ATHENS — March arrived in Athens with the right kind of basketball madness for the first time in 10 years.

Coach Mike White’s Bulldogs pulled off a pair of upsets that could have Georgia dancing if the program can put a strong finishing touch on its 2024-25 resume.

ESPN bracketology expert Joe Lunardi, who has accurately forecasted the NCAA basketball tournament field since 1995, lists the Bulldogs among the “Last Four In” after their stirring victories over Florida and Texas last week.

It’s not a done deal or sure thing, by any means, as Georgia travels to play at South Carolina in a game that’s not so much a “must win” as “hate to lose,” as the Gamecocks have just two conference wins this season.

Georgia beat South Carolina in Athens earlier this season, 71-60, on Jan. 28 behind Asa Newell’s 17 points and 10 rebounds.

But road wins in the SEC are never a sure thing, especially since South Carolina’s two home wins have come in their most recent home games against NCAA bubble teams Texas (84-69) and Arkansas (72-53 last Saturday).

No doubt, the Gamecocks’ momentum should not be dismissed.

To Georgia’s credit, athletic director Josh Brooks saw the wisdom in a direct trip from Austin, where Georgia handled Texas last Saturday, to South Carolina so that the team could get an extra day to get its feet beneath it for this potentially pivotal matchup.

Georgia closes the regular season at noon on Saturday against Vanderbilt - a projected NCAA tourney team that appears one win away from clinching a spot in the field.

The Commodores have won three straight against NCAA tourney teams entering their Tuesday night home game with Arkansas.

Vanderbilt’s wins have come against Ole Miss (77-72), at Texas A&M (86-84) and against Missouri (97-93, OT), as it appears to be finding itself at just the right moment.

That’s why a win at South Carolina is so important, as a home win over the Commodores will be no sure thing, and no one wants to go to the SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament in Nashville, Tenn., next week with work left to do.

Below are the SEC teams’ current “NET” rankings, which is used by the NCAA basketball selection committee when selecting the at-large tams for the field, and each league team’s “Quad 1″ record.

The Quad 1 wins and losses — record in home games against Top 30 teams, neutral site games versus top 50, or road wins over teams in the top 75 — is another important metric the selection committee looks closely at.

South Carolina, it’s worth noting, is not in the Top 75 so that would be considered a “bad” loss for Georgia should the Bulldogs not prevail.

At the moment, all of Georgia’s losses are of the Quad 1 variety — which somewhat mitigates the Bulldogs’ record.

But the committee also looks at the recent trend of the team, in terms of if it is playing its basketball at the end of the season.

Georgia’s back-to-back wins are impressive, no doubt, but the Bulldogs will want to finish on a strong note against South Carolina to have that burst of momentum as a positive on their resume.

NET ranking & Quad 1 record

1. Auburn, 27-2 (16-2 vs. Quad 1)

4. Florida 25-4 (6-4 vs. Quad 1)

5. Tennessee 24-5 (10-5 vs. Quad 1)

6. Alabama 23-6 (10-6 vs. Quad 1)

13. Missouri 21-8 (6-8 vs. Quad 1)

15. Kentucky 19-10 (9-9 vs. Quad 1)

23. Texas A&M 20-9 (6-7 vs. Quad 1)

26. Ole Miss 20-9 (5-9 vs. Quad 1)

30. Mississippi St 20-9 (7-8 vs. Quad 1)

33. Georgia 18-11 (4-11 vs. Quad 1)

37. Vanderbilt 20-9 (5-8 vs. Quad 1)

46. Texas 16-13 (4-9 vs. Quad 1)

47. Arkansas 17-12 (4-9 vs. Quad 1)

53. Oklahoma 17-12 (5-10 vs. Quad 1)

84. LSU 14-15 (1-12 vs. Quad 1)

88. South Carolina 12-17 (1-15 vs. Quad 1)