No. 13 Georgia 74, Miami 59

1/15/2006 6:35 PM

By CHARLES ODUM
AP Sports Writer

DULUTH, Ga. (AP) - When the game turned ugly inside, Georgia looked outside for its scoring punch and strong defense.

Cori Chambers hit five 3-pointers and Sherill Baker sparked a second-half defensive stand as the No. 13 Lady Bulldogs beat Miami 74-59 on Sunday.

Chambers had 17 points, Baker added 15 and Georgia (12-4) won big even with leading scorer Tasha Humphrey limited by fouls.

Chambers, Baker, Janese Hardrick and Alexis Kendrick were stellar on the defensive end, allowing Miami only one field goal in the first 10 minutes of the second half. Baker and Hardrick each had four steals.

``We just tried to be the aggressor,'' Baker said. ``We were trying to get some steals to set up our scoring.''

Georgia used the game to rebound from Thursday's 94-85 loss at top-ranked Tennessee.

``We realize after the Tennessee game that we're not real effective defensively,'' Georgia coach Andy Landers said. ``You don't have a lot of time to work on it this time of year ... but it was a focus of our halftime to apply more pressure.''

Georgia, which led 40-30 at halftime, outscored Miami 21-8 in the first 10:40 of the second half.

``That turned the game,'' Landers said. ``At that point we blew it out.''

The SEC swept the double-header matchup against Atlantic Coast Conference teams. Kentucky beat Georgia Tech 66-62 earlier Sunday.

Though Georgia never had a serious scare in the second half, Landers acknowledged it was not an easy win. He said his team ``was like a leaf in the middle of the stream, caught in the current,'' unable to avoid falling victim to the foul-inducing physical style of play.

Humphrey was limited to 18 minutes and 11 points, about half of her 20.4 average.

``If we learned a lesson from this, it's that we can't go there,'' Landers said.

Georgia led by at least 20 points for much of the second half but Miami pulled within 68-57 on a 3-pointer by Tamara James with 2:03 left, but couldn't get any closer.

James had 26 points and nine rebounds for Miami (12-4).

``I was trying to execute some sets to get Tamara and (center) Brittany Denson in a matchup and draw some fouls because of the way the officiating was,'' Miami coach Katie Meier said. ``They were calling it tight, which was fine.''

Humphrey played only four minutes in the first half. The sophomore picked up two early fouls, the second on offense, and left the game at the 16:19 mark.

Without Humphrey, Georgia relied on three 3-pointers from Chambers.

Humphrey stayed in the game after picking up her third foul less than two minutes into the second half, but she left with four fouls at the 12:28 mark.

Georgia led 45-30 before Miami scored its first points of the second half on two free throws by James.

Miami went almost seven minutes into the second half before its first field goal, also by James.

Georgia, which lost four inside players before the season began, had a major scare when starting forward Megan Darrah injured her shoulder early in the second half.

Darrah returned with 11:43 to play, and had 11 points.

The double-header was played at the Gwinnett Center, the site of the 2007 SEC tournament.