For a brief moment on Saturday, the sellout crowd at Stegeman Coliseum dared to dream.

But after Asa Newell’s last-second attempt at a tip-in bounced off the front of the rim, Georgia was left on the short end of its game with No.1 ranked Auburn, falling 70-68.

“I feel like every shot's going down,” Newell said. “It was a great look; I had a great opportunity. But we showed a lot of great fight at the end. We had a great opportunity to get it, but we just came up short.”

The Bulldogs almost pulled off a miracle.

Trailing by nine points with just 41 seconds left, the Bulldogs used a three-pointer by Silas Demary Jr., followed by a drive and layup by the sophomore to pull within 70-67 with just 0.9 seconds left.

Georgia would steal the inbounds pass, allowing Dakota Leffew to attempt a quick 3. The ball missed its mark, but Tyrin Lawrence grabbed the rebound and was fouled on the play.

After hitting the front end of the 1-and-1, Lawrence intentionally missed the second free throw, with the ball going out of bounds with 0.3 seconds left.

That’s when Demary lobbed the ball to Newell, who was able to flick the ball, only for it to bounce off the front of the rim ending the game.

“We work on that play in practice; it’s just execution and details,” said Newell, who finished with his fourth double-double, scoring a team-high 16 points to go with 10 rebounds. “We do a lot of formative games at the end of practice and game scenarios.”

Head coach Mike White credited his team for even putting itself in a position to steal the win in the first place.

“It was about staying together, Asa making big plays, just staying in the moment, you know, not laying down, just continuing to fight, finding ways,” White said. “Our pressure was a factor, of course. We had a couple of nice passes, attacking the offensive glass. They missed a couple of free throws for us. It's part of it, you know, but we had our chances down the stretch.”

Georgia’s issues at the free throw line did not do the Bulldogs any favors, as they went just 9 of 20 on the afternoon.

“It was frustrating,” sophomore Blue Cain said. “You’re supposed to make them, so it was very frustrating.”

Down by nine early in the second half, Cain brought the Bulldogs back into the game. Two straight three-pointers, followed by a layup by the sophomore started the surge before a steal and a dunk by Demary Jr. cut Auburn’s lead to 42-41 with 15:04 to play.

However, Auburn would have some answers.

After failing to tie the score with the Tigers up 47-45, Chad Baker-Mazara stepped up with a three-pointer to push Auburn ahead 50-45.

Baker-Mazara would hit another three moments later, pushing the lead to 10 with just over 10 minutes left.

Turnovers did not help Georgia’s cause.

After cutting the lead to six, the Bulldogs had a chance to draw closer, but a turnover on an errant inbound pass by Demary Jr. led to a steal and a dunk by Baker-Mazara.

With Auburn up 62-54 with 3:47 left, a three-point play by Newell brought Georgia within four with 2:58 go.

A jumper by Pettiford extended the lead back to six before sinking two free throws with just 41 seconds left.

Despite the close game, White said his team wasn’t taking it as a moral victory.

“It's not the way I feel right now. I don't know our guys feel that way either, but there is certainly a positive, especially the resilience,” White said. “It's not like we lost by two and had a chance, but it was leads changing throughout the game and ties and all that stuff. It was a game where we were dead in the water there mid-first half. But our guys do what they continue to do and just continue to play hard.”

Midway through the first half, it looked like the game was about to be over.

A 14-0 run by the Tigers gave Auburn (16-1, 4-0) a 22-7 lead with 11:22 on the clock.

The Tigers’ advantage would grow to as many as 17, but Georgia would answer with one of its own.

A 19-1 spurt, capped by a layup by Justin Abson, brought Georgia within one before Auburn finally responded, using a three-pointer by Tahaad Pettiford to push the lead back to three at 31-27 before a pair of free throws by Miles Kelly sent Auburn into the locker room up 33-27.

Georgia returns to action on Wednesday when the Bulldogs travel to Arkansas.

Boxscore

• The last 2 times Auburn came to Athens as the No. 1 in the nation it won by four combined points. (2022 and today).

• The 70 was Auburn’s 2nd fewest points this season (season avg 86.6).

• Auburn shot 39.3 from the field (lowest the Tigers have shot this season (season avg 50.9).

• With Georgia’s five blocks – the Bulldogs now have 101 this season (had 121 last season).

• Eleven of Asa Newell’s 16 points in the 2nd half.

• Ten of Blue Cain’s 12 points in the 2nd half.

• Seven of Silas Demary Jr’s 8 points in the 2nd half.

• Georgia was 5 of 10 on 3-pointers in the 2nd half (2 of 10 in first half).