Bulldogs bounce back to earn first SEC victory

Following blowout loss to Tennessee, Hammonds leads win over Vandy.

ATHENS — Georgia reversed its performance from a 46-point loss to Tennessee on Saturday by securing its first SEC win of the season Wednesday against Vanderbilt.

The Bulldogs broke open a tight game late in the second half to secure an 82-63 victory.

Sophomore Rayshaun Hammonds led the Bulldogs’ second-half surge with all of his team-high 19 points.

Georgia showed early its capabilities to rebound both its own missed shots and Vanderbilt’s in the first half, while also capitalizing on those moments with points. Sophomore Nicolas Claxton led the Bulldogs with nine rebounds in the half, 12 in the game.

The Commodores’ fouls throughout the first half allowed the Bulldogs to enter the double

bonus, yet Georgia was not able to capitalize off the opportunities as much as it could have.

The Bulldogs made eight of their 13 free throws in taking a 34-33 lead to the locker room.

The foul discrepancy con- tinued in the second half for Vanderbilt, leading to a technical foul on coach Bryce Drew, and Georgia capitalized on the oppor- tunity with two made free throws by Hammonds.

The score stayed tight throughout the beginning of the second half until Geor- gia started to pull ahead with six points with 15 minutes left in the game.

Georgia then led by 12 points, but Vanderbilt answered and closed it back to one point with less than 10 minutes remaining. Two con- secutive 3-pointers pushed Georgia’s lead back to seven and eventually the Bulldogs pulled away to the 19-point margin.

Defense led the way, with Georgia allowing only six points in the last four min- utes.

JOSHUA L. JONES / ATHENS BANNERHERALD Georgia’s Ignas Sargiunas shoots while being defended by Vanderbilt’s Saben Lee during the Bulldogs’ 82-63 SEC victory in Athens.