Dogs post most lopsided win in Stegeman history in 94-29 victory

ATHENS, Ga. – Blue Cain and Jake Wilkins scored 16 points apiece on Wednesday to help lead the Georgia Bulldogs (2-0) to a 94-29 victory over the Maryland Eastern Shore Hawks (0-2) at Stegeman Coliseum.

FAST FACTS

● Wednesday’s 65-point decision marked the largest margin of victory at Stegeman Coliseum, surpassing 60-point wins over Southern in 2006, Whittier College in 1979 and Baptist College (now Charleston Southern) in 1978.
● With 12:08 left in the first half, Wilkins’ dunk electrified Stegeman as the freshman was the recipient of a lob pass from Kanon Catchings. Wilkins then blocked a shot at the other end, before a pair of Catchings dunks gave the Bulldogs a 20-6 lead.
● Georgia held the Hawks to just one made field goal across the final eight minutes of the first half, stamping the period with Cain’s buzzer-beating triple to take a 43-17 halftime edge.
● The Bulldogs began the second half with a 17-3 spurt, taking a commanding 40-point lead on Smurf Millender’s 3-pointer at the 13:59 mark.
● The advantage grew to 65 on Wilkins’ windmill slam with 42 seconds left, capping a game-ending 23-0 run and Georgia’s 29th straight non-conference home victory – all under head coach Mike White.

KEY QUOTES

Georgia head coach Mike White

Opening Statement…
“Good win, appreciate the fans that came out. We have a lot of stuff we’ve got to get better at. I thought we did a pretty good job preparing for it. Our guys have respect for this opponent, them having accomplished what they did the other night, forcing overtime at Georgia Tech and having a chance to win that game. They run good stuff, bring a lot of physicality, and have days they can score. The biggest positive from the game for us is the fact that we started off shooting the basketball so poorly. The fact that we kept flying around, forcing turnovers and applying pressure, and just playing really hard with shots not going in, is a pretty good sign.”

On the defense…
“We’ve got speed, we’ve got switchability, and we just fit right in with our league. I don’t know how elite our defense will be. We’ve got a ways to go, but it’s the best defensive league in the country. We look like a potentially very good defense these last couple games. We’ve got to defensive rebound a lot better. Our communication’s got to be sharper, louder, more clear. We had some miscues there, and just also understanding when we’re changing some things up, just all being on the same page with as many guys as we’re playing, as much as we’re subbing. But the physical effort, that’s something we can hang our heads on for sure.”

On Kanon Catchings…
“He’s really talented, that’s where it starts. Cannon is 6’9″, shoots it as easily as anyone that I’ve coached, with a really quick high release off the catch, off the bounce. He’s an underrated playmaker. Off the bounce, he’s got an ability to bust out when he gets defensive rebounds, and lead the break. He’s really skilled, and he’s trying to complement that with improving his motor, playing a little bit harder, and applying pressure defensively. Getting on the defensive glass, getting on the offensive glass. I thought he did a pretty good job today. We’ve got to get him in his stance consistently, and stretch himself in those other areas. But with that ball in his hands, he’s very talented.”

Blue Cain | Guard | #0 | Jr.

On the defensive effort in the first half…
“Coach White talked about it in the locker room. We started off 0-18 from three. We keep playing that hard on the defensive end and it takes a lot of maturity.”

On UMES’ 3-point defense…
“We were getting good looks, credit to them, they played hard. We were getting good looks, they were just not going in.”

Kanon Catchings | Forward | #6 | So.

On getting into an offensive rhythm…
“It feels good. I was trying to stay in the flow of the offense and just do what I can do to make their lives easy.”

UP NEXT

Georgia plays its third of five straight games at home on Sunday, November 9 at 2:00 PM, when it hosts Morehead State. The game will be streaming on SEC Network+. Tickets can be purchased here, and the game can be heard live on GeorgiaDogs.com.