ATHENS – Georgia sent a message to the SEC on Tuesday, upsetting No. 6 Kentucky 82-69 before an electric Stegeman Coliseum.

The Bulldogs (13-2, 1-1 SEC) got their first top-10 win since January of 2020, proving they can handle the SEC’s elite competition in their home opener of conference play.

It was the highest-ranked win of third-year coach Mike White’s tenure, perhaps a sign of more impressive changes to come under White.

In fact, there were plenty of signs on Tuesday night, beginning with Asa Newell.

Georgia’s superstar true freshman led the Bulldogs in scoring for the eighth time this season, totaling 17 points with seven rebounds and two assists. The 6-foot-11 Newell showed his versatility, slamming several dunks while hitting 2 of 5 from beyond the arc.

Newell also helped keep Kentucky’s frontcourt in check -- the same frontcourt that powered a 106-point output over No. 8 Florida on Saturday -- with a block and a steal.

“In the motion of the game, my teammates trust me with the ball and I make plays,” Newell said.

Blue Cain and Silas Demary Jr. followed Newell with 15 and 14 points, respectively. Cain also pulled down seven rebounds, an assist and a steal. Demary had four rebounds, two assists, a block and a steal.

White recognized the two guards as leaders for a defense that held Kentucky to 21 points less than its average scoring total.

“Silas has led the way, I think in our back court, and Blue Cain is our most improved defender from last season,” White said. “Our guys have embraced trying to be the best defensive team we can be.”

Demary led a physical Georgia attack, as the Bulldogs went to the foul line 38 times in the win. Demary accounted for eight, making all of them.

Georgia also put two of Kentucky’s most important big men in foul trouble early. Seven-footer Amari Williams and 6-11 Andrew Carr both had four fouls with 11 minutes remaining.

Free throws helped Georgia stop the Wildcats’ best scoring run of the night. Kentucky was riding a 10-4 run and had whittled UGA’s lead down to 55-50 with 12 minutes left.

Then Dakota Leffew drew a 3-pointer shooting foul and nailed his first two foul shots. Leffew missed the third, and RJ Godfrey forced a jump ball on the rebound.

Possession Georgia, and seconds later, Godfrey drew and made two more foul shots of his own for a four-point swing. Kentucky never got within five points again.

It was an encouraging change for a Bulldog team that fell apart when Ole Miss started a similar run on Saturday. Georgia held a 28-26 halftime lead before the Rebels took the lead for good with an 18-4 scoring run to start the second half.

The second-half collapse has plagued Georgia in recent years, something Demary witnessed last season.

“It’s a big time win in my opinion because there were times last year that we would get all the way to the end and we would drop those big-time wins,” Demary said. “Second year, being able to get over that hump and win those big-time wins against those ranked opponents, those Quad 1 wins, I think it’s just nothing but growth in the program.”

Georgia head football coach Kirby Smart takes in the game with his wife Mary Beth and son Andrew. (Jason Getz / AJC)

Credit: Jason Getz / Jason.Getz@ajc.com

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Credit: Jason Getz / Jason.Getz@ajc.com

The Bulldogs and Wildcats traded blows through the game’s first 14 minutes before Georgia finished the first half with a 19-7 scoring run.

The ever-aggressive Demary sparked the run by sinking his third set of free throws for a 27-25 lead at the 6:17 mark. Cain quickly followed with a 3-pointer, giving UGA its largest lead of the game to that point.

Stegeman Coliseum’s loaded student section continued to erupt as Demary and Leffew added 3-pointers of their own and Somto Cyril flushed a massive dunk.

Newell gave those Georgia fans one last explosion before the break, sinking a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to take a 13-point lead.

“It was amazing,” Newell said. “They told me that the Steg was going to get rocking, and it definitely rocked tonight.”

The top-10 win is a great start to conference play, but the SEC has plenty more in store for Georgia. Four of the Bulldogs’ next five games are against top-25 competition, including the top two teams in the country.

The gauntlet continues when No. 12 Oklahoma visits Stegeman Coliseum at 6 p.m. on Saturday (TV: SEC Network). Another win would make a strong case for Georgia basketball’s first AP ranking since 2011.