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August 14th,
2006
By Joel
Welser
Broadcast Basketball
Georgia
Bulldogs
Overall Rank:
#89
Conference
Rank: #9 SEC
2005-06:
15-15, 5-11, 6th East
2005-06
postseason: none
 For
the first time at Georgia, Coach
Dennis Felton has some options. In the backcourt the choices
are plentiful and proven talents. Up front the options are
plentiful and anything but.
Who’s Out:
Jay
McAuley is the only graduating senior. He saw limited action in
just eight contests. It is a couple of unexpected departures
that will have a bigger effect on this year’s squad…one on the
court and one in every aspect of life. Younes Idrissi was the
Bulldogs best post player last season. The Moroccan native
averaged 6.5 points and 3.5 rebounds as a sophomore and is
expected to continue his collegiate career at another school.
Kevin Brophy was tragically lost this summer in a car accident.
As a freshman walk-on, Brophy earned eight starts and averaged
3.8 points per game. Prior to last season, the 6-1 Australian
was rewarded with a scholarship and spent the 2005-2006 campaign
contributing off the bench.
Who’s In:
Albert
Jackson and Takais Brown will become a couple more options up
front. Jackson won’t do a lot of scoring quite yet, but the
6-10 power forward can help out on the glass right away. Bigger
things are expected from Brown, a junior college transfer.
Brown has the talent, but he’ll have to adjust quickly to life
in the SEC if he wants to find a starting role and make a large
contribution his first season in Athens.
Who to Watch:
Levi
Stukes, Sundiata Gaines, Channing Toney, Mike Mercer and Billy
Humphrey provide a great mix of proven talent and developing
players. Stukes, Gaines and Toney have the experience and
started on the perimeter last season. Stukes led the squad with
11.6 points per game and is solid long range shooter. After
some inconsistency early in the 2005-2006 season, Stukes turned
it around and once again became the go-to scorer for UGA.
Gaines has developed into a dependable floor leader. The 6-1
point guard isn’t the most consistent shooter, but can hit the
long ball and mid-range jumper. Gaines led the team in
rebounding with 5.1 boards per contest and, if the point guard
leads the team in that category again, the Bulldogs will be in
trouble. Mercer and Humphrey had quality freshmen campaigns.
Mercer averaged 11.0 points per game and it will be difficult to
keep last year’s super sub on the bench.
Final
Projection:
Dave Bliss and
Steve Newman started much of last season in the paint. Neither
was dominant, nor even that effective. Sophomores Terrance
Woodbury, Kendrick Johnson and Rashaad Singleton are the other
options in the paint. Woodbury, although undersized at 6-6 and
more of a wing than a post presence, showed the most promise as
a freshman. The 6-6 Virginia Beach, Virginia native earned five
starts before being sidelined in February with a stress fracture
to a vertebra in his spine. If the frontcourt has a surprise or
two in them, this is a group that can be surprisingly good. If
not, it will be another year without a postseason trip.
Projected
Post-season Tournament:
none
Projected
Starting Five:
Sundiata Gaines,
Junior, Guard, 10.3 points per game
Levi Stukes,
Senior, Guard, 11.6 points per game
Mike Mercer,
Sophomore, Guard, 11.0 points per game
Steve Newman,
Senior, Forward, 4.9 points per game
Dave Bliss,
Junior, Center, 4.4 points per game
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