Georgia pulls out of SEC tourney
By By Carver Rayburn / staff writer
March 11, 2003
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. It just keeps getting worse for the University of Georgia. UGA President Michael F. Adams and Director of Athletics Vince Dooley released a statement Monday suspending head coach Jim Harrick, Sr. with pay and pulling the plug on the basketball team's season.
The university also declared players Chris Daniels and Rashad Wright ineligible for competition. UGA officials made the decision after determining that academic fraud occurred in a course for which the instructor was former assistant coach Jim Harrick, Jr.
The Bulldogs will not participate in the SEC tournament and will not accept a bid to the NCAA tournament.
With the Bulldogs dropping out of the SEC tournament, which is scheduled to begin at noon on Thursday, the brackets have taken a slight change.
The SEC Commissioner's Regulations stipulates that "for the purpose of seeding, if an institution is precluded from participating in the tournament, it shall automatically be seeded last in its division. The number three seed with the best conference record will then receive a bye."
Tennessee is now the number three seed in the east and receives a bye in the tournament.
Ole Miss will now play the University of South Carolina in the tournament's opening game Thursday at noon. The winner of the Rebels/Gamecocks match-up will take on western division champion Mississippi State on Friday.
Ole Miss coach Rod Barnes commented on the current situation at Georgia.
Ole Miss was slated to play Tennessee, but will now take on South Carolina. The Rebels lost to both teams earlier in the season.
The first three days of the tournament will be televised by Jefferson Pilot and the championship game will air on CBS.
