South Carolina – 52, Georgia – 42. Sorry for the late posting. By the time we drowned our sorrows at Hairy Dawg’s Birthday Party, there wasn’t enough time to update this site before the start of the Super Bowl. Not that I was itching to write about this game any more than you guys were to read about it. A busload of South Carolina fans got to do something today that they’ve only done one other time in most of their lifetimes…celebrate a win over Georgia in Stegeman Coliseum. As has been the case in every other loss this season, Georgia (19-5 overall, 6-5 in SEC play) was once again done in by poor shooting. If you hold an SEC team to 52 points, as the Lady Dawgs did today, you figure you’ve got a pretty good chance of picking up a “W.” That is, unless you knock down less than 30% of your shots from the field, go 2-of-11 from three-point land, and miss almost half of your free throws. It also doesn’t help to lose two All-SEC starters for big chunks of the game due to injury (Angel hit her head again going for a loose ball…we’ll update her condition as information becomes available) and foul trouble (Ashley picked up her fourth foul early in the second half). J.J. led Georgia in scoring with 11 points…she also put up the shot that may have epitomized how this game went for the Lady Dawgs. Late in the second half, as Georgia made a run that cut the Gamecock lead to single digits, J.J. launched a long three-ball that would’ve rocked the Coliseum if it had gone down. It went in the cylinder, rattled around four times, fell another couple of inches down, and…astonishingly…it suddenly shot straight up and out of the cylinder like it was attached to a yo-yo string. It was that kind of day.

Now it’s on to Lexington next week as the Lady Bulldogs will try to cool off the SEC’s hottest team, Kentucky. The ‘Cats are winners of seven straight and they’ll be looking for some payback for a tough loss in Athens a couple of weeks ago. We’ll have a Georgia/Kentucky preview posted right here during the day on Wednesday. Don’t forget to check back tomorrow and Tuesday for the latest poll rankings.

Keep the faith, Fastbreakers. There’s still a lot of ball left to be played.

Click here for the official Georgia/South Carolina recap and a link to the stats and box score.

Does anybody else feel old when they see players from the relatively recent past roaming the sideline as coaches or assistants? Kellie (Jolly) Harper at NC State…our own La’Keshia (Frett) Meredith…it’s almost like you expect them to run over to the scorer’s table and check into the game at some point. You better know that the 12-10 (5-5 in SEC play) South Carolina Gamecocks wouldn’t mind a bit if their coach, 3-time Olympic gold medalist Dawn Staley, could still lace up her sneakers and dish the rock. Coach Staley has left the disappointment of her maiden season in Columbia last year (when the Gamecocks limped to a 2-12 SEC record) far behind in the rearview mirror. Given a boost by one of last year’s finest signing classes, Carolina is now one of those teams that maybe isn’t quite ready to be a national contender but, at the same time, is quite capable of jumping up and beating just about anyone in any given game. They sure give Tennessee a scare last week, jumping out to an early 14-2 lead…a lead they held for most of the game before the Lady Vols came back to claim a 60-55 victory. So Carolina will hit the floor tomorrow ready to play…it will be up to the Lady Bulldogs to keep the momentum from Thursday’s scintillating overtime win over LSU going and take care of their own business. This one ought to be a fantastic opening act for all of your Super Bowl activities tomorrow afternoon. So don’t even think about watching eight hours of pre-game coverage…get out to the Coliseum for Georgia and South Carolina. See you there.

Georgia and South Carolina will tip-off at 2:00 PM (Eastern) tomorrow afternoon at Stegeman Coliseum. Our friends at CSS will be back into to televise the game for their regional customers and, as always, you can also hear the game on your local Georgia Bulldog Radio Network affiliate station. We’ll have a recap, game links, and exclusive Georgia/South Carolina photos posted right here a couple of hours after the final buzzer.

Click here for the official Georgia/South Carolina game notes.

Here’s a link to the official South Carolina women’s basketball page.

Click here to see the entire Gamecock roster.

Georgia – 49, LSU – 46 (OT). Yeah, that’ll work. You had the feeling that this was one of those games that could flip the fortunes of the Lady Bulldogs regardless of the outcome. In other words, winning this game could prove to be as therapeutic as losing it would’ve been toxic. In any event, it’s an overtime win over a ranked team…and that means it’s a very good night indeed in the Lady Bulldog Nation. With tonight’s win, Georgia improves to 19-4 overall and 6-4 in SEC play. We’ll see how the conference standings shake down after all of tonight’s SEC results are in…for now, just knowing that the Lady Dawgs will be gaining on somebody will do.

It wasn’t pretty…it was your basic, low-scoring, defense-oriented slobberknocker with momentum hanging in the balance between the two teams as precariously as the lady on the unicycle at halftime. The deal wasn’t sealed until J.J., who led the Lady Bulldogs in scoring with 15 points, went baseline for an ankle-breaking layup with 1:23 left in overtime that gave Georgia a lead they wouldn’t relinquish. Porsha and Angel each scored 8 points…but Angel’s major impact tonight was felt on the defensive end as she blocked four Lady Tiger shots and grabbed a season-high 14 rebounds. Ashley, still dealing with a sprained ankle, looked to be grimacing a bit while running the floor…but she played a gutsy and encouraging 34 minutes. Just a fine overall team effort tonight from our Lady Dawgs. They needed this game…and they went out and took it.

The Lady Bulldogs will next welcome Coach Dawn Staley and her South Carolina Gamecocks to town this Sunday afternoon at Stegeman Coliseum. We’ll have a Georgia/South Carolina preview posted sometime during the day on Saturday.

Click here for the official Georgia/LSU recap and a link to the stats and box score.

Ashley Houts (pictured) is one of ten finalists in the running for the Lowe’s Senior Class Award. This annual honor recognizes student-athletes who best uphold the award’s four columns of Classroom, Community, Character, and Competition. Now if the name “Ashley Houts” doesn’t immediately pop into your head whenever you reflect on any of those four columns, then you haven’t been watching very much Lady Bulldog basketball for the last four seasons. Voting for the Lowe’s Senior Class Award is divided among three sets of electors: Women’s college basketball media figures, the nation’s coaches, and…most importantly, fans who cast their vote either online or by text message. That’s where all of you come in…

Let’s get this honor for Ash. Think of how many times she’s popped right back up after taking a bruising charge. Think of the clutch shots late in the game (like “The Shot” versus LSU). Think of how unfailingly charming and polite she’s been every time you’ve had the occasion to speak to her. Let’s do this…let’s get this honor for Ash.

Click here to be taken to the voting page for the Lowe’s Senior Class Award.

This just in from the UGA Sports Communications Office:

ATHENS, GA. — ESPN2 will air the Sunday, February 21, women’s basketball game between the Georgia Lady Bulldogs and the Florida Gators in Gainesville. Tip time for that contest is now set for 5:00 PM (Eastern).

The matchup is one of a school-record 14 regular-season television appearances for Georgia during the 2009-10 season. The Lady Bulldogs also had 14 regular-season games air on TV during the 2006-07 season.

As all Fastbreakers know, the Lady Bulldogs have been forced to play long stretches of their last three games without their veteran point guard and team leader as Ashley Houts (pictured) has been forced to the bench with a nagging ankle injury. In today’s Georgia/LSU preview on the team’s official website, Coach Landers had this to say about Ashley’s injury and her status for tomorrow night’s LSU game: “Ashley has a sprained ankle, and it’s a pretty good sprain. We made the decision on Saturday that we would not put her at risk very much on Sunday against Auburn. We decided that we would start the game with her because that might comfort our team a little bit and that she might finish the game. She will not practice this week, but she will be available to play in games. We’ll continue that until it’s in her best interest to do more.”

(Ash photo courtesy of Fastbreaker Bill Zachmann.)

Click here to read the rest of today’s Georgia/LSU preview.

Tomorrow night at Stegeman Coliseum, a potential Season of Dreams reaches a pivotal crossroads when the Lady Dawgs clash with LSU. A quick glance at Georgia’s remaining schedule suggests that the Lady Bulldogs can actually lose tomorrow night to the Lady Tigers and still finish with well north of twenty wins. Well…okay…but a four-game losing streak at this stage of the season would most likely lead to a questioning of Georgia’s “for real” status not just in the SEC, but nationally. It would further erode the swagger and confidence the team demonstrated in charging out of the gates to a school record 16-0 start. It would spawn whispers among casual, less-informed fans that a glorious win over Tennessee a couple of weeks ago might’ve been a fluke. Bottom line: This team needs a win. Badly. The next chance to get a win is tomorrow night at home against LSU. See you there.

Georgia and LSU will tip-off at 7:00 PM (Eastern) tomorrow night at Stegeman Coliseum. CSS will be on hand to televise the game for their regional subscribers. You can also listen to all the action on your local Georgia Bulldog Radio Network affiliate station. We’ll have a Georgia/LSU game recap, web links, and exclusive photos posted right here late tomorrow night.

Click here for the official Georgia/LSU game notes.

Here’s a link to the official LSU women’s basketball page.

Click here to see the entire Lady Tiger roster.

As frustrating as all this up/down/sideways stuff with the polls this season may be, you have to admit it’s better than last year when there were far too many weeks with no sign of the Lady Bulldogs in the rankings at all. Anyway…predictably, the coaches went along with the writers (who vote in the AP poll) in giving Georgia a hefty five-spot-drop spanking, from #9 to #14, in this week’s ESPN/USA Today poll. There’s nothing left to do now except grab onto that ladder and start climbing again. The ladder’s next rung? LSU…tomorrow night. Here’s this week’s ESPN/USA Today coaches poll top five and Georgia’s ranking:

1. Connecticut

2. Stanford

3. Notre Dame

4. Nebraska

5. Tennessee

14. GEORGIA

Click here to see the entire ESPN/USA Today top 25.

This is the KeKe Carrier bobblehead figure that was given out at the Auburn/Georgia game on The Plains this past weekend. I ask you very simply: How cute is that? KeKe has been a lot of fun to watch over the years. She has soft hands, nimble feet, and…best of all…she plays with infectious enthusiasm. She’ll be missed as a Lady Bulldog opponent.

Now then, Lady Bulldogs promotions staff, when do we get a J.J. bobblehead (complete with pigtails)?

(KeKe bobblehead figure photo courtesy of Fastbreaker Kris Bakowski.)

This second gallery of Auburn bus trip photos is courtesy of another Fastbreaking Legend…our very own unofficial Fastbreak Club website field reporter, Brenda Rawson. Thanks, Brenda!