Reunited: For new Bulldog Terry Roberts, it feels so good
Ultimately, being reunited with Kario Oquendo was an opportunity new Georgia guard Terry Roberts did not want to let pass.
Roberts and Oquendo were teammates at Florida Southwestern State, where they teamed up in backcourt before going their separate ways.
They’re now together again.
Roberts, a rising senior, and Oquendo are expected to form the nucleus of the Bulldogs’ backcourt for new head coach Mike White.
“Playing with Kario was great,” Roberts told UGASports. “We have a great feel for each other’s games.”
Their reunion in Athens almost did not happen.
It was almost two weeks ago when Oquendo placed his name in the NCAA transfer portal, before taking it out and electing to return to Athens.
Once that happened, thoughts of a possible reunion emerged. After Roberts’ official visit last weekend, his decision was made.
“Conversations with him (Oquendo) were great,” Roberts said. “We spoke about a lot of things and teaming up with him was one of the first things we spoke about.”
White is no doubt glad to have both.
Oquendo led the Bulldogs in scoring at 15.2 points per game. Roberts, meanwhile, led Bradley with 14.5 points and 4.1 assists per game, while shooting 45 percent from the field and 34.5 percent from the 3-point range.
“My visit this weekend was outstanding,” Roberts said. “What stood out most to me was how together everyone was. It was just a great atmosphere to be around.”
Roberts said White’s message to him was a simple one. There’s absolutely no reason that the program can't start winning sooner than some people might think.
“He said that we have all the tools to turn everything around,” Roberts said. “We just need to grab a few others, get to work, and we can make some big things happen in Athens.”
Roberts said White reached out to him immediately after the New York native placed his name in the portal.
“There’s great people here,” said Roberts, who spoke things over with his family before making a final decision that Athens would be his new home.
“Coach White has done great things with guards like myself,” Roberts said. “But I also have bunch of family and friends in the area.”
Along with Oquendo, Roberts joins a team that currently includes returnee Braelen Bridges, who announced on Twitter Monday that he was coming back for one more season. Bulldogs Jabri Abdur-Rahim is also expected to return, while Jailyn Ingram told UGASports that he will also come back assuming the NCAA approves his waiver for a sixth year after only playing in 10 games last season due to a torn ACL.
The Bulldogs also have former Longwood player Justin Hill, who announced his commitment to Georgia three weeks ago.
