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ATHENS, Ga. (AP) — It's Thanksgiving not Halloween, but Georgia basketball coach Mark Fox was sure the Bulldogs were waking the dead with their 49-46 win over High Point Wednesday.
"Dr. Naismith is buried in a small cemetery in Lawrence, Kansas, not two miles from Allen Field House," Fox said after the win. "He rolled over in his grave tonight with the way we played offensive basketball."
Georgia (2-1) made just three field goals in the second half and shot 29.7 percent for the game, yet never trailed after the first four minutes. The Bulldogs made 17 of 20 free throws.
High Point (3-2) shot 29.5 percent from the field, missing 14 of 15 3-point attempts. The Panthers were just 7 of 17 from the line.
Charles Mann made 8 of 8 free throws and finished with 13 points to lead Georgia. Mann's last two free throws capped the scoring with 11.1 seconds left. High Point's Anthony Lindauer missed two potential tying 3-pointers in the closing seconds.
Kenny Gaines scored 12 points for Georgia, and J.J. Frazier added 10.
Lorenzo Cugini scored 14 points, Adam Weary had 13 and John Brown added 11 for the Panthers.
Georgia led 33-22 at halftime. Despite shooting 14 percent from the field and missing all nine 3-point shots in the second half, Georgia never fell behind.
The Bulldogs went nearly 15 minutes without a field goal before a runner by Gaines made it 44-39 High Point made 7 of 17.
"We only shot 29 percent, and we know that is not good enough," Fox said. "But they only shot 29 percent because our defense has gotten better, and that was a key in this game."
High Point Coach Scott Cherry had a similar assessment of his team.
"We really, defensively, played well," said Cherry. "We did some really good things today. We got some offensive rebounds and turned them over 18 times. We did so many good things, but the ball just wouldn't go in the basket."
High Point opened with the first four points of the game, but never led again after and 8-0 Georgia run. The Panthers were within two, 19-17, with 7:47 to play in the first half after an acrobatic scoop layup by Weary.
But Georgia held High Point to two field goals and one free throw the rest of the half. Meanwhile, Mann scored nine of the Bulldogs' last 19 first-half points as Georgia built a 33-22 lead at the break.
High Point had only two turnovers at the half, but made just 10 of 34 from the field, including 1 of 8 from 3-point range, and 1 of 7 free throws.
The Panthers had one shot to take the lead in the second half. Trailing 44-43, Brown drove the lane, but his layup rimmed out with a minute to play.
Fox blamed himself for Georgia's woeful offense.
"I have too many moving parts," he said, "too many different lineups. I have coached them poorly offensively."
Georgia played with a small lineup much of the night because centers Maten and Mike Edwards fouled out.
"We did not play well offensively," Fox reiterated, "but that should take nothing away from High Point's defensive effort. We didn't play beautifully, but we beat a good team."
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TIP-INS
High Point: After making just 1 of 12 3-pointers against Western Carolina on Nov. 21, the Panthers made just 1 of 15 against Georgia.
Georgia: Yante Maten came into the game averaging a double-double, but finished with eight points and four rebounds in 19 minutes before fouling out.
UP NEXT
High Point hosts Morgan State (2-3) on Saturday afternoon.
Georgia travels to Newark, New Jersey, to play Seton Hall (4-1) on Saturday.
PIVOTAL MOMENT
Mark Fox gave freshman center Mike Edwards praise for his foul of John Brown with 32.8 seconds to go. It was Edwards' fifth, but it put Brown at the line, where he made 1 of 5, rather than give up a layup. "That was a great foul," Fox said.
STAT LINES
The 49-points were the fewest in a win under Fox at Georgia. Last December, Georgia scored 50 in a win over Kansas State.
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