Jeremiah Wilkinson scored 19 points to lead five double-figure scorers and help Georgia defeat visiting Texas 91-80 in Athens 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 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 SEC) 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 percent) from distance.
The Bulldogs committed only five turnovers, its 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 that 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
