No. 5/5 Kentucky Wildcats (18-2, 9-0 SEC)
vs.
Georgia (7-13, 1-9 SEC)
Sat., Feb. 12, 2005 – 3:00 p.m.
Rupp Arena – Lexington, Ky.
TV: JP Sports
Kentucky looks to sweep its season series with Georgia when the Bulldogs visit Lexington Saturday.
The Cats played their first home game in 17 days Tuesday against Florida, rallying from a 36-29 halftime deficit to secure the 69-66 victory. Kelenna Azubuike continued his solid shooting, going 7-for-11 to collect 18 points. Chuck Hayes had 11 points and nine rebounds, while Randolph Morris added 11 for the Cats.
Freshman point guard Rajon Rondo had 14 points, a career-high seven rebounds and four assists as UK claimed its eighth-consecutive win over the Gators.
Scouting the Bulldogs
Georgia brings a 7-13 record to Rupp Arena Saturday, including a 1-9 mark in league play. The Bulldogs have lost five in a row and have won only once since last facing Kentucky. Georgia?s lone SEC win came against Vanderbilt in Athens.
Levi Stukes leads the Bulldogs with 15.4 ppg, while Sundiata Gaines adds 11.9 ppg and 4.4 rpg. Dave Bliss leads the squad on the glass, collecting 5.5 boards.
Dennis Felton is in his second season at Georgia after five years at Western Kentucky. Felton is 123-81 in his career and 23-27 at Georgia.
Series History
This is the 125th series meeting between the Wildcats and the Bulldogs. Kentucky owns a 103-21 lead over Georgia. UK also owns 100-plus wins over Tennessee (135) and Vanderbilt (129).
Kentucky has won 27 of the last 32 meetings, dating back to 1989-90.
Kentucky has won two-straight over the Bulldogs, including a 76-55 win in Athens last month. After losing both regular-season matchups last season the Cats avoided a third Georgia loss with a 69-60 victory in the 2004 SEC Tournament.
The Wildcats lead the series in Lexington, 51-4, and 23-3 since Rupp Arena opened in 1976-77. However, Georgia has won in two of their last three visits to Rupp Arena.
Tubby Smith is 12-4 against Georgia.
With a 3-2 record against Kentucky, Dennis Felton joins Arizona?s Lute Olson (3-1), Duke?s Mike Krzyzewski (4-1) and Michigan State?s Tom Izzo (3-2) as the only active coaches with winning records against UK (min. 2 games). In addition to going 2-1 last year against the Cats, Felton and his Western Kentucky squad handed UK a 64-52 loss in the NABC Classic in Rupp Arena in Nov. 2001.
Felton is only the second coach to beat UK in his first two games in Rupp Arena. He joins former Arkansas coach Nolan Richardson, whose Hogs beat the Cats in Lexington twice (1992 and 1994) before losing in his last three trips to Rupp.
Probable Starters
Pos. # Name Ht. Wt. Cl. PPG RPG Notes F 44 Chuck Hayes 6-6 242 Sr. 10.9 9.0 11 pts, 9 rebs vs. Florida F 24 Kelenna Azubuike 6-5 208 Jr. 14.6 4.7 Double figures in last six games C 33 Randolph Morris 6-10 266 Fr. 8.6 3.6 11 points in 20 mins vs. UF G 4 Rajon Rondo 6-1 171 Fr. 8.7 *3.0 UK?s Fr. steals record holder (50) G 22 Patrick Sparks 6-0 180 Jr. 11.2 *4.5 2nd career 0 asst. game vs. UF GEORGIA Pos. # Name Ht. Wt. Cl. PPG RPG Notes F 15 Steve Newman 6-8 230 So. 8.3 3.9 5 pts, 1 reb vs. Arkansas C 44 Dave Bliss 6-10 240 Fr. 6.6 5.5 6 pts on 2-10 shooting in last two G 25 Channing Toney 6-4 195 Fr. 10.8 3.0 Shooting 91.2% from FT line G 3 Kevin Brophy 6-1 180 Fr. 4.1 1.2 0 pts in last two games G 2 Sundiata Gaines 6-1 180 Fr. 11.9 *3.0 21 pts in 28 mins vs. Arkansas *assists per game
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