The Lady Dogs face perhaps their most difficult challenge left in the regular season tonight at Kentucky. As I said the other day, Kentucky is backed into a corner right now. They started the season ranked, but now they’re desperate to salvage this season and earn another postseason bid.

Last year, Georgia’s speed at guard ate Kentucky alive for a blowout win. The Wildcats are coming off a loss to Tennessee in which they had a season high in turnovers. That’s a good sign for a Georgia team which has thrived off of turnovers and the transition game in its last two outings, but now they face a better opponent with something to play for. If they keep up the defensive fire they’ve shown over the past week, they’ll be in great shape and should be able to get out in transition again.

Things could become more difficult for Georgia in a halfcourt game. Kentucky has some nice size inside, and Georgia will need solid foul-free performances from Robinson, Humphrey, and Darrah to keep Kentucky’s front line from hurting them. They’re not a particularly good three-point shooting team, so Georgia’s effectiveness in denying the entry passes will be key. Kentucky’s best bet is to keep the game low-scoring and make Georgia grind out the offense. With that strategy, Kentucky has beaten Ole Miss, come very close against Vanderbilt, and lost 53-51 to a Top 10 Ohio State team.