Georgia at No. 8 Kentucky

WHERE: Rupp Arena, Lexington, KY

WHEN: Saturday, 6 p.m.

RECORDS: Georgia 13-4, 3-1; Kentucky 13-3, 3-1

TV/RADIO: SEC Network (Mike Morgon, Jon Sunvold); Georgia Bulldog Radio Network (Scott Howard, Chuck Dowdle, Adam Gillespie)

Where would the Georgia Bulldogs be without a strong bench?

The question posed Friday likely sounded silly considering Mike White's answer was predictable.

Nevertheless, Georgia's bench play this season deserves its share of attention.

In four SEC games this year, the Bulldogs' bench has outscored opponents by an average of 31.25 to 11.5.

It's a statistic White does not take lightly.

"We'd be sitting here with a few less wins for sure; our bench has certainly been a strength of ours," White said. "On certain nights our bench has probably outplayed the guys who started the game."

The numbers prove it.

Georgia currently has six players averaging over 22 minutes, with freshman Blue Cain not far behind, averaging 18.6.

Senior Justin Hill hasn't started a game, but has been a key reason for Georgia's success, averaging in double figures at 9.5 points per contest.

With Cain chipping in with an average of 7.1 points, RJ Melendez at 9.5, and Jalen DeLoach providing length and rebounding off the bench, Georgia heads into Saturday's game at No. 8 Kentucky (6 p.m., SEC Network) with many options.

"We've got a lot of different skill sets. We've got guys who like one another, that are connected, and we've got guys who have a pretty good acceptance. On any given night, it could be a different guy's night to excel and maybe earn a few more minutes that night based on productivity," White said. "We've got to continue to embrace that moving forward, because we've got to play to that. That's a strength of ours."

Indeed.

Georgia enters the weekend ranked No. 16 nationally in bench points. The Bulldogs bench has outscored its opponents' reserves in every game but the season-opener against Oregon, and sports a scoring margin of plus-243 (plus-14.3 points per game).

Although the numbers are somewhat skewed, considering RJ Sunahara has started Georgia's last seven games while only playing just over 12 minutes, White said there's a reason the graduate transfer continues to get the nod.

"We're in a pretty good rhythm and groove. But I just like the way we start from a leadership standpoint when he's out there," White said. "He makes winning plays and settles us offensively and defensively. It's not that we're not open to other guys starting, and that's not the only position that's up in the air. We'll continue to evaluate it game to game."

Pregame notes

• After shooting 34.4 percent and making eight 3-pointers per game in non-conference play, Georgia is shooting 37.6 percent on knocking down 9.5 3s per game in SEC action.

• Georgia’s 10-game winning streak, the Bulldogs’ longest since the 1947-48 season, was snapped with last Saturday’s setback to No. 5 Tennessee.

• Georgia was the nation’s only Power Conference team to face four Power Conference foes in its first five outings. Of those, Oregon and Wake Forest are in the most recently published edition of ESPN’s bracketology, while Miami and Providence are two of the first eight “teams out” of the bracket.

Kentucky, which is ranked No. 8 and No. 10 in this week’s AP and coaches polls, respectively, improved to 13-3 overall and 3-1 in the SEC with a win over Mississippi State on Wednesday.

Kentucky entered this weekend as the nation’s top-scoring team, averaging 90.8 ppg. The Wildcats also top SEC stats in field goal percentage (No. 13 nationally at .496) and assist-to-TO ratio (No. 4 in the nation at 1.89).

No less than five Wildcats are scoring at a double-digit pace. Antonio Reeves leads Kentucky and is ranked third in the SEC at 19.4 points per game, followed by Rob Dillingham at 14.5 points per game, Tre Mitchell at 13.0 points per game, D.J. Wagner at 12.4 points per game, and Reed Sheppard at 11.8 points per game.

Georgia will take on Marquette in a single game at The Atlantis Paradise Island Bahamas on Saturday, November 23 next season. The matchup was announced on Friday by Complete Sports Management, which also manages the Battle 4 Atlantis Basketball Tournament.

"We are thrilled to welcome two premier men's basketball programs in Georgia and Marquette to compete on a true neutral court at The Atlantis in November,” said Lea Miller, Complete Sports Management’s CEO in a statement. “I have had the opportunity to work with both Coach Smart and Coach White down in Paradise in the past, and I know this will be a special experience for the teams as well as their fans"

The game will be played the night of Nov. 24 in the Imperial Ballroom at the Atlantis Paradise Island Resort. Information on tickets and travel packages will be released at a later date.