In the absence of starting forward Albert Jackson, Georgia used a lineup of four guards and a late run to defeat Presbyterian 55-47 on Friday night.
Both Zac Swansey (who led the Bulldogs with 12 points) and freshman Dustin Ware, who have played mostly point guard this season, started with senior guards Terrance Woodbury and Corey Butler along with forward Jeremy Price.
“We haven’t started four guards, but we do play with four guards a lot, so we’re pretty used to it by now,” said Butler.
Due to the injuries of Jackson and Howard Thompkins, who has yet to play this season, the Bulldogs were left with little depth in the post.
“We were down to two frontcourt players, and we knew both of them, Jeremy and Chris [Barnes], were going to have to expend tremendous energy shutting down [Al’Lonzo] Coleman, who is the center of their team. And we knew they were going to pick up some fouls.”
The Bulldogs held Coleman to eight points and six rebounds. But senior forward Bryan Bostic ran wild for the Blue Hose at times, finishing with 22 points and six rebounds.
And the Bulldogs’ frontcourt did get in foul trouble. Price, who finished with eight points and six rebounds, picked up his third foul with 15:19 remaining in the game. Barnes picked up his third foul with 8:27 remaining.
Barnes added seven points and three rebounds for the Bulldogs.
“We missed Albert tonight. He does a lot for us. We had to step up our game and rebound,” said Barnes.
Felton also liked his team’s matchup with the Blue Hose.
“They pretty much play four guards. It’s a better matchup for us defensively,” Felton said.
The Bulldogs had 26 points off turnovers, compared to only five by Presbyterian.
Despite the absence of Jackson and playing with a smaller lineup, the Bulldogs matched the Blue House in rebounds, 31-31, and outscored them 32-14 in the paint.
“We had to pound the ball inside. When we get the ball inside, we’re a more successful team,” said Swansey.
The Bulldogs also shot less 3-pointers, going 3-for-7 behind the arc.
“We haven’t shot many 3′s at all this season. But we did want to pound it inside and take advantage of the advantage we thought we had inside,” said Felton.
However, one particular 3-pointer did come up big. The Bulldogs, leadingd 27-20 at halftime, found themselves down 36-34 with 12:33 left after a Blue Hose run. But after a timeout, the Bulldogs went on a 13-0 run of their own. The run was capped off by a 3-pointer by Butler that put the Bulldogs up 47-36 with 9:09 remaining, a lead they would sustain.
“We weren’t really focused on shooting the 3-pointers too much. We just wanted to get the ball inside and take whatever they gave us,” said Butler.
Butler finished with six points and four rebounds.
The Bulldogs shot 44.4 percent from the field, but only 2-11 from the free throw line.
Georgia will stay at home this week to play in the NIT Season Tip-Off Consolation Bracket beginning Monday against Santa Clara.
Both Jackson and Thompkins hope to return to action in the next game.
Wiley can be reached at dwiley@scoreatl.com.
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