National Basketball Association
Georgia 66, High Point 58
When: 5:30 PM ET, Saturday, December 16, 2023
Where: Stegeman Coliseum, Athens, Georgia
Officials:
# Jason Baker, # Garrick Shannon, # Robert Felder
Attendance:
6523
By Field Level Media
Silas Dmary Jr. scored 12 points, RJ Melendez added 11 points and six rebounds and Georgia rallied for a 66-58 win over visiting High Point Saturday in Athens, Ga.
Noah Thomasson and Russel Tchewa each added 11 for the Bulldogs (7-3), who came off an 11-day layoff to win their fifth in a row and stay unbeaten at home (6-0).
Featuring one of the best offenses in the country at 89.1 points per game, the Panthers (8-4) fell well short of that average as their five-game winning streak was snapped despite Trae Benham's season-high 18 points.
The Panthers' Duke Miles finished with 15 points, Kimani Hamilton chipped in 11 points and 10 rebounds and Juslin Bodo Bodo grabbed a season-high 15 rebounds.
Down 33-30 at the half, Georgia took its first lead since the 16:07 mark of the first half when Melendez nailed an open 3-pointer with 11:02 to play to put the Bulldogs ahead 45-43.
Jabri Abdur-Rahim couldn't have picked a better time to collect his first points of the day. With 5:34 left, and Georgia up one, he stepped back and connected from beyond the arc for his 99th career 3-pointer, getting fouled in the process. His ensuing free throw made it 55-50.
Miles knocked down a 3-pointer with 2:04 remaining to pull the Panthers within 61-56 but the Bulldogs hung on.
High Point looked like the sharper team early thanks in part to Hamilton, who drilled back-to-back 3-pointers to give the Panthers a 17-10 lead at the midway point of the opening half.
The lead stretched to double digits when Benham launched a 3-point shot up that put High Point ahead 20-10.
A 3-pointer from Demary in the corner with 8:12 remaining ignited an 8-0 run for the Bulldogs, who were within 20-18 after a layup and free throw by Tchewa at the 6:26 mark.
Benham made his third 3-pointer of the day with 3:17 left, coming off a screen for the shot as High Point surged ahead 31-24.
The Panthers held a halftime lead as five 3-pointers and 15 offensive rebounds, leading to 11 second-chance points, helped negate a 22.5 percent shooting percentage.
--Field Level Media
Top Game Performances
High Point |
|
Georgia |
Trae Benham 18 |
Scoring |
Silas Demary Jr 12 |
Trae Benham 3 |
Assists |
Silas Demary Jr 4 |
Juslin Bodo Bodo 15 |
Rebounds |
RJ Melendez 7 |
Trae Benham 6 |
Free Throws Made |
Jabri Abdur-Rahim 3 |
Kezza Giffa 2 |
Steals |
Silas Demary Jr 2 |
Juslin Bodo Bodo 4 |
Blocks |
Russel Tchewa 3 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
High Point
|
58 |
23.3 |
9-36 |
15-19 |
10 |
40 |
4 |
6 |
9 |
Georgia
|
66 |
44.2 |
4-12 |
16-23 |
9 |
39 |
7 |
5 |
9 |