After an impressive week that included an overtime win in Gainesville to complete a season sweep of Florida followed by an 11-point home win against Tennessee, Georgia has suddenly put itself in position to make a run to the NCAA Tournament — and, by proxy, save head coach Mark Fox’s job. Prior to the win against the Gators, the Bulldogs had compiled a 4-8 SEC record and lost six of their previous seven games. But even during that dismal run, this was not a team that was completely devoid of hope. Given that Georgia possibly has the best player in the SEC in senior forward Yante Maten and had excruciatingly blown double-digit leads at Auburn and against Arkansas in late January, it was clearly a better team than its record. Had the Bulldogs avoided meltdowns in those two contests, the possibility of reaching the NCAA Tournament for the third time in Fox’s nine seasons in Athens would have been realistic. Even without those victories, a 15-11 (6-8 SEC) Georgia team isn’t completely finished just yet.
Mark Fox needs his team to finish strong to earn a tenth season at Georgia (John Kelly/UGA)
During his tenure in Athens — a school where admittedly basketball has been and remains a clear afterthought, even by SEC standards — Fox has always been regarded as an underachieving but solid coach who has enough respect from his peers and administration to earn more time. Some would argue that his lackluster overall record, which includes three 20-win seasons but no NCAA Tournament wins, has not been good enough to justify keeping him around in a rapidly improving league. And after Georgia lost its third game in a row on February 10 – a 78-61 home thrashing at the hands of Auburn – it appeared as if Fox’s tenure might be nearing an end. Last week’s performance, however, at least offers a glimmer of hope that he can save his job.
The wins over the Gators and Volunteers will not mean much if the Bulldogs fail to support them with subsequent wins at South Carolina and at home against LSU this week. If they can climb back to .500 in SEC play, things could get interesting. Georgia closes SEC play by hosting Texas A&M and paying a return visit to Tennessee, and, given the depth of the league, the Bulldogs will get further opportunities to enhance their resume at the SEC Tournament in St. Louis. Of course, a trip to the Big Dance remains a relative long shot despite their recent reversal of fortune, but considering where this team sat just one short week ago, even a remote chance of salvaging the season — and correspondingly, the coach’s job — is better than none at all.