ATHENS – A struggling Georgia basketball team will look to reignite the intensity it used to start SEC play 3-1 against South Carolina.

It’s the same intensity that UGA coach Mike White has been known to kindle in his teams, especially on the defensive side of the ball.

The Bulldogs (13-7, 3-4 SEC) have not followed suit over their last three games, allowing season-high totals of 85 points to Kentucky and Vanderbilt before giving up 70 at No. 4-ranked Tennessee on Wednesday.

The Gamecocks (8-12, 1-6 SEC), averaging a conference-worst 63.6 points per game, provide a gift-wrapped opportunity for Georgia to spike its intensity and confidence at 6 p.m. on Saturday at Stegeman Coliseum (TV: SEC Network).

White believes that UGA, which improves to 11-1 at home with a win, will do exactly that.

“Just playing really, really hard, and we’ve done that at home 95 percent of the time, and that’s why we’ve had some success at home,” he said. “That’s where it’s got to start tomorrow. Hopefully, we make shots, get into an offensive rhythm, but the things that we can control, we’ve got to get back to doing a better job of controlling.”

That will start by slowing South Carolina forward Gregory “GG” Jackson. The 6-foot-10, 215-pound freshman can score at all three levels and leads his team in points (16.1) and rebounds (6.9) per game.

Indeed, Georgia’s ability to defend its opponents has been crucial the entire season. The Bulldogs are 13-1 when keeping opponents under 75 points, with the lone loss coming against the SEC-leading Volunteer defense.

They are also 0-6 against opponents that surpassed the 75-point threshold.

UGA allowed totals of 64, 58, and 50 in its three SEC wins. It even held a 42-34 halftime lead over Kentucky before a dominant second half by reigning National Player of the Year Oscar Tshiebwe took a potential road upset out of Georgia’s hands.

White remains proud of his defense, citing Georgia’s intensity as a key player in its rapid development.

“We’re coming off a couple (losses) here, so it might sound odd for me to toot our horn here in terms of this team and what they’ve accomplished, but we’re the most improved defensive team in the country,” White said. “These guys have laid it down every day on the court between the lines and left a lot of energy, intensity, and sweat on that court.”

The Bulldogs will also look for an explosive response from leading scorer Terry Roberts. The Bradley transfer, who totaled 11 points in the midweek loss to Tennessee, has averaged 18.3 points per game since SEC action started.

Georgia, entering as a 10.5-point favorite, can snap a 12-game losing streak to South Carolina.