FAYETTEVILLE -- The controversial ending of Texas A&M's 63-62 victory over Georgia at College Station, Texas, on Saturday was still making news on Monday as Georgia Coach Mark Fox issued a statement.
Fox kept his cool on Saturday after a timing malfunction cost the Bulldogs a shot at victory, but Georgia fans are still furious.
To summarize, Georgia blew a 13-point second half lead with a flurry of turnovers, but the Bulldogs thought they had a chance to pull out a victory when Yante Maten was headed to the free-throw line after a foul was called on the Aggies at the end of the game.
Georgia inbounded the ball trailing by one with 16 seconds remaining. Guard J.J. Frazier was dribbling in an attempt to set up a final shot, but unbeknownst to Frazier the game clock stopped at 5.6 seconds after what the SEC referred to as a malfunction in the precision timing system kept on the belt of one of the referees.
Frazier eventually passed inside to Maten, who was fouled by an Aggies defender. However, the officials replayed the end-of-game sequence and determined the foul occurred after what would have been the end of the game had the clock not stopped and deemed the contest over.
Fox started his statement by acknowledging the frustration of Georgia's fans and players, then straddled the subject of whether there was anything the SEC could have done different once the malfunction occurred.
Wrote Fox, "The SEC acknowledged a timing system malfunction and the mistake of not recognizing it. We fully understand NCAA rules were appropriately administered after the mistake occurred. It was unfortunate that when J.J. Frazier looked at the game clock, he saw time that evidently did not exist. It was unfortunate that our players were not able to determine the ultimate outcome of the game and play until the clock hit zero.
"The ultimate goal is fairness, which I believe everyone is striving to achieve. Any further questions regarding the game should be directed to the SEC."
Disparity
Home teams finally clawed above the .500 mark (25-23) in SEC play after going 5-2 on Saturday, including Texas A&M's 63-62 victory over Georgia.
Arkansas, for example, entered this season with a 34-10 SEC record at Walton Arena under Coach Mike Anderson, but the Razorbacks have won their past two SEC home games to even their mark at 2-2 this season while opening 2-1 on the road.
"It's a year-to-year thing," Anderson said of the road victory total. "I mean, you never know. Last year it was the total opposite."
SEC teams have been remarkably consistent, with an 88-38 home record in conference play in three of the past four years. The only anomaly was 2015, when home teams were 67-59.
Anderson said the number of new coaches and young teams has lessened the fear factor for SEC road teams.
"We're seeing a lot of close games," he said. "You think about the A&M game we had there. You think about the A&M game that just took place with Georgia. I mean, it's on any given night. But I think it's across the country, too. It's not just in the SEC."
Florida's 68-66 home loss to Vanderbilt on Saturday left Kentucky and South Carolina as the only teams without an SEC loss at home.
Fox fine?
Kentucky guard DeAaron Fox, who was pulled from Saturday's 85-69 victory over South Carolina with ankle injury after scoring six points in eight minutes, is considered day to day heading into today's 8 p.m. game at Tennessee.
Fox and fellow Kentucky freshman Malik Monk, who finished his prep career at Bentonville High, were named Monday to the midseason watch lists for national and freshman player of the year by the U.S. Basketball Writers Association.
Monk leads the SEC with 21.7 points per game, while Fox leads the conference with 6.0 assists per game and is eighth in scoring (16.2).
Who's in?
ESPN.com's "Bracketology" includes four SEC teams: Kentucky as a 1 seed, Florida as a 6 seed, South Carolina as a 7 seed and Arkansas as a 9 seed.
CBSSports.com's Jerry Palm lists the same four teams, with Kentucky as a 2 seed, Florida as a 7 seed, South Carolina as a 7 seed and Arkansas as a 10 seed.
Standouts
Ole Miss guard Terence Davis was named SEC player of the week after averaging 19 points, 11 rebounds and 4 assists in victories over Tennessee and Missouri, including a career-high 20 points against the Vols.
Auburn's Austin Wiley, a 6-11 center, was named SEC freshman of the week after averaging 14.5 points and 7.5 rebounds in victories over LSU and Alabama.
'Challenge' rout
The Big 12 has a 20-10 edge over the SEC the past three seasons in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge, going 7-3 in 2013-2014, 6-4 in 2014-2015 and 7-3 last season.
Baylor and Oklahoma are 3-0 in the series.
The Bears have beaten Kentucky, Vanderbilt and Georgia, while the Sooners have taken down Texas A&M, Missouri and LSU, the last a 77-75 thriller at the Maravich Assembly Center in Baton Rouge, La., last season.
Alabama is 1-0, having beaten Texas Tech 76-64 on Nov. 14, 2013, in Tuscaloosa, Ala., in its only appearance.
Arkansas is 1-1, losing 95-77 at No. 20 Iowa State on Dec. 4, 2014, and outlasting Texas Tech 75-68 in overtime last Jan. 30 at Walton Arena.
The Razorbacks will participate again on Saturday at Stillwater, Okla., when they play Oklahoma State (12-8, 2-6) at 3 p.m.
Left out
The four SEC teams not participating in Saturday's SEC/Big 12 Challenge will face each other that day.
Mississippi State plays at Alabama at 6 p.m. on the SEC Network, and South Carolina will play at Missouri at 8:30 p.m. on the SEC Network.
Barry bros
Florida graduate transfer Canyon Barry is the fifth son of former NBA great Rick Barry to play Division I basketball. Canyon Barry follows in the footsteps of half-brothers Jon and Drew, who played at Georgia Tech, half-brother Brent, who played at Oregon State, and half-brother Scooter, who was part of Kansas' NCAA championship team in 1988.
Canyon Barry shoots free throws under-handed just like his father, and is a team-high 65 of 75 (.867) on the season.
Rick Barry, voted one of the 50 greatest players in NBA history in 1996, is the only player to lead the NCAA, ABA and NBA in scoring.
Sports on 01/24/2017