No. 24 Alabama at Georgia

WHERE: Stegeman Coliseum, Athens, Ga.

WHEN: Wednesday, 6:30 p.m.

RECORDS: Alabama 14-6, 6-1; Georgia 14-6, 4-3

TV/RADIO: SEC Network (Eric Frede, Pat Bradley); Georgia Bulldog Radio Network (Scott Howard, Chuck Dowdle, Adam Gillespie)

The Game: Defense looks to bounce back

Georgia has been in a bit of a one-step forward, two-steps-back game lately.

Head coach Mike White said his team has taken steps forward offensively over the past month. But that has come at the expense of the team's defense, which has allowed more than 100 points in two of the last three games.

"Some of it's transition, some of it's defensive rebounding. some of it's just interior physicality," White said. "We've got to get back to improvements defensively without the regression offensively now."

The Bulldogs now need to bounce back in a hurry.

Alabama rolls into Stegeman Coliseum on Wednesday night with one of the nation's best offenses.

"They're fast and they're athletic," White said. "You know, a lot of teams in our league, but their willingness to share it, to space it and spread it out and keep the ball moving. Their skill level, of course. They're a really skilled team. They can play a couple different ways, but they've got certain lineups where they're as skilled as anyone in our league."

The numbers are impressive. The Crimson Tide average just under 90 points per game, shoot over 48 percent from the field, and make over 11 3-pointers per game. They have lost just once in SEC play and are coming off a 109-point explosion against LSU on Saturday.

White mentioned several areas where Georgia will need to excel defensively to beat Alabama. There's transition defense, defending the 3-point line, boxing out on rebounds, and more.

But to sum it up, White knows his team will need to bring its A-game to avoid its second home loss of the season.

"We’ve got to play one of our best games, if not our best game, to beat these guys," White said.

This and That

RJ Melendez is looking to follow up the best game of his career. He put up a career-high 35 points on 13-of-19 shooting (including 6-of-10 on 3-pointers) in Saturday's loss to Florida. Melendez is Georgia's third-leading scorer with 11.1 points per game.

As White mentioned, Georgia has taken some steps forward offensively over the past month. In conference games, the Bulldogs are averaging 80.86 points per game. That ranks Georgia fifth in the conference behind Kentucky, Alabama, Florida, and Tennessee.

A balanced effort has helped that offense. Georgia is the only team in the league with five players averaging double-digit points in SEC play. That quintet is Jabri Abdur-Rahim (13.9), Melendez (13.4), Silas Demary, Jr. (12.4), Noah Thomasson (11.1), and Justin Hill (10.4).

Speaking of Hill, White isn't sure of his availability for the Alabama game. Hill went down with a leg or ankle injury in the Florida game. Hill didn't practice Monday or Tuesday. White said the team will know his availability on Wednesday.

Scouting the Crimson Tide

Alabama enters Wednesday night's contest with an overall record of 14-6 and a 6-1 mark in the SEC. The Crimson Tide have won two in a row, home victories over Auburn and LSU.

The visitors from Tuscaloosa present an immense offensive challenge. Alabama ranks first in the SEC in points per game (89.65), second in field-goal percentage (48.6 percent), second in 3-point field goal percentage (38.9 percent), and first in 3-pointers made per game (11.4).

The Crimson Tide feature four players averaging double-digit points, led by guard Mark Sears who puts up 20 points per night. Others include Aaron Estrada (12.9 points per game), Grant Nelson (12.2), and Rylan Griffen (10.7). Nelson doubles as the leading rebounder with six boards per contest. Latrell Wrightsell, Jr., and Sam Walters join Sears as the most dangerous 3-point shooters, shooting 45.7 percent and 46.2 percent from deep, respectively.