NIT Final Four Preview: Bulldogs eying spot in tournament finals
WHERE: Hinkle Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, Indiana.
WHEN: Tuesday, 9:30 p.m.
RECORDS: Georgia 20-16, Seton Hall 23-12
TV/RADIO: ESPN2 (Mike Corey, Fran Fraschilla, Myron Medcalf); Westwood One: (Cooper Boardman and Will Perdue); Georgia Bulldogs Radio Network (Scott Howard, Chuck Dowdle, Adam Gillespie)
In the same gym where they filmed the movie “Hoosiers,” Georgia’s basketball team hopes to create its own magic in Tuesday night’s semifinal in the NIT against Seton Hall.
It’s been a long, often exasperating season for the Bulldogs, whose hopes for postseason play were thought to be quashed once Florida eliminated Mike White’s squad from the second round of the SEC Tournament.
But after Ole Miss opted out, Georgia (20-16) received one final chance. Three wins later, the Bulldogs are two victories away from their first NIT crown.
Tip-off at 100-year-old Hinkle Fieldhouse is set for 9:30 p.m. on ESPN2.
"You know, it's great. I knew that after Florida — I felt like we had some time left,” graduate Noah Thomasson said. “I didn't want to jinx our team, but an opportunity to keep playing with my teammates and my brothers — this is a family — I'm going to remember this for the rest of my life. I'm glad I made this decision, and I wouldn't have picked any other way if I had to do it all over again. I think it has been good for us, you know, for the foundation for the year we had this year and for the commitment of all the players. I think this was a great opportunity for us."
Russel Tchewa agrees.
No, it may not be the NCAA Tournament. But for a program that just won six games a mere two years ago, the opportunity to be playing for a championship – of any kind – is not lost on the players.
"I think it's been a good thing to see our teammates, our brothers, and practice again for a few more days. We know this is our last tournament and that this team, we're never going to have this same team back together ever,” Tchewa said. “We're thinking about that and being able to play again, practice again with our brothers and coaches. It's a blessing. We're not going to get this back, so give it everything we have."
For White, his team’s postseason run is a bit of a redemption for a coach some were already questioning after starting SEC play 3-1.
But his Bulldogs made it to Indianapolis by pulling off three straight wins, including back-to-back road victories at Wake Forest and Ohio State.
"It's been awesome. For the past month, this team has played and been super, super competitive. There's not a lot of teams in the country that, regardless of the circumstances, could do what we've done,” White said. “There's a few and a couple of those teams are still playing in the other tournament. But the way that these guys have performed - we've won five of the last seven. We lost at Auburn, and they have as good of a home-court advantage as anybody in the country, of course, played Florida to a one-possession game in the last minute of the game. We have won five against really good teams. Let's keep playing.”
Should Georgia advance to Thursday night’s NIT Final against the winner of Indiana State-Utah, it will mark the latest the Bulldogs have ever played in a season.
Another ironic twist – the Bulldogs join Alabama as the lone two SEC teams still playing.
"We laugh about it all the time. Even though this is our first year here, I think we've seen a change in Georgia Basketball. It's going to keep growing, even when we're not here. I think that was the main goal of us coming here to help build something bigger than us,” Thomasson said. “I hope Coach White and the rest of the staff keep making those strides to bring Georgia back to where it needs to be, not just be a football school. We can be an every-sport school. That's the main goal."