Georgia basketball: it just means more to Nicolas Claxton
The Georgia basketball team beat Florida Tuesday night. With the beloved JJ Frazier watching court side, the Georgia Nation also found its new heart-throb in freshman Nicolas Claxton.
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With the Georgia basketball team reeling from three straight losses and two home SEC defeats, the Florida Gators slithered into the Stegeman Coliseum to end the Georgia basketball teams NCAA hopes.
Later, Gator: Georgia 72 – Florida 60.
While on its three-game losing streak, the Georgia basketball team figured out how to win. Play defense, rebound, and pound the ball inside – grown man basketball. Then get Nicolas Claxton in the game.
The new Georgia basketball heart-throb
Against the Gators, Claxton scored only five points, but with 20 minutes of playing time he led the Dawgs with eight rebounds – four on offense – and three blocks. The rail thin seven-footer entered the game in the first half with the score 5 – 5. He claimed two offensive rebounds leading to five Georgia points..
With a five-point lead to start the second half, the Georgia basketball team threw a box over the Gator basket, holding Florida to 28 points. It took a five meaningless points in the last minute for the Gators to score 60 points for the game, 20 below its season average. The Gators shot 36.5 percent from the field, seven percentage points below their season average.
Still, at the under eight-minute timeout, the Dawgs were struggling to save their season. Then with beloved JJ Frazier on his feet at courtside, that Claxton kid rode in again.
With Georgia leading 55- 51 and seven minutes to play, Claxton claimed a defensive rebound, scored on a nifty pass from Tyree Crump, and had the Stegeman crowd reaching for its heart with a block of Chirs Chiozza’s layup attempt. Claxton closed out his effort with another rebound and a block before the Gators surrendered into a zone defense trailing by ten with under a minute to play.
Living the Bulldog life
What is it about the energy this skinny brings to the game that makes him the heir apparent to JJ Frazier as the heart-throb of the Bulldog Nation?
“That’s something I’ve always had and I continue to do that,” said Claxton.
The skinny kid can play, and he gets it.
Nicolas Claxton’s dad is Charles Claxton, a Bulldog basketball letterwinner, an All-SEC and All-Freshman SEC performer on the same Stegman Court Nicolas now pounds. Nicolas is the man Georgia turns to late with the game on the line, a finisher. He’s a Bulldog, and he just plays like he always has been.
Free throws are the difference
Georgia stymied the Florida offense in the second half while sending the Gators to the free throw line for only six shots on the night. Meanwhile, Georgia wore a rut in the Stegeman floor walking to the charity strip. Yante Maten, Turtle Jackson and Jordan Harris combined for 17 of Georgia’s 22 free throw attempts, making all but one.
As usual Yante Maten led the Dawgs, scoring 20 points and claiming seven rebounds. While Turtle Jackson scored 16 and Juwan Parker 12, the award for best supporting actor goes to freshman Nicolas Claxton.
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From inside the Stegeman Coliseum, it’s obvious what Dawg fans love about Claxton. Claxton just plays like it means more. Claxton plays like he spent his life on his daddy’s knee hearing about Bulldog heroes and dreaming Bulldog dreams. He plays like he bleeds red and black.