Alabama(7-8, 1-1 SEC) never got its offense moving as Georgia seized control with a12-4 first-half run. The Tide trailed by as much as 13 in the second half before cutting it to five with 2:20 left.
Ona day that neither team shot well from the field, the Bulldogs won it at thefree-throw line. Georgia had 19 more attempts made 15 more than Alabama as thehosts scored almost exclusively from the line in the second half. The hostsmade just four field goals after halftime.
60-percent free-throw shooting team entering Saturday, the Bulldogs shot 70.5percent against Alabama. The Tide, meanwhile, took just four from the line inthe first 25 minutes of the game.Alabamaentered shooting 51 more free throws than the opposition, but had no suchadvantage Saturday. It was 16 for 23 overall from the line and was whistled for 29 fouls to Georgia's 17.
Releford,the team's leading scorer with an 18.3 average, scored just two first-halfpoints and appeared to limp throughout the game. He helped rally the Tide inthe second half, though, as the senior guard finished with 17 points on 7-for-15shooting.
Theoutside shooting continued to trouble the Tide as well. A 4-for-19 performanceleft it below its already low season percentage of 34.5 percent. Releford was 1 for 8 from behind the arc.
Rebounding was also an issue as Georgia finished with a 41-32 advantage including a 14-8 edge on the offensive end.
total of 10 Alabama shots were blocked as the visitors shot just 36.5 percentfrom the field. That, however, bettered Georgia's 32.6 percent shooting thatincluded making 4 of 21 shots in the second half.Charles Mann and Kenny Gaines each scored 22 for Georgia with Mann's 13-for-18 free-throw shooting leading the way.
ShannonHale continued to be the bright spot for the Tide, but production dropped aftera fast start.
His 14-point game was his third double-figure game in the pastfive outings. The freshman scored 11 of Alabama's first 13 points, but went 13minutes in the second half without taking a shot.
Rodney Cooper also had a spark off the bench with a 15-point game that narrowly missed his season high of 16.