12. Georgia
In Athens they're talking of dethroning SEC king Kentucky, and thanks to one super sophomore, they very well might
Posted: Wednesday November 18, 1998 01:15 PM
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In Athens they're talking of dethroning SEC king Kentucky, and thanks to one super sophomore, they very well might V.J. Lovero |
Ron
Jirsa
is thumbing through a stack of faxes and letters of
encouragement he received last year, his first as the
Bulldogs' coach. As Jirsa reads aloud sundry platitudes and
Biblical proverbs, he concedes that his mountain of
missives does not represent a full
accounting of the correspondence that landed on his desk.
"I only keep the good stuff," he
says.
He recalls one particularly nasty letter he received last
January, when the Bulldogs were in the midst of a five-game
losing streak. "Man, it was horrible," says
Jirsa, who had been given the top job the previous May when
Tubby Smith left to coach
Kentucky. "A few days later I got another one from the same
guy, and I told my assistant, 'Sandi, don't even give me
these. They're too
tough.'"
The Bulldogs would recover from their sluggish start to
reach the semifinals of the NIT. With four starters back
from that team, including Smith's son G.G., a talented
senior point guard, and Jumaine Jones, one of the nation's
top freshmen a year ago,
Georgia enters the season as the leading candidate to end
Kentucky's stranglehold on the SEC crown.
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| STARTING LINEUP |
| POS. | HT. | CLASS | KEY STAT |
| SF Michael Chadwick* | 6'4" | Sr. | 8.7 ppg |
| PF Jumaine Jones* | 6'7" | So. | 14.7 ppg |
| C Eric DeYoung | 7'0" | Sr. | 2.7 rpg** |
| SG Ray Harrison* | 6'3" | Sr. | 11.9 ppg |
| PG G.G. Smith* | 5'11" | Sr. | 13.5 ppg |
'97-98 record: 20-15
Final rank (coaches' poll): unranked
*Returning starter
**'96-97 rpg (redshirt in '97-98)
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How formidable a threat the Dawgs will be to the 'Cats
depends largely on Jones. Displaying power and athleticism
reminiscent of early '80s Georgia star Dominique Wilkins,
the
6'7" forward last season became the first freshman since
1984-85 to lead the Bulldogs in scoring (14.7 points per
game) and rebounding (8.5). After playing for the U.S. team
in the Goodwill Games, where he improved his outside
shooting touch, Jones should
be a more potent offensive weapon this
year.
His teammates, though, must assume a greater offensive
role. Centers Robb Dryden and Eric DeYoung, both
7-footers, need to relieve Jones of some of the
inside-scoring burden he shouldered a year ago. Smith is a
much-improved shooter, but with Adrian Jones out for the
year with a broken bone in his right foot, there isn't much
backcourt
depth.
Having survived his first year as head coach, Jirsa is
optimistic as he begins the new season. "The second
time around is always easier," he says. If it's not,
Sandi, remember: Only the good stuff.
—Seth Davis Top 25 | Rest of the Best
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