Georgia forward Yante Maten (1) loses control of the ball as he drives against Florida guard Kasey Hill (0) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2017, in Athens, Ga. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)NASHVILLE - The Tennessee Volunteers might not be facing just one All-Southeastern Conference basketball player when they take on Georgia today at the league tournament.
The Bulldogs could be back at full strength if forward Yante Maten is able to play after missing the past four games due to a knee injury. The All-SEC selection moved around pretty well during Georgia's practice Wednesday at Bridgestone Arena.
"Hopefully if he responds well tonight," Bulldogs coach Mark Fox said, "we'll have a chance to play him some."
Maten said after practice he felt "pretty good" as he went through the light workout with his team, though he admitted was moving "slower than I would like to be going" due to the large metal brace on his right leg.
The 6-foot-8 junior is averaging 17.6 points and 5.7 rebounds per game this season despite recording no stats in the Feb. 18 game against Kentucky, when he sprained his knee in the opening minutes. He clearly didn't look 100 percent Wednesday, making how much he could play or contribute an unknown.
"I don't know if we really would know until he gets out there and we see how comfortable he is," Fox said, "but he is certainly moving around much better. He's been able to be on the court for four or five days doing some things. He's on the comeback for sure."
Georgia went 3-1 without Maten in the lineup, beating Alabama, LSU and Auburn before losing last weekend at Arkansas.
"It has been tough," Maten said of sitting out games, "but they've been making it pretty easy, because they've been doing a good job winning. They've been coming to play just about every night. That's all you can ask for as a teammate, is just your team steps up and answers the call."
Another All-SEC player, 5-foot-10 guard J.J. Frazier, is averaging 27.7 points in his past seven games and carried the Bulldogs in Maten's absence. Before that, he single-handedly pushed Georgia past Tennessee with 29 points and six assists as the Bulldogs won 76-75 on Feb. 11 in Knoxville.
Maten scored seven points against the Vols as he played just 17 minutes due to foul trouble, but his absence forced Georgia to put the game in Frazier's hands. In games without Maten because of his injury, Frazier scored 36 points against Kentucky, 28 at Alabama, 29 against LSU, 31 against Auburn and 24 at Arkansas.
"It's been a show," Maten said. "Even as a teammate, he's doing everything you could ask a player to do when somebody else goes down, and that's to step up and try to contribute to your team offensively, defensively and mentally. He's been doing everything you could possibly do."
Maten is doing the same to join Frazier for the rematch with Tennessee.
"I'm going to try my hardest to be able to go," he said. "I've been wanting and craving to get back on the court for the longest, but it's what the doctor says, my coach says and what my body says. But hopefully I will be."
Contact Patrick Brown at pbrown@timesfreepress.com.