Andy Landers

ATHENS, Ga. -- As a youngster with dreams of playing college basketball, Ashley Houts became enthralled with the happenings at McKenzie Arena.

She and her family made short treks from their Trenton, Ga., home to attend the Southeastern Conference women's tournament when Chattanooga played host throughout the 1990s. And she always loved following the UTC Lady Mocs.

"I grew up on UTC games," said Houts, whose older sister Emily played for the Lady Mocs in 2006-07. "I remember when Katie Galloway was there, and Lyndi Sippel went to my school."

Houts attended AAU camps at McKenzie but will play her first game there tonight when Georgia's durable point guard leads the No. 16 Lady Bulldogs against the Lady Mocs. The 5-foot-6 senior had 11 points, three steals and two assists in Sunday's 62-51 opening win over Oklahoma at Stegeman Coliseum.

UTC coach Wes Moore recruited Houts when she was a McDonald's All-American at Dade County High with hopes of having her and her sister together, but the SEC came calling.

"When she committed to Georgia, she sat down and wrote me a three-page handwritten letter," Moore said. "Not many kids do that. I'm thrilled for her and knew she would be a tough one to have a chance to get. She'll always be one of my favorites that got away."

Houts began this season having played 3,567 career minutes, more than any Division I player nationally. Georgia coach Andy Landers has promised more relief for her this season, but she played all 40 minutes against the Sooners.

Avoiding too many freshmen on the floor and having a proven leader handle Oklahoma's ability to press were the reasons Landers kept Houts out there.

"I was a little surprised that I did play 40 against Oklahoma, because we have some people who can make significant contributions off the bench," Houts said. "I'm just out there doing what he wants me to do, and if playing 40 minutes is what he wants, then that's what I'll do."

Said Landers: "It's not a perfect world, and I lied. We want to play her 32 to 34 minutes a game, and I hope we can get to that."

UTC ticket manager Brian DeWine expects a crowd between 3,000 and 4,000 for tonight. According to his purchasing records, about 500 tickets as of Wednesday afternoon had been bought by Trenton residents.

"I hope McKenzie Arena has enough seats to hold all of Trenton," Houts said. "I'm pretty excited to see the turnout and play in front of the home crowd."