Georgia Fastbreak Club

Lady Bulldogs Featured On SEC Weekly (ESPNU)

mike — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 18:39:10 +0000

SEC Weekly, a magazine-style show recapping all of the week’s news from around the league, this week features a behind-the-scenes segment with our Lady Dawgs at last week’s SEC Tournament in Duluth. The show airs on ESPNU (check local listings for channel number) and you’ll have two chances to watch or record it this week. Here are the air times (all times Eastern):

Thursday, 3/11/2010 at 2:00 PM

Friday, 3/12/2010 at 6:30 PM

Click here for all the details on this week’s SEC Weekly show featuring the Lady Bulldogs.

SEC Tournament: You-Know-Who Wins It

mike — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 06:12:49 +0000

You-Know-Who – 70, Kentucky – 62. Well, it was still worth the drive back down to Duluth for the outstanding atmosphere and the several runs Kentucky made to get back into the game and even pull a few points ahead at times. But, ultimately, this game felt like a foregone conclusion…a coronation, if you will…from the time the two combatants were determined in yesterday’s semifinal games. After trailing by six at halftime, Kentucky came out red hot in the second half and jumped out to a six-point lead of their own by the first TV timeout. During that timeout, Pat Summitt jawed at the referees for the duration while her assistants addressed the team. What happened next will be as familiar and unsurprising to longtime women’s basketball fans as day following night: Three consecutive Kentucky possessions…three consecutive ticky-tack foul calls. Yeah…we’ve all seen that movie before. On top of that, Kentucky’s Victoria Dunlap saw her shooting go cold after a red hot first half (mostly as a result of being relentlessly double-teamed). With no other Kentucky player stepping forward to take the offensive burden off Dunlap, You-Know-Who went on one of their patented late-game runs en route to their fourteenth SEC Tournament championship.

Still, this was a very entertaining tournament. The league came back to Duluth and put on another first-class show. Now the SEC Tournament is off to Nashville for the next two seasons before returning to Duluth in 2013 and 2014. See you there!

As for this blog, we’ll have the national polls and whatever news pops up in the Lady Bulldog Nation next week…but the next big event for our ladies is the NCAA Tournament Selection Show, airing one week from tomorrow (Monday, March 15). That’s when we’ll find out what kind of a seed a 23-8 record will get you and where/when the Lady Dawgs will be opening NCAA Tournament play. Hang on tight, Fastbreakers…nothing’s close to over yet this season.

Click here for the official SEC Women’s Basketball Tournament home page.

Here are some photos from the SEC Tournament championship game:

SEC Tournament: The Championship Game Is Set

mike — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 03:58:06 +0000

Tomorrow night, the second-seeded Kentucky Wildcats will meet the top-seeded Tennessee Lady Vols in the SEC Women’s Basketball Tournament championship game. Tennessee, whose Tournament opponents have barely made them so much as work up a sweat this weekend, was an easy 68-49 winner over Vanderbilt and Kentucky punched their ticket to the championship game with a 76-65 victory over a scrappy and game Mississippi State squad. Tennessee and Kentucky played a couple of weeks ago in Knoxville, where the Lady Vols won by 16 points (81-65). But if the way Kentucky avenged an early SEC loss to Georgia at the Coliseum with a big win in Lexington is any indication, the ‘Cats have put that loss behind them and they’ll come out ready to take the fight to Tennessee tomorrow.

Your friendly and hard-working Fastbreak Club blogger will be at the SEC championship game tomorrow night and a Kentucky/Tennessee recap (including exclusive photos) will be posted here either sometime late Sunday night or first thing Monday morning. If you’ve got Tournament ticket books, don your red-and-black and come on out. Kentucky and Tennessee should put on a fun show and a single game for the SEC Tournament championship is a legitimate, big-time sporting event. Here’s hoping we see you at The Arena at Gwinnett Center tomorrow night for the last session of what’s been, a Georgia loss notwithstanding, a wildly successful and highly entertaining SEC Tournament.

The SEC Women’s Basketball Tournament Championship Game

Game 11 – #2 Kentucky vs. #1 Tennessee (6:30 PM, Eastern)

The SEC Tournament championship game can be seen live on ESPNU (check your local cable/satellite listings for channel number). If Kentucky knocks off Tennessee, you’ll be kicking yourself for not showing up. Solution? Show up. See you in Duluth tomorrow night!

Click here for the official SEC Women’s Basketball Tournament home page.

SEC Tournament: (Our) Lady Bulldogs Eliminated

mike — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 13:20:05 +0000

Lady Bulldogs vs. Lady Bulldogs, Part II: In the second half of a then-close game at the SEC Tournament last night, Mississippi State made a late run while Georgia suffered through yet another offensive dry spell at crunch time. The final result was a 67-52 win and a date with Kentucky tonight for State and short trip down Hwy. 316 back to Athens for our Lady Dawgs. No need to dwell on this one. You’ve got to have a short memory in March because now every upcoming game is the biggest game of the season. The Lady Bulldogs will find out where they’re going and who they’ll be playing in that game on March 15, the date of the NCAA Tournament Selection Show. Anyway…as tough as it may be to acknowledge it, life goes on and so does the SEC Tournament today in Duluth. Here a look at today’s Tournament semifinal games (all times Eastern):

Game 9 – #1 Tennessee vs. #5 Vanderbilt (3:30 PM)

Game 10 – #2 Kentucky vs. #4 Mississippi State (6:00 PM)

Both semifinal games can be seen live on ESPNU. If you’re a Lady Bulldog fan with Tournament ticket books, please consider attending and enjoying what looks to be a couple of entertaining semifinal match-ups. Kentucky is this season’s SEC “Cinderella” team and you know it’s always a fun atmosphere whenever Tennessee and Vandy hook up. Big crowds will go a long way toward making Duluth and The Arena at Gwinnett Center a regular stop for the SEC Tournament. Let’s make it happen.

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

Click here for the official SEC Women’s Basketball Tournament home page.

Here are a few photos from last night at the SEC Tournament:

SEC Tournament: Day Two Is In Full Swing

mike — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 20:08:09 +0000

It’s mid-afternoon here in the Lady Bulldog Nation and just down Highway 316 a spell, Tennessee has already blown Ole Miss out of The Arena at Gwinnett Center by 20-plus points while Auburn and Kentucky are just getting started. Speaking of getting started, the Georgia/Mississippi State game tonight won’t get started until around 9:00 PM (Eastern), so you’ve still got plenty of time to line up a babysitter or, even better, throw the kiddies in the back seat and support our Lady Dawgs and the SEC Tournament live and in-person. Linked below, as promised last night, is the official Georgia/Alabama recap and full statistical rundown. Your friendly, hard-working Fastbreak Club blogger is actually getting ready to hop in the family truckster and head out for Duluth himself…since he’ll be dragging back in well after midnight tonight, there may not be a Georgia/Mississippi State recap and overall Tournament review posted here until Saturday morning. Here’s what you need to know about this evening’s session (all times shown are Eastern and the games can be seen live on Fox Sports South):

#5 Vanderbilt vs. #4 LSU (6:30 PM)

#6 GEORGIA vs. #3 Mississippi State (9:00 PM)

We’re still on the lookout for SEC Tournament photos! If you want to share your pics with your fellow Fastbreakers, just send them to m.holcomb@charter.net (in .JPG/.JPEG format, please).

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

SEC Tournament: So Far, So Good

mike — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 04:46:10 +0000

One down, three to go. A very hard-fought 73-66 win for the Lady Dawgs tonight over Alabama in opening-round SEC Tournament action. There will be no talk here tonight about the margin of victory or who beat who by how many points in the regular season. It’s March….the one and only objective now is Win Your Game And Move On. Period. The Lady Bulldogs won their game and now they move on. We’ll have a detailed recap in the morning…but how about Meredith Mitchell draining all those free throws at the end? One word: Clutch. And hats off to the Tide’s Ericka Russell, who played absolutely out of her mind and lit us up for 30 points.

Here’s a look at tomorrow’s SEC Tournament schedule:

Game 5 – #9 Ole Miss vs. #1 Tennessee (12:00 Noon)

Game 6 – #10 Auburn vs. #2 Kentucky (2:30 PM)

Game 7 – #5 Vanderbilt vs. #4 LSU (6:30 PM)

Game 8 – #6 GEORGIA vs. #3 Mississippi State (9:00 PM)

All of those games can be seen live on Fox Sports South…but please head on down to Duluth and cheer on our Lady Dawgs in person if it’s at all possible. Having the SEC Tournament in our own backyard is an honor and a privilege. Let’s show our support and make sure that the SEC decides to come back to Duluth on a regular basis.

Click here for the official SEC Women’s Basketball Tournament home page.

SEC Tournament: It’s ON!

mike — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 21:25:44 +0000

The 2010 SEC Women’s Basketball Tournament is officially underway! Ole Miss beat South Carolina by a point earlier this afternoon (64-63) and right now Auburn and Florida are having a surprisingly good scrap. Of course, all eyes of the Lady Bulldog Nation will be on tonight’s session as Arkansas and Vandy square off at 6:30 PM (Eastern), followed shortly thereafter by the main event, our Lady Dawgs hooking up one more time with the Crimson Tide of Alabama. If you can’t make it down to The Arena at Gwinnett Center (in Duluth), all of today and tonight’s Tournament action can be seen live on Fox Sports South. Here are the particulars for tonight one more time:

#5 Vanderbilt vs. #12 Arkansas (6:30 PM)

#6 GEORGIA vs. #11 Alabama (around 9:00 PM)

We’ll have a full recap of all of today’s SEC Tournament results and a look at tomorrow’s match-ups and tip-off times sometime late tonight. If you’re at the Tournament and taking pictures, we’d love to post them! Just send them (in .JPG/.JPEG format, please) to m.holcomb@charter.net. See you in Duluth!

Lady Bulldogs Have Three All-SEC Honorees

mike — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 20:59:17 +0000

This just in from the UGA Sports Communications Office:

ATHENS, GA. — Ashley Houts was tabbed first-team All-SEC and Jasmine Hassell and Jasmine James both were named to the Freshman All-SEC team on Tuesday. The SEC honors for women’s basketball, as selected by the head coaches, were announced by the league office.

“Those players should be very proud that they’ve been included because there are a lot of very good players in the Southeastern Conference,” Andy Landers said. “They should also be very proud that those teams were voted on by the coaches that they play against. Those coaches know better than anyone else the performances that deserve merit. While it should be a great source of pride for Ashley and Jasmine and Jasmine that they’ve been honored, they also should be very thankful that they play on a basketball team that’s unselfish and has positioned them to be as successful as they’ve been.”

Houts (pictured), a 5-6, senior from Trenton, GA, was a second-team All-SEC pick as both a sophomore and a junior. She leads the Lady Bulldogs and ranks among league leaders in scoring (12.3 ppg), free throw percentage (.812), assists (3.8 apg), assist-to-TO ratio (1.6) and steals (2.1 spg). She is one of 10 national finalists for the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award and is among candidates for Naismith National Player of the Year honors as well.

“It’s always nice to be recognized, but it’s really a reflection of what we’ve done this year as a team,” Houts said. “All of my teammates and all of the coaches played a very big role in this individual honor so I’d like to thank them.”

Hassell (pictured), a 6-2, forward from Lebanon, TN, has made great strides as the season progressed. She struggled with conditioning early on but has worked tirelessly to improve. Hassell now leads the Lady Bulldogs in field goal percentage in SEC play (.533) and has averaged 7.6 points per game in league action. She scored a career-high 20 points against Ole Miss and was named SEC Freshman of the Week for that effort.

“At first, it was hard and some times you think ‘Why do I have to go through this?’” Hassell said. “I’m really proud that my teammates and my coaches were behind me when I was on the treadmill. It helped me realize that Coach was doing it to help me get better. I appreciate him for that and for other people like Coach (La’Keshia) Frett and (teammate) Tamika (Willis) and everyone who encouraged me to keep going when it was hard. They all played a role me winning this honor.”

James (pictured), a 5-9, guard from Memphis, TN, is Georgia’s second-leading scorer at 11.4 ppg and leads the Lady Bulldogs and ranks third in the SEC in minutes played (35.8 mpg). She also ranks among league leaders in three-pointers per game, assists, assist-to-TO ratio and steals. On Monday, James was named SEC Freshman of the Week for the fifth time this season, tying the league record for most Freshman of the Week honors.

“It’s a big honor, but as I’ve constantly said, a big part of this is being to come up with wins throughout the season,” James said. “I appreciate it. It’s a very big honor and I’m glad to get it, but I just hope we can continue to have a great season to go along with that.”

(Ash, Jazz, and J.J. photos courtesy of Fastbreaker Bill Zachmann.)

ESPN/USA Today Poll: Georgia Still #24

mike — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 20:09:56 +0000

This week, the coaches weren’t quite as impressed as the writers with Georgia’s 2-0 finish (that included avenging a loss to South Carolina earlier this month) as they left the Lady Bulldogs at #24 in the ESPN/USA Today poll for the second straight week. The coaches’ top five is, yet again, identical to the AP top five and Connecticut continues to be your unanimous number-one team in the land. Here’s this week’s ESPN/USA Today top 25 and Georgia’s ranking:

1. Connecticut

2. Stanford

3. Nebraska

4. Tennessee

5. Xavier

24. GEORGIA

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

SEC Tournament Preview

mike — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 06:25:25 +0000

This season, the SEC Tournament is back in our backyard. Just down the road in Duluth this Thursday, teams and fans from all over the SEC will gather for four straight days of knock-down, drag-out competition. Don’t miss your opportunity to cheer on our Lady Bulldogs as they attempt to jump-start their postseason with an SEC Tournament championship. Ticket books for all Tournament sessions are $90 for reserved seats in the lower level or $60 general admission upstairs. Individual session tickets are $17 for a reserved seat and $12 general admission. Tickets can be purchased online via Ticketmaster or at The Arena at Gwinnett Center box office. (Detailed ticket buying information can be found by clicking the link below.) Here’s the slate of games for Thursday’s SEC Tournament first-round sessions:

Thursday, March 4 (All Times Eastern)

Game 1 – #8 South Carolina vs. #9 Ole Miss (12:00 Noon)

Game 2 – #7 Florida vs. #10 Auburn (2:30 PM)

Game 3 – #5 Vanderbilt vs. #12 Arkansas (6:30 PM)

Game 4 – #6 GEORGIA vs. #11 Alabama (9:00 PM)

All first-round games can be seen live on Fox Sports South.

We’ll have a Georgia/Alabama recap and game links posted here, along with a preview of Friday’s SEC Tournament second round action, sometime shortly after the final buzzer. And…remember…if you take your camera, we want to post your Tournament photos. Just send them to m.holcomb@charter.net (in .JPG/.JPEG format, please) and we’ll show the world just what a natural-born photographer you are!

Click here for a complete guide to the 2010 SEC Tournament (including printable brackets.)