For the first few minutes of the second half, it looked like the game was getting away from Georgia.

Missouri held a 13-point lead and appeared on the verge of seizing control of the game. But the Bulldogs held a great equalizer in their back pocket, which they were able to execute before matters got out of hand.

In nearly a three-minute span from 16:11 to go in the second half to the 13:14 mark, Georgia became more aggressive on the offensive end. The Bulldogs drew five fouls to go with the two Missouri gave in the opening minutes of the period. Suddenly, the Bulldogs were able to get free trips, including two consecutive ones that trimmed the Tigers' lead to seven.

Getting into the early bonus helped spark a comeback, with Georgia defeating Missouri 80-70.

“If we were going to come back, we couldn’t be beating ourselves while we were coming back,” Georgia head coach Tom Crean said. “We had to trust what was happening and get ourselves into that bonus—that’s the recipe for us, because now we can set our defense, and it helps keep them out of transition.”

Trailing by 11 with just over 13 minutes left to play, guard Sahvir Wheeler made two free throws to cut Missouri’s lead to 50-41. Less than a minute later, guard Jaxon Etter drew a foul and added two more points from the free-throw line to cut the lead to seven.

From there, the trajectory of the game changed. Georgia picked up the intensity and became the aggressor on both ends. In the end, being able to get to the free throw line so early in the second half proved to be a massive advantage for Georgia.

Both teams shot at least 80 percent from the free throw line, with the Bulldogs making 21 of 25, compared to the Tigers sinking 12 of 15.

“It’s really important, especially in the crunch time when the other team fouls and you are able to get to the free-throw line,” forward Toumani Camara said. “It’s something that Coach said a lot, to attack the rim and get them in foul trouble and force that advantage for as soon as there is a foul, to be able to get to the free throw line. It’s definitely one of the goals we need to keep on doing, to keep attacking first once they’re in foul trouble. That’s how shots get open anyways, so we just need to stay aggressive and make sure we attack every time.”

Missouri, No. 20 in this week's AP poll, became the first ranked team Georgia has defeated this season.

Unlike its last outing against Alabama, Georgia shot exceptionally well from behind the 3-point line against Missouri. The Bulldogs hit their 3-pointers at a 46.7 percent clip, including one that saw guard Justin Kier turn to the Georgia sideline and celebrate before the ball fell through the hoop. Kier received a pass in transition from Wheeler, saying that the shot felt good the moment it left his hand.

That basket cut Missouri’s lead to 53-51 in the midst of Georgia’s rally.

“I knew it was good,” Kier said. “Sahvir, he found me in transition. He draws so much when he attacks the paint. That felt really, really good, and I knew that was going in. I wanted to get us energized and have the people in (Stegeman Coliseum) get energized. Once that happened, we went on a run. I just tried to do what I do and knock down the shots I can knock down, and help this team every single day.”

Kier had a big game, finishing with a team-high 16 points and five rebounds. He scored 10 of those points in the first 10 minutes of the game. Having only made one field goal in each of the previous two games, Kier was able to break out of the short slump by hitting six of his seven field goal attempts.

On Monday, Crean told reporters he still had plenty of confidence in Kier despite the recent struggles. He reminded Kier of this as well, which aided the graduate transfer’s confidence.

“It’s the best feeling in the world when a coach believes in you and has all-time high confidence in you as well,” Kier said. “I think it’s more mental than anything. That’s how tough this league is—it was a slump I tried not to get myself down on and worry much. I tried to do the same routine and not try to change anything. I try to stay consistent and know that things are going to work out.”

Defensively, Georgia did a much better job in defending the 3-point shot against Missouri. After allowing Alabama to make 60 percent of their shots from behind the arc, the Tigers were only able to hit six of 26 3-point attempts.

Joining Kier in double-figure scoring for the Bulldogs were Camara (15 points), forward Andrew Garcia (13 points), Wheeler (12 points), and guard K.D. Johnson (10 points).

“It builds our confidence; we know we can’t settle now," Kier said. "When we get to games like this—ranked team, great team, great SEC team, and great coach, too. You can celebrate this win, but you have to stay locked in. We have a couple of more games to end the season, we can’t slip up we have to build of this win. We are happy about this win, but not satisfied.”