A lack of second-half focus and a heavy dose of Mekhi Lairy almost cost Georgia during Monday night’s game with Miami-Ohio.

After Georgia led by as many as 17 points, the RedHawks cut the margin to two and had a chance to tie the game before the Bulldogs finally regained control to pull out a 77-70 win.

“Details are really, really important to this team as we grow,” head coach Mike White said. “That said, our defensive lineup got a couple of tips, got some defensive rebounds, and we grinded it out.”

Lairy almost singlehandedly brought the RedHawks back, scoring a team-high 34 points. But in the end, transfer Terry Roberts and freshman KyeRon Lindsay sparked Georgia’s second-half surge to regain control of the game.

Up 55-51, Roberts and Lindsay combined for the next 13 points by the Bulldogs, who extended the lead to 65-55 with 6:35 to play.

Roberts led the Bulldogs with 22 points, while Lindsay posted his first double-double as a collegian, scoring 14 points while pulling down 10 rebounds. The Texas native did a little bit of everything and showed tremendous energy during the spurt that seemed to energize the rest of the team.

“I’m trying to do whatever to help my team win,” Lindsay said. “I try to keep the most energy on the team, just do what I can, like I said. Whatever that is, talking, yelling, diving on the floor or sitting on the bench clapping and cheering, I’ll do whatever I can.”

Color Roberts impressed.

“He (Lindsay) gave us a big lift,” Roberts said. “I can’t believe he’s a freshman. He plays like he’s been here before. I’m proud of him.”

Justin Hill added 12 points for the Bulldogs, who led the entire game while shooting 43.9 percent from the field. Georgia dominated the boards, outrebounding Miami-Ohio 42-27.

“It wasn’t pretty, but we’ll take the W. That obviously beats the alternative,” White said. “We’ve got a lot to learn and a lot of room for growth. The first 10 or so minutes of the game, I thought we were playing pretty good basketball. But then adversity hit. Fortunately, we handled it well."

Georgia started out fast, jumping out to a 10-0 lead on a pair of three-pointers by McBride and Roberts before the RedHawks finally got on the board.

The lead would grow, but after hitting four of their first six three-pointers, the Bulldogs became a little sloppy with their shots.

As a result, Miami-Ohio climbed back into the game. A 7-0 run cut Georgia’s lead to nine with 4:54 on the clock.

Thanks to Lairy—who scored his team’s final 11 points of the half—the RedHawks would get closer.

His third three-pointer brought Miami-Ohio within 33-26 before a pair of free throws by Jaxon Etter and a three-pointer at the buzzer by Jusuan Holt pushed Georgia’s halftime lead back to 10 at 38-28.

Boxscore

Mathew-Alexander Moncrieffe missed his second straight game but was in attendance for Monday’s game.

Moncrieffe has been dealing with an ankle injury that he suffered in the season-opener against Western Carolina.

White is unclear exactly when he will return.

“It’s still a swollen ankle. He got a couple of reps (Sunday), but not much other than that,” White said. “In terms of Friday (the next game), I don’t know. Hopefully, he took advantage of today.”

…Jailyn Ingram (knee) dressed out and warmed up before the game. However, he did not play. There does appear to be positive news.

“He’s not 100 percent, but he’s cleared. But he’s got to earn minutes,” White said. “He’s got to make this staff want to put him out there. He’s going to get his opportunities at some point, but he’s also competing with other guys, and he’s gotten less reps to this point. He’s worked his butt off to get back.”

…Georgia had nine first-half assists Monday. The Bulldogs had 10 the entire first half at Wake Forest.

… The Bulldogs return to action Friday night against Bucknell, which is part of the Sunshine Slam taking part next week in Dayton Beach, Florida.