In sports, there is no such thing as a good loss. Saturday was no exception to that rule as No. 23 Georgia basketball fell to the visiting No. 1 Auburn Tigers 70-68 in front of a capacity crowd at Stegeman Coliseum in Athens, GA.
Georgia (14-4, 2-3) had their chances to win this game, but Asa Newell's game-tying shot attempt with 0.3 seconds left on the clock fell just inches short off the front of the rim that would have forced overtime. Auburn (17-1, 5-0 SEC) was led by reserve Tahaad Pettiford, who was 5 for 7 from 3-point range and finished with an impressive 24 point effort.
Freshman sensation Newell lived up to the hype as he recorded his 4th double-double of the season as he lead Georgia with 16 points and 10 rebounds.
This was Auburn’s 10th win in a row and second straight win without leading scorer Johni Broome, who injured his ankle in a January 11th win over South Carolina.
Georgia on the other hand suffered its first home loss of the season (11-1), that also snapped a 13-game winning streak at Stegeman Coliseum, which was the fourth longest home winning streak in program history.
A big reason for this loss was due to Georgia's struggles at the free throw line, making only 9 of 20 attempts from the charity stripe.
Up next for Georgia
The Bulldogs have to find a way to regroup as they now have lost two games in a row as they lost to Tennessee earlier this week. However, their impressive week last week that saw them defeat Kentucky and Oklahoma at home should still give Mike White and the Bulldogs a lo tof confidence moving forward.
And that journey for Georgia begins on Tuesday, January 22nd at 9:00 PM as the Bulldogs travel to Arkansas.