WHERE: Stegeman Coliseum

WHEN: Saturday, 2 p.m.

RECORDS: Georgia 14-10, 7-10); Alabama 20-6, 15-2

TV/RADIO: CBS (Brad Nessler, Pete Gillen); Georgia Bulldog Radio Network (Scott Howard, Chuck Dowdle, Adam Gillespie)

Considering what happened the last time Georgia played Alabama, one might believe head coach Tom Crean would be upset with the SEC for scheduling the Crimson Tide for one more go-around as part of the conference shakeup as a result of Covid-19.

That would be an incorrect assumption.

During Friday’s Zoom session with reporters, Crean said he's happy his Bulldogs (14-10, 7-10) will get another shot at the fifth-ranked and SEC regular-season champion Crimson Tide (20-6, 15-2), despite their 115-82 bludgeoning in Tuscaloosa on Feb. 13.

“I think if there's any team in the league you want to play after we played there, it would be that game, and it just happens to be Alabama,” Crean said. “As a competitor, you want to play this game—there’s no doubt about it. If you're not looking forward to it, it probably would be better to stay in the locker room or sit in the back where I cannot find you, because the bottom line is, if you want to compete at this level, you do it by competing against a team that’s as good as they are, and who played against us the way they did the first time.”

Graduate Justin Kier said he and his teammates believe they can accomplish the improbable.

“I think we can compete with anybody in this league. I truly do,” Kier said. “I believe we give teams different matchups they don’t like, and other teams can do that to us as well, but I truly believe if we compete at our top level, then we can compete with anybody in this league.”

Both Crean and Kier believe the week off between games will serve the Bulldogs well in Saturday’s 2 p.m. contest, which will be televised by CBS.

Crean believes his team got better during the seven-day layoff—the team’s longest since mid-December, when the Bulldogs took a week off for finals before beating Cincinnati, 83-68.

“We went right at it on Sunday and Monday, then took Tuesday off and went shorter on Wednesday,” Crean said. “We scrimmaged more in what was a regular practice (Thursday), and today will be very short.

“But I think we're in a really good place. Their conditioning is good. Obviously, everything is tapered back, but we've got to continue to build good habits and make sure we're doing the right things. It was a good week to get better.”

With the SEC Tournament set next week in Nashville, Crean was asked about his team’s consistency, and whether that was the next step his program needs to take.

He didn't necessarily agree.

“Playing for championships is where you ultimately want to take it. The only way to do that is to have good consistency, to be able to do things when certain things are not going well for you, to continue to find way,” he said. “Then I think it's the maturity of locking down defensively and trusting, even when your offense is not there.”

...The Bulldogs have probably played as challenging a slate as anyone in the nation over the past three-and-a-half weeks. Alabama represents the sixth probable NCAA Tournament opponent in Georgia’s last seven games.

...Georgia endured a “February Frenzy” that will rival anything “March Madness” has to offer. Between Feb. 10-23, Georgia faced five consecutive teams likely to receive NCAA bids and compiled a 2-3 mark in those contests. The home team won each outing.

...The Bulldogs defeated No. 20/19 Missouri and LSU at Stegeman Coliseum, and dropped decisions at No. 16/15 Tennessee, No. 11/11 Alabama, and Florida. Georgia and Kentucky are the only SEC teams to play five straight games versus the league’s six consensus teams projected to earn NCAA Tournament bids, Arkansas being the other “March Madness” lock. The Bulldogs played their quintet of contests in 14 days, while the Wildcats did so over an 18-day span.

Alabama, which is ranked No. 8 and No. 5 in this week’s AP and USA Today polls, respectively, enters Saturday’s game at 20-6 overall and 15-2 in league play.

It’s probably not a coincidence that Alabama is one of the SEC’s most veteran teams, with seniors Herbert Jones, John Petty Jr., Alex Reese, and Tyler Barnes spending their entire careers in Tuscaloosa.

Sophomore Jaden Shackelford paces a quartet of double-figure scorers for the Tide at 14.5 ppg, while Petty is adding 12.8 ppg, Jahvon Quinerly is contributing 12.0 ppg, and Jones is chipping in 11.0 ppg.

...Wheeler is atop SEC stats for assists at 7.1 apg, an eye-catching 2.0 assists per game more than any other league players. He also is No. 3 in both assist-to-turnover margin (1.60) and average minutes (34.7 mpg).

...Camara is tied for the league lead with seven double-doubles. Missouri’s Jeremiah Tilmon and Mississippi State’s Tolu Smith also have seven double-doubles.

...K.D. Johnson missed the first 10 games of the season while the NCAA reviewed his academic certification, and therefore only meets the minimum participation requirement of 75 percent of a team’s games for stat leaders for SEC-only games. In stats for just the SEC, Johnson is No. 2 in steals at 1.9 spg.

Georgia travels to the SEC Tournament next week in Nashville.