Eric Musselman has been dubbed “The Importer” because of his proficiency with the transfer portal, but he can’t land them all. He’ll face one who got away Wednesday night in the Arkansas vs Georgia matchup.
The Bulldogs’ leading scorer is Jabri Abdur-Rahim, a former top-50 recruit who began his career at Virginia, but transferred after one season with the Cavaliers.
Now in his third season at Georgia, he’s enjoying a breakout year by scoring 12.9 points per game and shooting a whopping 43.2% from 3-point range. The latter of those numbers ranks second in the SEC among players who’ve attempted at least 70 shots from beyond the arc.
“He can shoot the ball,” Musselman said. “He does a good job of drawing fouls off 3-point shots. He does what you’d want a player to do. He’s improved each and every year. He’s got great length at 6-8 and his percentages don’t lie.”
Musselman also admitted that he tried to recruit Abdur-Rahim when he entered the transfer portal following his freshman year at Virginia.
After all, he coached his father, Shareef Abdur-Rahim, in the NBA — first when he was an assistant for the Atlanta Hawks and then when he was the head coach of the Sacramento Kings. T
That familiarity made his son seem like a sort of “legacy” transfer recruit, but the ties to the Abdur-Rahims’ home state of Georgia were too much to overcome.
Jabri Abdur-Rahim Comes Up
At Virginia, Jabri Abdur-Rahim’s freshman season was nothing like his father’s brief stint at Cal, from he left after a single impressive season a decade before the onset of the “one and done” rule.
A foot injury limited Jabri to only 37 total minutes across eight games with the Cavaliers and he slowly progressed over the previous two seasons with the Bulldogs. He remained on board when Tom Crean was fired and replaced by Mike White and his patience — a rarity these days — has paid off.
Even though he’s had moderate success up until this season, Abdur-Rahim has played well against the Razorbacks. In two matchups, he’s averaged 10 points in 26 minutes while shooting 4 of 7 from beyond the arc.
It will be up to Musselman’s squad to make sure he and teammate Noah Thomasson (12.5 ppg, 37.1% 3PT) don’t get hot Wednesday night inside a building in which they haven’t lost this season.
Follow along below for updates from the Arkansas vs Georgia game…
LIVE UPDATES – Arkansas vs Georgia
15:46, 1H – Georgia 6, Arkansas 2
It was yet another ugly start for the Hogs, who took more than four minutes before getting on the board. Their first six possessions included three missed 3s, two turnovers and an 0-for-2 trip to the free throw line. Jalen Graham finally scored on an and-1 to send the game to the first media timeout.
11:09, 1H – Georgia 16, Arkansas 9
The Razorbacks are up to four turnovers in addition to being just 4 of 11 (36.4%) from the floor and minus-3 on the boards. Justin Hill has knocked down two 3s for Georgia.
7:41, 1H – Georgia 21, Arkansas 15
Arkansas used a 9-2 run to get right back into the game, pulling within one, but Georgia answered. That answer included a banked 3, which stretched the Bulldogs’ lead back to six.
3:25, 1H – Georgia 30, Arkansas 17
Georgia’s answer ended up being a 12-0 run. Arkansas has made only 1 of its last 8 shots and is up to eight total turnovers in the game. Hill is up 3 of 3 from deep, which means he’s basically already at his season average.
1:22, 1H – Georgia 32, Arkansas 22
Jalen Graham missed his first four free throws before finally making one, but he missed the next one, so he’s 1 of 6 from the charity stripe.
HALF – Georgia 34, Arkansas 24
Arkansas had a chance to cut the deficit to single digits at the half, but Trevon Brazile air-balled a deep 3. Graham leads the Hogs with 7 points, but he’s 1 of 6 at the line. Hill has a game-high 11 points for Georgia.
15:58, 2H – Georgia 40, Arkansas 32
The Razorbacks showed some life coming out of the half, cutting the deficit to five, but Georgia responded with back-to-back 3s. They’re 3 of 5 from the floor this half, but still have two turnovers – which have led to all six of the Bulldogs’ points so far this half.
11:58, 2H – Georgia 48, Arkansas 41
After seemingly being stuck at an eight-point deficit, Jeremiah Davenport knocked down a 3 to make it a seven-point game. Davonte Davis will be shooting a free throw to complete a 3-point play out of the timeout, which would cut it to six.
7:50, 2H – Georgia 56, Arkansas 50
Davenport got a clean look at a 3 that would have pulled Arkansas within 3, but he missed. Tramon Mark has been dominant this half, scoring 10 points to give him 16 for the game. The Hogs are just having a hard time stringing together stops.
3:47, 2H – Georgia 65, Arkansas 59
Abdur-Rahim missed his first five 3s, but finally got one to fall when Georgia needed it. The Hogs have been as close as a three-point deficit, but just can’t get over the hump.
2:13, 2H – Georgia 69, Arkansas 62
Trevon Brazile threw down another tip slam and completed the 3-point play, but Arkansas can’t get a stop on the other end. It looked like it forced a miss, but Georgia grabbed the offensive board and stuck it back in to keep the margin at seven. Mark is up to 20 points for Arkansas, while Hill and Thomasson have 15 points apiece for the Bulldogs.
FINAL – Georgia 76, Arkansas 66
The last chance Arkansas had was wasted when Makhi Mitchell committed his fourth turnover with 1:18 remaining. That came in a 5-point game.
For a post-game analysis, go here:
FINAL STATS
HALFTIME STATS
Starting Lineups
NOTE: This is the ninth different starting lineup Eric Musselman has used this season.
| Georgia Basketball | Arkansas Basketball |
|---|---|
| #1 – Jabri Abdur-Rahim – G | #1 – Keyon Menifield Jr. – G |
| #3 – Noah Thomasson – G | #4 – Davonte Davis – G |
| #4 – Silas Demary Jr. – G | #12 – Tramon Mark – G |
| #10 – RJ Sunahara – F | #2 – Trevon Brazile – F |
| #54 – Russel Tchewa – C | #15 – Makhi Mitchell – F |
How to Watch Arkansas vs Georgia
Date: Wednesday, Jan. 10
Location: Stegeman Coliseum (Athens, Ga.)
Tipoff Time/TV: 8 p.m. CT (ESPNU)
ESPN BPI: Georgia has a 69.4% chance to win, favored by 5.6 points.
Odds/Spread: Georgia, -2.5 | O/U 152.5 (BetSaracen)
SEC Basketball Midweek Schedule
Tuesday
- Alabama 74, South Carolina 47
- Kentucky 90, Missouri 77
- LSU 77, Vanderbilt 69
- Auburn 66, Texas A&M 55
Wednesday
- Tennessee at Mississippi State – 6 p.m. CT (SECN)
- Arkansas vs Georgia – 8 p.m. CT (ESPNU)
- Florida at Ole Miss – 8 p.m. CT (SECN)
***
Need something to pass the time? Check out the latest episode of Hoggin’ the Mic, a podcast hosted by our own Andrew Hutchinson and USA Today’s Jackson Fuller:
***
More coverage of Arkansas basketball and Arkansas vs Georgia from BoAS…
