Georgia Bulldogs

No. 16 Tennessee attempts to solve Georgia (Mar 02, 2018)

Published Mar. 2, 2018 9:21 p.m. ET

Tennessee was picked to finish 13th in the 14-team SEC by the media in the preseason. To put it mildly, the Volunteers have exceeded expectations.

No. 16 Tennessee can clinch at least a share of the SEC regular-season title Saturday when the Volunteers host Georgia at Thompson-Boling Arena.

Tennessee enters the game in a first-place tie with Auburn. A win by the Volunteers and a loss by the Tigers at home to South Carolina would give Tennessee the outright SEC title. But beating Georgia hasn't proved to be easy for coach Rick Barnes' squad.

"We haven't been able to beat Georgia since I've been here," Barnes told The Paul Finebaum Show. "For one, they're extremely well-coached team. They don't beat themselves."

Georgia has beaten Tennessee in the last five meetings, including a 73-62 win over the Volunteers two weeks ago in Athens, Ga. Bulldogs senior big man Yante Maten scored a game-high 19 points, and Georgia held Tennessee leading scorer Grant Williams to a season-low five points on 1-of-8 shooting.

"We were just out-toughed," Tennessee junior forward Admiral Schofield said after the loss to Georgia. "We went out there and competed tonight, but when it mattered, we weren't there."

Yaten leads the Bulldogs in points (19.4), rebounds (8.8) and blocks (1.5). But he's the only Georgia player averaging in double figures. When Maten doesn't have a big game, the Bulldogs struggle.

Georgia (16-13, 7-10 SEC) is coming off a heartbreaking 61-60 loss to Texas A&M on Wednesday. The Bulldogs led by four with 2:28 but missed its last five shots and had to settle for a wild 3-pointer that was way off on its final possession.

"It was a hard-fought game for sure and I'm disappointed in the loss for our young people," Georgia coach Mark Fox said. "They gave us a really good effort in the second half."

Williams and Schofield have anchored the Volunteers' inside-out attack. Williams leads the Volunteers in scoring (15.4) and is second in rebounding (5.9).

Schofield is second in scoring (13.2) and leads the team in rebounding (6.2). He had 24 points in the Vols' impressive win at Mississippi State on Wednesday and is averaging 21.7 points and 7.3 rebounds during a three-game winning streak.

"He's a hard worker and has great passion for the game," Barnes said of Schofield. "He's a guy who's going to get in their early and work ... Like most guys, I think he's at his best when he's not focused on offense."

Tennessee has already secured its spot in the NCAA Tournament and is in position for a share of the SEC regular-season title for the first time since 2008. Still, Barnes says his team still has room for improvement.

"We're in some unchartered territory with these guys," Barnes said. "All we've talked about is, 'How can we bet better?' The standard that we've set, how do we try to work to it every day? That's what we can continue to talk about, and we still can bet better now."