderbilt

ATHENS, GA - FEBRUARY 19: Georgia Bulldogs fans (Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images)
ATHENS, GA - FEBRUARY 19: Georgia Bulldogs fans (Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images) /
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Vanderbilt plays host to Georgia basketball on Saturday. Tip off is at 6:00 p.m. and the game is broadcast live on the SEC Network.

Georgia basketball looks for its second-straight SEC victory Saturday night in Nashville. Here are two players Georgia needs big games out of in order to leave Nashville with a win.

Rayshaun Hammonds – Forward

Rebounding is not Vanderbilt’s strong-suit. At 32.7 boards per game, the Commodores are No. 13 in the SEC at grabbing rebounds. Georgia is No. 4 with 38.4 rebounds and the leading rebounder is forward Rayshaun Hammonds.

The junior from Norcross is pulling 7.2 boards every night and he grabbed eight boards Wednesday against Auburn. The Commodores definitely have more size than Georgia and several players larger than Hammonds, but none of them dominate on the boards. Their leading rebounder (Clevon Brown) only averages six boards per game and he hasn’t played since December. Their active leader in rebounds is freshman Dylan Disu and he only pulling 5.6 boards each game.

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Hammonds has battled with the best big men the SEC have had to offer in his three years on campus. He should have one of his better rebounding games Saturday against Vanderbilt. Those rebounds should lead to a lot of second-chance points for Hammonds.

Sahvir Wheeler – Guard

Vanderbilt actually does a great job fo slowing down an opponent’s best scorer. Arkansas’ Mason Jones only scored one point in 31 minutes against the Commodores. Of the SEC’s best scorers, only Mississippi State’s Reggie Perry exceeded his season average. That doesn’t bode well for Anthony Edwards.

Someone else has to pick up the scoring slack for the Dawgs on the perimeter. That someone should be freshman point guard Sahvir Wheeler. Wheeler only averages 8.8 points per game, but he’s proven able to amp up his shooting output when Edwards isn’t open. Wheeler is good at driving the lane, often making difficult shots at the rim he has no business even attempting. With all the attention Edwards and Hammonds will get, he should have some wide lanes to take advantage of.