At least on paper, not much is expected from Georgia this basketball season. The Bulldogs were picked to finish 14th in the 16-team Southeastern Conference.
But they are hoping to defy those predictions with a mix of returnees and transfer portal additions. They’ll get their first chance to show they’re better than the experts think on Nov. 3 when they open against Bellarmine in Athens, Ga.
Georgia went 20-13 last season and earned an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament, although its stay was brief as Gonzaga walloped it 89-68 in the first round. The Bulldogs waved bye to most of their key players, including their top two scorers, Asa Newell (15.4 ppg) and Silas Demary Jr. (13.5).
The top returning scorer is 3-point shooter Blue Cain (9.6), who connected on 34.1% of his long-range tries. An intriguing addition from the portal is 6-9 forward Kanon Catchings, who tallied 7.2 ppg as a key reserve last season at BYU as it reached the Sweet 16.
Coach Mike White, who earned a contract extension in late September, has been pleased with Catchings’ work in the preseason.
“He’s blocking shots and impacting the game positively in other ways than making jump shots and attacking the rim,” White said. ” … He’s a really gifted, effortless shot-maker.”
Meanwhile, Bellarmine is coming off a 5-26 season and has been picked to finish 10th in the 12-team Atlantic Sun Conference. The Knights are under new leadership of sorts as Doug Davenport is taking over from his father, Scott Davenport, who stepped down in March after a 20-year run.
A former assistant for Rick Pitino across town at Louisville, Doug Davenport described the new job as a full-circle moment, since he played for his father from 2006-10 and has been an assistant for him the last nine seasons.
“My dad built something special here. … I’m honored to continue that legacy,” he said.
Bellarmine signed nine players in June – five freshmen and four transfers – to beef up a flagging roster.
This will be the first matchup of these programs.
