Jeremiah Wilkinson scored 19 points to lead five double-figure scorers and help Georgia defeat Texas 91-80 in Athens, Ga., on Saturday and end the Longhorns’ five-game winning streak.
Texas erased a 14-point second-half deficit to tie the game at 67 with 7:37 left, but Georgia came alive and outscored Texas 17-6 the rest of the way.
The Bulldogs took an 11-point lead with 3:03 left when Kanon Catchings finished a fastbreak with a reverse layup to go up 84-73. Georgia shot 9-for-12 after the game was tied.
Georgia (19-8, 7-7 Southeastern Conference) also got double figures from Marcus “Smurf” Millender with 15, Catchings and Somto Cyril with 13 apiece, and Blue Cain with 12. Millender, Catchings and Wilkinson each made three 3-pointers and Georgia was 11-for-20 (55%) from distance.
The Bulldogs committed only five turnovers, their season low in SEC play.
Texas (17-10, 8-6) was led by Matas Vokietaitis with 22 points, going 8-for-10 from the floor, and five rebounds, and Dailyn Swain with 21 points and six rebounds. Jordan Pope scored 17 with three 3-point baskets.
Georgia has won two straight and ended its three-game home-court losing streak. The win gave the Bulldogs a split of the season series and improved their record to 5-0 against the Longhorns in Athens.
Georgia used a 10-0 run midway in the first half to take a 26-9 lead with 8:36 left before the Longhorns ended a four-minute scoring drought on a free throw by Vokietaitis. The Bulldogs led by 18 on Millender’s 3-pointer, but Texas outscored them 14-4 and cut the lead to 35-27 at 3:13. Millender didn’t miss a shot in the first half, going 5-for-5 from the floor and 3-for-3 on 3-pointers. Georgia held a 45-35 halftime lead.
Texas continued to apply pressure, only to be turned back by Georgia, once on back-to-back dunks by Cyril and Wilkinson that ended a 8-3 run which re-established a 14-point lead.
Georgia led 65-52 with 11:36 left when Texas, led by Vokietaitis and Swain, went on a 15-2 run. The Longhorns tied the game on a 3-pointer by Pope with 7:37 remaining.
–Field Level Media
