Last week Josh over at the NCAA’s Double-A Zone linked to an LA Times article illustrating the lack of success for bubble teams (seeds 9-12) in recent NCAA Tournaments. The premise is right – bubble teams create a lot of excitement during the homestretch of the regular season as teams jockey for the last few at-large bids, but they really matter very little when it comes down to the Sweet Sixteen and beyond.

But at that point, it’s not really about championships or even advancing very far. Winning games in the tournament is great, sure, but marginal teams outside the higher seeds care mostly about access – entry into the club.

That’s why people like Jim Boeheim are so vocal about expanding the tournament. It’s not that a Syracuse team at .500 in its conference is a legitimate national title contender. It’s that a bid to the tournament is the basic status symbol in college basketball. You hang banners, put it on your coaching resume, flaunt it in front of prospects, and make as big of a deal over it as you can. There is enormous media exposure at stake in everything from the games themselves to countless previews breaking down the brackets. Go far enough and it can transform a school, but just being a part of the process is enough for many schools.

In the eyes of fans, a bid to the NCAA Tournament is the baseline for a successful program. It’s relevance and legitimacy. The seed might not be what you’d like in a given season, but you’re still at least a part of the picture. Miss the tournament once, and it’s a problem. Miss it a few times, and it’s time to look for a new coach.

Football fans are familiar with this issue: playing in a BCS bowl is a big deal. A playoff would be an even bigger deal for those teams invited because those 8 or 16 teams would have access to the hype surrounding a national title chase. It’s not hard to see why bracket creep is so attractive to those on the outside of the club.

The SEC Women’s Tournament returns to Nashville this weekend. The tournament last took place in the Music City in 2004, and the results were generally kind to the Lady Dogs. It was also the last time that Georgia didn’t earn a first-round bye and entered the tournament as the #5 seed with a game on Thursday.

In 2004, the Lady Dogs overcame the disadvantage of the extra game and moved into the championship game after a semifinal upset over Tennessee (Georgia’s last win against the Lady Vols). The championship game was a painful loss for Georgia as they built a 20 point lead and watched it evaporate in the second half against hometown Vanderbilt. We’d find out later that a stomach virus had struck the team, but it didn’t make the loss sit any better. Georgia built on that SEC Tournament run to go deep into the NCAA Tournament, losing to LSU in the final seconds of the regional finals with the Final Four on the line.

The 2008 bracket seems as favorable as it could be for Georgia to have more success in Nashville. They should get by Alabama easily. Kentucky is as weak a 4-seed as the conference has seen in a while (LSU was #4 last year), and the awful 47-44 home loss to Kentucky still has to dig at the Georgia team. If they can get past Kentucky to the semifinals, they’ll likely face LSU. LSU is a great team of course, but Georgia played them well in Baton Rouge and shouldn’t back down if the teams meet again.

Cream of the crop

• #1 LSU (14-0). Candace Parker will likely win more postseason honors and be drafted higher, but none of the teams contending for the national title rely on one player like LSU relies on Sylvia Fowles. She scores when she wants to, and inside shots are often sent right back at high velocity. Three of LSU’s four losses came when Fowles was injured prior to SEC play, and the only other loss was a close one to UConn. LSU has a bit of an outside game with Quianna Chaney for balance, but Fowles is still the key to the machine. LSU doesn’t have an especially explosive offense, so expect their scores to be low unless turnovers factor in.
• #2 Tennessee (13-1). It can’t sit well that they’re not the top seed at the SEC Tournament, not with a #1 NCAA Tournament seed still in play.  Tennessee has had a solid season as always, but they’ve had moments that make you scratch your head.  Long scoring droughts have been the biggest problem for the Lady Vols this year, and the perimeter game can be hit or miss.  While the Tennessee supporting cast is stronger than LSU’s, more is expected of it.

Pain in the ass

• #3 Vanderbilt (11-3). I can think of no better way to describe them. You hear LSU, Tennessee, blah, blah, blah, and there’s Vandy cutting down the nets. They can score points in a hurry, and their defense challenges your perimeter game. They beat likely second-round opponent Auburn by around 30 points just a week ago, so go ahead and pencil Vandy into the semifinals. To advance to Sunday, they’ll have to beat a Tennessee team that’s beaten them twice by double digits.

Something to prove

• #4 Kentucky (8-6). Everyone expected Kentucky to stumble at some point. They didn’t play particularly well out of conference and are 14-14 overall. They had the Schedule of Death this year playing both LSU and Tennessee twice. Despite that, they beat Georgia and Auburn and went until the final game of the season before they lost to a team seeded 5 or below. South Carolina’s win at Lexington to close the regular season was perplexing after the Wildcats had just come within four points of LSU a week earlier.
• #5 Georgia (8-6).  Georgia’s 13-0 start masked more close finishes than I care to recount.  The team was exposed soon enough and started SEC play 4-5 with a pair of nonconference losses thrown in as well.  This has been one of the weakest Georgia backcourts that I can remember, but they got it together a bit during the end of the season and won four in a row before dropping the regular season finale to Tennessee.  Defense has been strong for much of the year.  Close losses to teams like Tennessee, LSU, and Oklahoma have shown Georgia’s ability to play with most programs, but they have yet to get over the hump and beat a ranked team this year.  Advancing to Saturday would be nice, but they might have to knock off LSU to avoid an unfavorable NCAA seed.
• #6 Auburn (7-7).  Auburn started 12-1 with a win over Ohio State in there.  That start earned them a ranking, but they soon went into a 1-5 tailspin interrupted only by a 30-point win over Georgia.  Losses to Florida and Ole Miss have them very much on the NCAA bubble, and they might have to beat Vanderbilt to guarantee a spot.  They’ll have 20 wins if they can beat Arkansas, and that always looks good on the resume.

Might make it to Friday

• #7 Florida (6-8).  All in all, this wasn’t a bad year for a Florida team that was the 11-seed a year ago and welcomed a new coach this year.  They were a better team, and their seed reflects that.  Their best win of the year was probably an upset of Auburn.  They’re just a few wins short of being NCAA Tournament material, but that might be getting ahead of things for the first year of the turnaround.  They should still receive a WNIT berth, but they can’t overlook South Carolina in the first round.
• #8 Ole Miss (6-8).  Ole Miss has had an unremarkable season with a win over Auburn the lone standout win.  They had won 3 of 4 before blowing a lead to Florida in the last game.  You’d call them the favorite in this 8-9 matchup, but they split the season series with their rival.
• #9 Miss. St. (4-10).  The Bulldogs have had a bit of a disappointing season. As usual, they have a strong record at home (Starkville is just one of those places), but this year they haven’t done much away from the Hump.

Upset Special?

• #10 South Carolina (4-10). Last year I got lucky and picked Florida’s first-round upset win at the #11 seed. I’ll go with South Carolina this year over Florida. The Gamecocks beat Florida recently, and South Carolina has a bit of momentum after knocking off Kentucky in Lexington last weekend. Florida had to put together a big comeback to beat Ole Miss over the weekend, and they have a new coach in her first SEC Tournament.

No hotel reservations

• #11 Arkansas (2-12). Yes, this team started 15-0 and was ranked at one point. Then they lost a key player to injury, and the season has more or less imploded on itself. Their season should come to a quick end against Auburn.
• #12 Alabama (1-13). An “upset” of South Carolina is their only SEC win in two seasons.

Back in January I picked three things I thought might work against the Georgia football team in 2008. One of those was the offensive line. The 2007 line weathered the storm to become a very competent unit despite a new position coach, three freshmen on the first team, and very little depth. In 2008 the line will face a new set of challenges starting with the replacement of the two seniors who anchored the 2007 unit.

The release of the spring depth chart shows why I singled out the line.

LT
77 Trinton Sturdivant (6-5, 293, So.)
78 Josh Davis (6-6, 293, RSo.)
61 John Potts (6-3, 285, RFr.)

LG
72 Vince Vance (6-8, 320, Jr.)
54 Tanner Strickland (6-5, 328, RFr.)
66 Micky White (6-3, 331, RSo.)

C
63 Chris Davis (6-4, 292, RSo.)
76 Ben Harden (6-3, 310, RFr.)
74 Kevin Perez (6-3, 270, RSo.)
61 Ben Jones (6-3, 300, Fr.)

RG
60 Clint Boling (6-5, 290, So.)
79 Justin Anderson (6-5, 328, RFr.)
73 Chris Little (6-6, 330, RFr.)

RT
75 Kiante Tripp (6-6, 270, RSo.)

The youth of the line jumps out at you immediately. Vance is the only upperclassman in the group, and even he is just entering his second year of the program. No Georgia lineman has more than a year’s experience on the field.

Depth at the tackle position is also hard to miss. You have three scholarship players, and only Sturdivant has significant experience. The situation isn’t as bad as it seems: we know Boling can play tackle if necessary, and others will surely cross-train at tackle this spring.

The good news is that Boling, Sturdivant, and Davis form a solid core for the unit. Davis has an adjustment learning the center position, but he came on nicely at guard last year. And though it’s young, there is talent in there. The depth chart doesn’t include incoming freshmen (except Jones who has already enrolled), and we saw last year how true freshmen can help in a pinch. The job for Searels and his line is as big if not bigger than it was last year, but it’s not an impossible task.

The talk of the weight room so far has been Kiante Tripp. He’s up to 290 lbs. and instantly draws comparisons to Chris Terry, a converted defensive lineman who blossomed at offensive tackle. Tripp’s position change last summer caused a stir, but he saw only very limited reserve action as he adjusted to his new position. Obviously much more is expected of him in 2008.

We can be certain that the depth chart is sure to change even before G-Day. The "starting" offensive line going into spring in 2007 was Josh Davis, Vince Vance, Velasco, Adams, and Chris Davis – at center.

Not many people expected a favorable result from a road swing to Kentucky and Vanderbilt, and the 0-2 result is no surprise. While we can take some pride in being in position to win at Kentucky or leading after a half in Nashville, losses continue to pile up. It’s becoming very much like the 2004-2005 season where the Dawgs were often competitive but usually ran out of gas against deeper and more talented SEC teams. While this Georgia team is a bit more talented than the group that went 2-14, the results are looking similar.

After a home game against Florida, Georgia gets three opportunities against struggling SEC West teams. Can they break through with road wins at Auburn and LSU? Can they prey on the road woes of Ole Miss?

Florida comes to Athens on Wednesday in the unique position of being both the two-time defending national champion and also a bubble team. The Gators are just over .500 in the league, and their nonconference resume isn’t particularly impressive. With the spoiler role one of the few things left for Georgia, making Florida sweat the postseason would be a small consolation.

Speaking of the postseason, I think there are only three SEC teams who can feel certain of a bid at this point – Tennessee, Vanderbilt, and Mississippi State. Kentucky, Florida, and Arkansas all have good chances thanks to conference records above .500, but those three teams also have plenty of warts that make them classic bubble teams.

SEC Men’s Power Ranking

1. Tennessee: Welcome to the top of the mountain.
2. Kentucky: Got a big win over Arkansas to keep NCAA hopes alive.
3. Miss. St.: Survived against South Carolina.
4. Vanderbilt: There’s no place like home, but will that matter against Tennessee?
5. Arkansas: Missed a chance at Kentucky to solidify their postseason position.
6. Florida: Tough four games to finish the season. Are they on the bubble?
7. South Carolina: Took MSU to overtime.
8. Auburn: Holding their own against the dregs of the SEC West.
9. LSU: Impressive win over Ole Miss. This could be a dangerous SEC Tournament team.
10. Ole Miss: The freefall continues.
11. Georgia: Need to turn effort into wins.
12. Alabama: And still only a game out of third place.

Lady Dogs

As we enter the final week of the SEC season for the women, the postseason picture is becoming clearer. The top four seeds – LSU, Tennessee, Vanderbilt, and Kentucky – are more or less set. Georgia’s win over Auburn combined with Auburn’s loss at Ole Miss have the Lady Dogs in good shape for the #5 seed. That means that the Lady Dogs would be playing on Thursday for the first time since 2004, but they should have an easy path to a quarterfinal meeting with Kentucky.

Georgia had some business to take care of on Sunday before they could look at the standings. After a 30-point loss at Auburn early in January, the Lady Dogs came out in Sunday’s rematch determined to show that the loss was a fluke. They quickly built a double-digit lead thanks to a 2-3 zone that made Auburn star Dewanna Bonner a non-factor for much of the first half. With Auburn unable to hit from outside, the zone was able to choke off the interior.

A 6-0 run to close the first half brought Auburn to within 13 points and gave them some momentum, but Georgia built the lead back to as many as 21 points with 9 minutes left. When it looked as if Georgia might be headed for a 30-point win of their own, Lady Dog turnovers fueled a 17-2 Auburn run that closed the lead to just six points with only three minutes left. A Tasha Humphrey baseline jumper stopped the bleeding, and Georgia was able to hit free throws down the stretch to seal the win.

Congratulations to Tasha Humphrey who became Georgia’s #2 career scorer in Sunday’s win. She doesn’t have much chance of matching Janet Harris’s 2,600+ career total, but few players in SEC history have been in that class. Humphrey has passed such Lady Dog legends as Teresa Edwards, Katrina McClain, and Kelly Miller, and it seemed as if she showed up on campus scoring 20 PPG and pulling down 10 rebounds.

SEC Women’s Power Ranking

1. LSU: In control of the SEC, but UConn too much to handle.
2. Tennessee: Coasting.
3. Vanderbilt: Auburn should be their final tuneup before the postseason.
4. Georgia: Tough to beat when they get offense from the guards.
5. Kentucky: Put a scare into LSU, but offense remains a problem.
6. Auburn: Two straight losses have them looking at a .500 SEC record and the postseason bubble.
7. Ole Miss: Nice home win over Auburn highlights a 2-0 week.
8. Florida: Unforgivable home loss to South Carolina.
9. Miss. St.: Tough to close with Tennessee and LSU.
10. South Carolina: Proving to be pesky.
11. Arkansas: And to think that this team was ranked once.
12. Alabama: Sacrificial lamb for the eventual #5 seed.

I know that the Internet has turned the whole "never pick a fight with someone who buys ink by the barrel" aphorism on its head, but I still don’t know if it’s the wisest move for Phil Fulmer to get into a war of words with columnist John Adams.

Make no mistake, he’s in a fight to remain in control of the program. Let’s not forget that early in the 2007 season things were so shaky in Knoxville that former players had to take out a full-page ad in support of Fulmer. Though a much-needed win over Georgia placated the masses, an embarrassing loss at Alabama got the torches fired back up. Had the Vols not pulled out close wins against South Carolina, Kentucky, and Vanderbilt and won five straight games to win the SEC East, there’s no telling how ugly things might have become.

Now with his offensive mastermind gone to Duke and arguably his best recruiter gone to Oklahoma State, Fulmer is left to rebuild his staff with a new quarterback while fending off increasingly loud dissenters like Adams.

You can tell that Fulmer is struggling to keep it together when he goes right to the "doing it for the children" defense of his program. That’s often the last refuge of a coach who has little else to lean on.

It’s a mistake that while defending his character and leadership he seems most secure in his on-the-field record. Every coach is a mentor. Every coach wants to see his players graduate and go on to wonderful careers in law enforcement. He isn’t feeling heat because of his track record educating and mentoring his players. Since Linda Bensel-Meyers came forward, the portrayal of the Tennessee football program as anything but a football factory is good comedy, and Tennessee fans were more than willing to look the other way while things were going well.

Tennessee might have won more games than 95% of other teams as Fulmer says, but he is feeling heat because the perception is there of a program in decline. Though they have three SEC East titles in the 2000s, they haven’t won an SEC title since 1998. They haven’t been in the national title picture since 2001. Fulmer might want to think twice about inviting criticism of his on-field performance. Coaches aren’t replaced in the SEC because they don’t mentor well enough.

UPDATE: In the meantime, we have news about another future Knox County sheriff’s deputy.

Two basketball programs – one a titan and one…not so much – have recently opened new showcase practice facilities with much fanfare. Each looks very impressive and should be assets to those programs both in player development and in recruiting. Since Georgia’s own facility opened less than a year ago, it’s worth taking a look at how Georgia’s investment stacks up against Duke and SMU. Sure, $30 million is an impressive amount to put into a building, and the place looks great, but when you see Georgia’s facility relative to similar projects, you really can appreciate the athletic department’s commitment to these programs.

Note: Remember that Georgia’s facility also includes significant space for the nation’s top gymnastics program; not all of this investment is for basketball.

SMU: Crum Basketball Center

• Cost: $13 million
• Area: 43,000 sq. ft.
• Dedicated practice courts for men’s and women’s programs: Yes
• Connected to arena
• Other: "Players’ locker rooms and lounges, a fully-equipped training and rehabilitation room with in-ground hydrotherapy pools, a state-of-the-art strength and conditioning room, an on-site laundry facility, coaches’ offices and conference facilities for both programs, coaches’ locker rooms and film editing rooms"
• Quotable: "This facility is as nice as any basketball facility in the country! I designed UNC’s locker room, weight room and practice gym…..and "The Crum" is nicer!" – SMU coach Matt Doherty

Duke: Michael W. Krzyzewski Center for Athletic Excellence

• Cost: $15.2 million
• Area: 56,000 sq. ft.
• Dedicated practice courts for men’s and women’s programs: Kind of. The facility includes two adjacent full-sized courts.
• Located next to arena, connected by underground tunnel
• Other: Weight room, banquet room, academic support center, "legacy locker room" for former players, film rooms
• Quotable: "We didn’t cut corners but we didn’t go crazy. We were able to be very efficient with our money and time." – Duke associate athletic director Mike Cragg

Georgia: Coliseum Training Facility

• Cost: $30 million
• Area: 120,000 sq. ft.
• Connected to arena
• Dedicated practice courts/space for all programs: Yes
• Other: Locker rooms, training areas, student-athlete lounges, film rooms, coaches’ offices, conference rooms, meeting/banquet space
• Quotable: "Once we had drawings to show (recruits) that it would be a spectacular facility – it started to make an impression." – Dennis Felton

Which facility is the best doesn’t really matter to me. I’ve been in Georgia’s – it’s incredible, and I’m sure that the others are visually stunning as well. What’s important is that Georgia has given these programs an investment at least on par with a basketball program with the tradition, following, and fundraising ability of Duke.

Imelda Marcos would be in awe over the number of shoes that have dropped on the Georgia basketball program this year.

Buried in an AJC article, we learn today that forward Chris Barnes might be lost for the season. Barnes played quality minutes against Tennessee but injured his shoulder in the game.

Billy Humphrey is expected to be able to play, so that’s at least some good news, though it’s uncertain how much he’ll be able to contribute. The return of Humphrey also poses a decision for Coach Felton. With Swansey coming on and Gaines playing out of his mind lately, do you mess with that combination? Should Humphrey and Woodbury, who’s been an inconsistent shooter from the wing, split time in a smaller lineup until either shows that his shot is falling? Without Barnes, will Woodbury have to give some minutes on the frontcourt when Bliss and/or Price need rest?

Not that it matters, but here’s my ideal lineup at this point:
Swansey – Gaines – Humphrey/Woodbury – Price – Bliss
First off the bench would be Humphrey or Woodbury, then Butler, then Brewer, then Jackson.

Georgia broke a losing streak with a convincing win over South Carolina on Wednesday. They couldn’t turn it into a winning streak and came just short of upsetting #4 Tennessee in Athens. The Dawgs head out for consecutive road games at Kentucky and Vanderbilt this week. Given Georgia’s road woes, it could be a brutal two-game stretch, but Rupp Arena always seems to get Dennis Felton’s best shot.

Though the bottom half of the SEC West is a mess, Mississippi State did a lot to clear up things at the top with a win over Arkansas. The Bulldogs have a solid two-game lead, and the Razorbacks seem to be in control of the #2 position. In the East, Kentucky got drilled by Vanderbilt but hold a half-game lead over the Commodores. Florida is hanging on to postseason chances with a 6-5 conference mark, but they still have games left against Mississippi State, Tennessee, and at Kentucky. Do they need to win one of those to have a chance to defend their title?

SEC Men’s Basketball Power Rankings

1. Tennessee: Winning the close games builds valuable experience.
2. Miss. St.: Won a big battle over Arkansas
3. Vanderbilt: Solid at home over Kentucky and Florida.
4. Kentucky: Destroyed by Vandy and just hung on against LSU.
5. Arkansas: Missed a chance at West title in Starkville.
6. Florida: Are they on the bubble?
7. Georgia: Only one win to show for it, but playing much better.
8. South Carolina: Picked up 4th SEC win against Bama.
9. LSU: Playing inspired ball since coaching change.
10. Auburn: Wishes every game was against Ole Miss.
11. Ole Miss: Lost 6 of last 7.
12. Alabama: Stuck on two conference wins.

Lady Dogs

For the first time since late January, the Lady Dogs have put together consecutive wins. They completed a season sweep of Florida on Thursday, and they survived turnovers for a close win at Mississippi State to finish the week. The Lady Dogs stand at 6-5 in the SEC with a week of rest before a very important game with Auburn on Sunday. Auburn ran away with an easy win when the teams met in January, and Georgia’s NCAA Tournament chances might depend on winning the second meeting. A Georgia win could also move them into a tie with Auburn for 5th place.

After 14 points at Mississippi State, Tasha Humphrey is now tied with Kelly Miller as the #3 career scoring leader at Georgia. She is only 18 points behind Katrina McClain at the number 2 spot. With a 20-point performance against Auburn, Humphrey could become the program’s second-leading career scorer behind only Janet Harris. With over 2,600 career points, no one is catching Harris any time soon.

LSU left no doubt about the current best team in the league with a resounding win in Knoxville. Vanderbilt had a chance to force a tie for second place, but Tennessee held them off in Nashville.

SEC Women’s Basketball Power Rankings

1. LSU: Clear sailing to regular season title.
2. Tennessee: No 0.2 seconds to bail them out against LSU.
3. Vanderbilt: Six-game winning streak snapped against Tennessee.
4. Kentucky: Two of three remaining games should be wins.
5. Georgia: A week to rest before a revenge game against Auburn.
6. Auburn: A win at Georgia could wrap up the #5 seed.
7. Florida: Bounced back from Georgia loss to hold off Arkansas.
8. Miss. St.: Playing very tough over the past three games.
9. Ole Miss: Continue to look bad against good teams.
10. Arkansas: In bad shape.
11. South Carolina: Gave Auburn trouble.
12. Alabama: Two SEC wins in three years.

I’m among those who think that we’re all safer when Congress concerns itself with frivilous pursuits like getting to the bottom of what exactly Roger Clemens did or did not inject into his backside. When this whole steroids thing is over, we offer a few suggestions for other investigations to keep their plate full well past Election Day:

• The clock operator at Thompson-Boling arena. Even Don Imus thinks that Rutgers got jobbed.
• Where exactly is Marquis Elmore’s car these days?
• The location of the Vince Dooley statue on Georgia’s campus. Is it too much to ask for the thing to be placed at midfield?
• Brokering a peaceful solution between Georgia and Florida over vanity license plates. The Supreme Court might have to get involved.
• When does 32 equal 25?
• Bizarre injuries to Georgia student-athletes: everything from Odell Collins’ hamstring to Chris Barnes’ mysterious eye ailment (yikes).
• Alternate ideas for reducing the length of college football games (other than banning FOX from broadcasting games).
• Is waterboarding torture? What if it’s Al Ford or Penn Wagers?

An interesting question came up last night on the UGASports.com basketball message board: where would you put Sundiata Gaines among the great Georgia basketball players?

Nearly everyone agrees that Gaines has been a tremendous player. It’s a tougher question than it seems because Gaines is hard to pigeonhole. Do you consider him strictly a point guard and compare him with guys like Rashad Wright, Vern Fleming, and Pertha Robinson? Or because of his scoring ability and other attributes do you consider him an all-purpose guard and put him up against a bigger group that includes Litterial Green and other scorers?

I’m not going to get into rating him against other players – I just consider him one of my favorites.

First, there are the raw numbers. That’s as well-rounded as a guard gets, and his rebounding has really been what sets him apart from other past greats. Those stats alone are enough for any basketball fan to appreciate a player.

But with Gaines there’s more. Starting with an accidental gunshot wound as a 4-year-old, he’s made the best of some bad situations. He chose to be part of the rebuilding at Georgia over attention from other programs that were, if not better, at least much more stable. Dennis Felton and Mike Jones had an uphill battle thanks to Georgia’s sullied perception at the time, but the opportunity to start and play early and often was significant.

Four years spent doing the hard work of dragging Georgia basketball out of the abyss could harden and demoralize almost anyone. But even in the twilight of his career with the realization sinking in that there will be a sub-.500 SEC record and no postseason, Gaines has actually raised his level of play over the past few games. When you thought he couldn’t possibly have more to give, he dug deeper.

His role as a senior leader really shone through a few weeks ago when Jeremy Price was riding the pine. While fans were in a panic convinced that Price would become the latest victim of Felton’s irrational discipline, Gaines sounded almost coach-like with a wisdom forged from his experience.

"They’re young and sometimes they don’t understand the value of key situations and key moments," Gaines said of the freshman. "The biggest disappointment is that (Price) needs to be coachable."

It’s so difficult for young players to battle through tough times without guidance like that, and Price to his credit has taken it to heart. What makes Gaines (and Bliss) so special is that they had no such players to look up to during their development. After the 2004 season, only Stukes and Newman were

There’s been a controversial view raised that the team will be improved with someone else running the point next year. Gaines, while he ranks near the top of Georgia’s assist leaders, is associated with a style of play that relies on individual creativity and playmaking. The notion that the team will be better without Gaines is absurd to me, but I think we’re dancing around a different question. The past week has shown that, indeed, the Georgia offense can be better if Gaines is able to off-load the point guard duties onto someone else – but only if Gaines remains on the court.

Does that mean that the offense will click next year when Swansey and Ware are running the point? Only if you have an off-guard capable of duplicating the creativity, ballhandling, and rebounding of Gaines. That’s where the discussion falls apart. There might be others just as capable of distributing the ball and running the offense. There are few who can drive to the basket, create offense, or knock down the clutch jumper as Gaines can. Whether other guards can run the point better is a red herring; there’s a lot more to do if you’re going to replace Sundiata Gaines.

Chip Towers is right: you can’t mention Vince Dooley without the whole Dooley vs. Adams thing starting all over again. Now a $1 million planned tribute to the former coach and athletics director is not enough, petty, and part of (another) Adams plot to keep Dooley’s legacy as far away from Sanford Stadium as possible.

OooooooooooooooK.

Still, for those who would like to see the tribute placed closer to the stadium rather than across the street from a Kangaroo, there is a good option. When the Tate Center Expansion is finished in a few years, there will be a greenspace leading to the stadium from Lumpkin Street. It’s not a huge space, especially on a crowded gameday, but it looks as if it could serve as Georgia’s “National Mall” where statues of Dooley and any other past greats could dot the landscape.

…they’d be stuck in Midtown.

It’s pick-your-poison when you’re a low seed. Georgia seems destined to play Auburn in the opening round every year, so look for the Dawgs to move into 5th in the East and play a shaky #4 seed from the West – Auburn, Alabama, whoever.

With the top three seeds all but certain to go to LSU/Tennessee and Vanderbilt, the real action is in the 4-7 spots. Kentucky looks to be in good shape in 4th, but an injury to a starter has them vulnerable. Auburn, Georgia, and Florida are bunched together, and Georgia plays each of those schools again. Looking at the bracket, the benefits to Georgia of moving into the 5th (or better, 4th) seed seem huge.

The other day I touched on the perception problem with Georgia basketball.  Of course it’s ridiculous to paint the picture of a program in turmoil over a jaywalking incident, but the casual fan sees the names in the papers, sees the attrition, and wonders how far away we are from Tony Cole. (A long way, if you were wondering.)

Still, University President Michael Adams acknowledges this growing perception.  “I think in that (men’s basketball) program, we’ve had too many issues of misconduct lately,” he said on Thursday.  While this is a relatively lightweight statement next to some of the memos sent to Jim Harrick and Vince Dooley back in their day, it is still an indication that these problems in the basketball program are on Adams’ radar. 

With the discussion about Felton’s future now moving into some very public arenas, the perception of the program is one thing that Felton must have on his side, especially as things on the court continue to look grim.

Following last night’s loss to Vanderbilt, Georgia junior guard Billy Humphrey was arrested for underage possession of alcohol.

Humphrey is obviously in a world of hurt right now. You could sense the frustration and disappointment about his injury in his comments following the South Carolina loss. His struggles have continued in the two games since, and unfortunately it looks as if he chose the wrong escape route from his troubles last night.

Humphrey is suspended indefinitely, and he will face at least a mandatory three-game suspension due to an alcohol-related arrest. Georgia’s offense sputtered without a healthy Humphrey, and one has to expect that the scoring difficulties, especially from the perimeter, will continue during his suspension. The trio of Swansey, Butler, and Brewer will try to hold down the position.

It’s silly to fault Dennis Felton for Humphrey’s transgression; remember that suspensions for alcohol-related incidents are athletic department policy and are out of the coach’s hands. Still, it’s a disturbing trend that we’re starting to see off-court drama begin to take over the Georgia basketball program once again.

Dennis Felton was brought in to win, graduate players, and, above all in the wake of Jim Harrick, clean up the image of Georgia basketball. He managed to do well in that direction for a few seasons; it isn’t the case now. If you saw any recent game, you know that the team hasn’t quit on Felton or the season. Still, Felton will be fighting a perception soon – if he isn’t already – that he is losing control of the program. Even an incident completely outside of his control like Humphrey’s arrest adds to that perception when it’s stacked on top of everything else that has happened to the program in the past year.