Frazier has 16 points as Georgia overwhelms Missouri 77-59
ATHENS, Ga. (AP) When Missouri shifted more defensive attention to Yante Maten, Georgia's outside shooters filled the scoring void.
J.J. Frazier scored 16 points to lead Georgia's strong 3-point attack and the Bulldogs beat Missouri 77-59 on Wednesday night for their first Southeastern Conference win.
Frazier made four of six 3-pointers. Maten had 15 points, including 11 in the first eight minutes, and Charles Mann added 14 for Georgia (8-4, 1-1 SEC).
The Bulldogs made 11 of 19 3-pointers.
Georgia scored the first 10 points and never trailed. It led 45-32 at halftime and kept the lead around 20 points for most of the second half.
Freshman Kevin Puryear led Missouri (7-7, 0-1 SEC) with 19 points. Wes Clark had 13 and no other Tigers scored in double figures.
Missouri's defense made it more difficult to pass the ball inside to Maten after the Bulldogs' power forward had 11 of his team's first 17 points. Georgia had outside options, including the 3-point shooting of Frazier, Mann and Kenny Gaines, who had 11 points.
''I think he's the best post player in the conference,'' said Mann of Maten.
Maten said he ''just played within the offense'' during his strong start. The emergence of Maten gives Georgia a strong inside-outside game. Maten said the team's 3-point shooters should make it tough on SEC defenses to focus their attention on him.
''I think it's going to be difficult because I can be a dominant post presence and if they're worried about me, Kenny, J.J. and (Mann) can hit the 3s,'' Maten said. ''If they're going well, it opens up my game.''
Maten has scored at least 20 points in six of his last nine games during his breakout season. He has emerged as the Bulldogs' leading scorer, with an average of 16.5 points.
''Tried to do everything I could to slow (Maten) down, and I think I did a decent job of that,'' Puryear said.
The Tigers had a mini-rally with seven straight points midway through the second half to trim Georgia's lead to 57-42. Mann hit a 3-pointer, followed by a basket by freshman Derek Ogbeide, to push the lead back to 20 points.
While Georgia enjoyed strong outside shooting, the Tigers made only 3 of 19 3-pointers. Namon Wright had nine points but missed each of his four 3s.
''I thought we had some looks early and we couldn't hit them,'' said Missouri coach Kim Anderson. ''... I saw that we missed 13 close shots in the second half. That can't happen.''
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RECORD FOR MANN
Mann, a senior, made 2 of 3 free throws to pass Litterial Green's school record of 744 career free-throw attempts. Mann has attempted 748.
''That's not going to make my year, but I'm excited to be in Georgia basketball history forever,'' Mann said.
Mann also had six assists with only one turnover and six rebounds.
''He was outstanding, he really was,'' said Georgia coach Mark Fox of Mann. ''I thought he played at both ends.''
Green became Georgia's all-time scoring leader during his career from 1988-92.
TIP-INS
Missouri: The Tigers fell to 0-3 on the road. ... Missouri couldn't continue momentum gained from back-to-back wins over Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Savannah State by a combined margin of 84 points. ... Clark, coming off a career-high 22 points against Savannah State, scored in double figures for the fourth straight game.
Georgia: Kenny Paul Geno ended a 0-for-14 drought on 3-pointers, covering seven games, in the second half. ... The Bulldogs won their fourth straight over Missouri. ... Georgia made a season-best 54.7 percent of its shots from the field. ... The 11 3s set a season high.
UP NEXT:
Missouri: Hosts Auburn on Saturday.
Georgia: At Mississippi on Saturday.
