What Mike White said about Georgia basketball’s first NCAA Tournament bid in a decade
Georgia basketball is NCAA Tournament bound for the first time in a decade.
The Bulldogs earned the 9-seed in the Midwest region and will play 8-seeded Gonzaga on Thursday in Wichita, Kan.
"Great accomplishment for our program and this team," head coach Mike White said. "Georgia's dancing so it's a great day. We've got hoops ahead of us, great day for the SEC, historic day for our league.
"I'd like to recognize these two guys, Silas Demary Jr. and Blue Cain. They've become, Mike Mobley told me today, two of a few guys in the history of the program, history of the school, that have won back-to-back 20-win seasons in their first couple years on campus. These guys have continued to grow as people and as players and they've led us to the point that we have a chance to continue the season and represent Georgia in the greatest sporting event that exists."
Sunday evening, ahead of the coveted Selection Show, red and black tablecloths covered around a dozen circular tables in the Richard B. Taylor Room of Stegeman Coliseum as family, friends, players, athletic department personnel and select media members piled into the second-floor conference space to enjoy a meal.
Things were buzzing, things were excited, and the room erupted in cheers and applause when the call was in.
Georgia was predicted to be seeded in all 104 brackets, including as high as a No. 9 seed by ESPN and No. 10 by CBS, per a press release Friday from the program.
"I'm appreciative of our fan base that comes and supports these guys," White said. "In our home wins, our student section and our fans made a difference and we're appreciative. These guys played with some toughness and, again, resilience. I'm wearing that word out, but that's who these guys are. I'm appreciative these guys came to Georgia. ... These guys had options ... and we all came to Georgia to rebuild. To get Georgia to a tournament is special."
This is the Bulldogs 11th NCAA Tournament. Georgia is 5-10 all time in NCAA Tournament games and has never won an NCAA championship. It last advanced to the Final Four in 1983, their best showing, but never further. They've only made it out of the second round four times, last in 2002 when they were seeded their highest at No. 3. Their last NCAA Tournament outing in 2015 they were a No. 10 and lost to a 7-seeded Michigan State and Tom Izzo in the first round, 70-63.
This is White's first trip into March Madness with Georgia. Prior to his start with the Bulldogs in 2022, White had been to the NCAA Tournament with Florida four times, three consecutive from 2017-19 and again in 2021 before his move to Athens. The furthest he led the Gators was to the Elite Eight in 2017.
The Bulldogs finished the 2024-25 campaign 20-12 with a loss to Oklahoma in the first round of the SEC Tournament last week.
This article originally appeared on Athens Banner-Herald: Scenes from Georgia basketball's March Madness Selection Show party
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