Davis Hits Last-Second Shot to Lift Vanderbilt Past Kentucky, 63-62

Feb. 1, 2007

Vanderbilt’s Dee Davis shoots the game winning shot in front of Kentucky’s Jennifer Humphrey during Vanderbilt’s 63-62 basketball victory at Memorial Coliseum in Lexington, Ky. (AP Photo/James Crisp)

NEXT HOME GAME: Feb. 4 vs. Alabama

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LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Dee Davis made a game-winning layup with less than 2 seconds left, lifting No. 15 Vanderbilt to a thrilling 63-62 victory over Kentucky on Thursday night in Lexington.

Christina Wirth scored 14 points and Carla Thomas added 11 to help the Commodores (19-4, 5-3) win their 11th straight against Kentucky.

The Wildcats, seeking their first win against a ranked team since beating then-No. 25 Florida in the quarterfinals of the Southeastern Conference tournament last season, have lost five of six.

Kentucky took a 62-61 lead when Amani Franklin scored inside with 11 seconds left. Vanderbilt called timeout with less than 7 seconds to go.

“I was debating about which play to run,” recalled Vanderbilt Head Coach Melanie Balcomb after Franklin’s go-ahead basket. “I did not know whether to go high-low with Christina [Wirth] and Carla [Thomas] or to drive to the basket with Dee [Davis]. The less passes we would have to make, the better.”

“It all happened so fast,” added senior guard Dee Davis. “They scored and they were pumped. We knew we had to win this game. I knew that when we came down the court that the ball was coming to me.”

And the senior delivered. Following the timeout, Davis connected on a driving lay-up with less than two ticks on the clock.

“I had a lot of confidence in Dee. Every time she drove during the game, she either scored or got fouled,” said Balcomb.

After Davis’ bucket, the Commodres picked off Jennifer Humphrey’s inbounds pass to preserve the win.

Humphrey led the Wildcats with 16 points, and Nastassia Alcius matched a season high with 14.

“Tonight was a very hard-fought game by both teams,” said Balcomb. “Both squads played well and took care of the basketball. It was a clean game, which probably is why it was a good game.”

The Commodores return home to face Alabama this Sunday at 2 p.m. CT in Memorial Gym. To order tickets, call 615.322.GOLD.