Georgia women’s basketball off to best start since 2009

The early success is a stark contrast to 2024, when the Bulldogs finished nonconference play 8-6 with losses to Georgia State, Georgia Tech and Hampton. The poor results were a sign of things to come, as the team posted a 13-19 record — tying for the most losses in program history — and a 4-12 mark in conference play.

This season’s Georgia team appears vastly improved from that one. Georgia averaged more than 80 points per game through its first 13 contests this season after scoring fewer than 67 points per game during the opening 13 games last year. Defensively, the Bulldogs are limiting opponents to under 52 points per game, nearly 10 fewer than 2024.

Georgia’s five transfer portal additions fueled the progress, moves coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson credited to the program’s increased budget.

“Thanks to God that our president (Jere Morehead) and (athletic director) Josh Brooks decided to give us some revenue sharing money,” Abrahamson-Henderson told the AJC. “Because that really helps when we’re in the portal and getting some really talented players.”

Georgia’s transfer portal haul ranked No. 5 nationally by 247Sports, while its freshmen class came in at No. 18 on ESPN.

The Bulldogs brought in Carnegie, the ACC’s reigning Sixth Woman of the Year, and Rylie Theuerkauf, Wake Forest’s leading scorer, while returning two members of the SEC All-Freshman Team in Trinity Turner and Mia Woolfolk.

Turner and Woolfolk were two of the four players (along with Miyah Verse and Savannah Henderson) that Georgia retained from its prior season’s 12-player roster.

“They know the culture,” Abrahamson-Henderson said. “When you come on a new team, you look to the returning players for advice … Those guys have all been here, and they really love playing for us. So when you have that in the returning players, they kind of do all the teaching, and then everybody buys in.”

Georgia believes its success stems from a team-oriented culture, which Abrahamson-Henderson observed before the season. She watched players walk out of the facility together and noted they frequently dine with one other.

“The energy is amazing,” Abrahamson-Henderson told the AJC in October. “They get along really well. Our culture is finally in, in terms of excitement every single day. They love to come in. They love each other.”

There’s no precise way to quantify a strong culture in terms of wins, but Georgia’s results are telling. The Bulldogs are one victory away from finishing undefeated in nonconference play for the first time since 2020, when they only played nine qualifying games, and before that, 2009.

Georgia is one of five undefeated teams in the SEC, a league it finished 12th in last season, with wins over Georgia Tech, Kansas and Florida State.

“We just trust and believe in each other,” Carnegie said. “We need each other for everything.”

The Bulldogs have one more game, a matchup with Charleston Southern on Dec. 29 at Stegeman Coliseum, before conference play begins Jan. 1 at Ole Miss.

Time will tell how Georgia stacks up against the rest of its league, but there’s no doubt the Bulldogs are off to a fast start — and one of their best in program history.