Mark Fox's Georgia Bulldogs return to action tonight as they take on the Tennessee Volunteers at Stegeman Coliseum in Athens. This is the start of a three game home stand for the Bulldogs that will also see them host Mississippi State and Florida in the coming days.
Georgia is coming off its best game offensively this season with a 98-76 rout of Ole Miss on the road. Georgia's 98 points scored was its largest output against an SEC opponent since 1995. Previously the Bulldogs dropped a 73-66 decision to Vanderbilt in Nashville.
The Volunteers dropped their first two SEC conference games losing 68-65 to Arkansas on Jan 8th and 81-75 in overtime to Florida on Jan 11th before defeating Vanderbilt over the weekend by a score of 67-64. Tennessee overcame a 17 point deficit in that victory over the Commodores.
Preseason SEC Player of the Year Trey Thompkins looks to be full recovered from the high ankle sprain that hampered him early in the season. Thompkins averages a team high 17.9 point per game and is second on the team in rebounding grabbing 7.3 rebounds per contest. Gerald Robinson Jr. has played a huge part in Georgia's early success averaging just under 20 points per game in conference play. The Dogs will need a good inside/outside performance from Thompkins and Robinson if they want to capture a victory tonight.
Tennessee will be without head coach Bruce Pearl as he is serving an eight game SEC suspension for lying to NCAA investigators about recruiting violations. Scotty Hopkins (16.5 ppg) and freshman Tobias Harris (15.6 ppg) provide the Volunteers with a strong one-two punch.
Tip off is slated for 7:00 pm and will be broadcast nationally on ESPNU. For more coverage on this game, join the conversation at Dawg Sports.