Austin Peay @ Georgia preview

Tom Crean’s first full recruiting class is paying dividends in his second season at Georgia, which hosts Austin Peay on Monday looking for more solid play from several freshmen standouts. Guard Anthony Edwards is second in the SEC in scoring at 19.7 points, guard Sahvir Wheeler averages 5.1 assists while running the offense, and forward Toumani Camara stepped up with 16 points in a 73-64 victory over Georgia Southern on Dec. 23, finishing 8-for-8 from the field.

Camara has taken advantage of sophomore forward Amanze Ngumezi’s suspension and subsequent entrance into the transfer portal, averaging 7.4 points and 5.6 rebounds in 26.4 minutes across his past five games. “He does a lot of different things, and we want to keep putting him in different situations,” Crean told reporters after the Georgia Southern game in describing Camara, who averaged 4.0 points and 2.5 rebounds in 11 minutes in his first six games. Camara scored 14 points in the second half and Edwards, a likely NBA lottery pick next summer, finished with 23 points as Georgia survived an uneven performance in its final game before Christmas break. The Governors face their third SEC team this season, having lost by 18 at Vanderbilt and eight at Arkansas, but feature one of the top scorers in the nation in junior swingman Terry Taylor.

TV: 7 p.m. ET, No TV

ABOUT AUSTIN PEAY (6-6): The 6-5 Taylor averages 23.5 points (fourth in the country entering Sunday) on 58.7 percent shooting from the field along with 8.8 rebounds, and has scored 30-plus points three times - going for 30 in a Dec. 22 victory over Alabama State. Taylor finished 12-for-16 from the field against Alabama State and has made at least half his attempts from the field nine times in 12 games. Freshman guard Jordyn Adams averages 15.3 points and has scored 53 points across his past two contests.

ABOUT GEORGIA (8-3): The Bulldogs have flourished offensively, leading the SEC and ranking 11th nationally entering Sunday in scoring offense at 82.5 points. Edwards shook off a small shooting slump against Georgia Southern, going 10-for-20 from the field after shooting a combined 11-for-29 in back-to-back games against Arizona State and SMU. Junior forward Rayshaun Hammonds is averaging 13.7 points and 9.1 rebounds, narrowly missing his fourth double-double of the season against Georgia Southern with eight points and 10 boards.

TIP-INS

1. Georgia’s schedule ramps up in difficulty after Monday, as the Bulldogs next three games are at No. 10 Memphis on Saturday, at home against No. 19 Kentucky on Jan. 7, and at No. 8 Auburn on Jan. 11.

2. Wheeler, who last week won SEC freshman of the week honors, finished with eight points, seven assists and one steal against Georgia Southern.

3. The Governors are 0-3 against Power 5 teams this season, including a 31-point loss at No. 23 West Virginia.

PREDICTION: Georgia 86, Austin Peay 73