After missing the season opener, Shacobia Barbee returned to action for the Georgia women’s basketball team Thursday evening in the Stegeman Coliseum with her fourth career double-double. The sophomore’s 15 points and 15 rebounds helped the Lady Bulldogs (2-0) defeat Mercer (1-2) in a 72-41 blowout.
“It felt good to be back out there with my team,” Barbee said. “With or without me, having anyone come back, the energy is there. I was excited for my first game, just doing little things like I did last year.”
Georgia was able to put the game away in the first half despite early foul trouble. With the game being tied 9-9, a layup by junior Krista Donald at 10:43 sparked a 24-2 run over the next 5:51. Georgia went into halftime with a 37-15 lead and was in control for the remainder of the game.
Behind Barbee’s hot game, the Lady Bulldogs were able to outplay Mercer on both ends of the floor. Offensively, Mercer shot a poor 23.1 percent, only making 12 field goals in the entire game, while Georgia had 29 made field goals on 38.2 percent. The Lady Bulldogs outrebounded the Bears 56-39, with 21 offensive boards and 12 second-chance points. Georgia also had 19 assists in the game versus Mercer’s eight, 12 of which came from Barbee and senior guard Khaalidah Miller, who both had six each.
After a poor defensive effort on Sunday against Presbyterian, the Lady Bulldogs were able to turn up the defensive play against the Bears. Georgia recorded 13 steals and helped force the Bears to make 22 turnovers, 13 of which came in the first half.
“We played really well all-around defensively,” junior guard Erika Ford said. “The ball pressure created a chance for our wings to get out and get deflections and steals. I thought it was really good and much improved from Sunday.
Head coach Andy Landers expressed his satisfaction with the differences in this game as opposed to Sunday’s game against Presbyterian.
“I think the best thing about the game tonight is that they had fun,” he said.
Barbee got her 15 points on 6-of-12 shooting, and she was just four assists shy of a triple-double. Her 15 rebounds serve as her career-high, and this double-double is now her second in a row, dating back to last season when she posted 14 points and 10 rebounds against Cal in the NCAA Tournament.
“[Shacobia was] terrific,” Landers said. “I thought she was great, I thought she was positive, and I thought she played hard.
Ford finished the game with 15 points on 5-of-10 shooting, scoring Georgia’s first seven points. More Lady Bulldogs in double-figures were Miller and sophomore Merritt Hempe with 13 points each. Following Barbee’s 15 rebounds, Miller and Halle Washington both chipped in with seven each, and Donald followed behind with six.
With suspended players Marjorie Butler and Tiaria Griffin expected to play after the next game, Landers spoke about how getting key players back into the lineup benefits the team.
“Everybody is important,” he said. “That’s normally the case with any team. If you have one person that doesn’t show, that doesn’t pull or carry their share of the load, [the team] looks like it did Sunday. If you have everybody on the same page pulling together, it will look like it did tonight. The best thing is that we have two more players coming back, so it’s going to look even better when we get them back.”
The Lady Bulldogs will return to action against the Ohio State Buckeyes at 2 p.m. on Sunday in Stegeman Coliseum.
Mariya Lewter 