Feb. 25, 2011
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NASHVILLE, Tenn. – For the second year in a row Vanderbilt had its Senior Night festivities spoiled as Florida topped the Commodores 74-69 Friday at Memorial Gym in a game that was postponed from Thursday night due to inclement weather.
Vanderbilt (18-10, 9-6 SEC) held a one-point lead at the half, but did not lead the final 19:52 of the ball game as Florida (16-13, 6-9 SEC) extended its lead to as many as 11 points with 8:08 to play before withstanding a late charge by the Commodores. Vanderbilt trimmed the Gators’ lead to two, 62-60, with 5:33 to play with a 13-4 run, but wouldn’t get any closer.
“We’ve had trouble defending them; we had trouble down there, we had trouble all night tonight,” Head Coach Melanie Balcomb said. “They just got good looks and they knocked down shots and we didn’t take anything away from them. We came out flat and then tried to play catch up all night.”
With the loss, it sets up a very important game for the Commodores Sunday at South Carolina. A Vanderbilt win assures the Commodores a bye in the SEC Tournament, while a loss could drop Vanderbilt to fifth place.
The only way Vanderbilt can lose and receive a bye is if there is a four-way tie between Vanderbilt, Auburn, LSU and South Carolina. The scenario would require Auburn upsetting Kentucky and LSU winning at Tennessee. Vanderbilt would get in by virtue of owning a better winning percentage in head-to-head meetings with the other three teams. The Commodores are 2-1 (66.6%) against the three other teams, while South Carolina is 3-2 (60%) and the other two are 2-3 (40%).
The Commodores never led by more than one point on Friday and ended up splitting the season series with the Gators, who ended Vanderbilt’s seven-game winning streak against them.
The first meeting between the two this season went to double overtime and it appeared the second meeting might need additional time as well. However, it was Florida’s free throw shooting at the end that sealed the game.
After the Commodores pulled within two with 5:33 to play, the Gators went back up by six by scoring four straight points. The Commodores would miss two of its next four free throws and the Gators extended their lead back to six, 68-62, with 1:59 to play.
A three-pointer by Christina Foggie would pull Vanderbilt to within three points, 68-65, with 28 seconds to play, but the Gators would make their final six free throw attempts to ice the game and never gave the Commodores a possession to tie the score.
Four Commodores scored in double figures, led by Foggie’s 15 points. Tiffany Clarke finished with her third consecutive double-double, 13 points and 14 rebounds. Jence Rhoads also added 13 points, six rebounds and four assists after missing last game due to a sprained ankle.
Florida was led by Jordan Jones’ 16 points and Azania Stewart’s double-double (14 points, 11 rebounds).
The Commodores lost for the second year in a row on Senior Night. Coach Balcomb is now 7-2 on Senior Night at Vanderbilt.
The postponement from Thursday seemed to affect both teams in the early going as the teams struggled to find traction. Both teams were hitting below 28% of its shots halfway through the first half and didn’t fare much better at the half. Vanderbilt held Florida to 20.5% shooting (8-39) in the first half. The Commodores shot 33.3% (9-27) in the half.
The shooting would improve for both teams in the second half, most notably the Gators, who hit 60% of their shots in the second half. Florida shot 57.1% in the second half of the meeting earlier this year in Gainesville.
Vanderbilt finished the game shooting 35.9% from the floor, while Florida made 37.7% in the game.
Vanderbilt will close the regular season on Sunday when the Commodores play at South Carolina at 1 p.m. on SportSouth.
Notes
– In continuing its tradition of raising awareness for a philanthropic venture during Senior Night, Vanderbilt donned shooting shirts with the World Vision logo emblazoned on the back. World Vision is a Christian humanitarian organization, which works with children and families worldwide to tackle the causes of poverty and injustice. Vanderbilt also distributed 500 World Vision t-shirts and 2,500 World Vision wristbands. Through the organization, the team has sponsored a child named Jovana Lopez throughout the season.
– Vanderbilt is 7-2 all-time on Senior Day under Head Coach Melanie Balcomb … The team also lost last season against South Carolina.
– Vanderbilt had won seven straight in the series – the longest streak in series history.
– Vanderbilt concluded the season 12-3 at home, losing its final three games at Memorial Gym. … The 12-0 start tied for its best in school history.
– Tiffany Clarke registered her fifth double-double of the season and third in a row.
– Florida’s 20.5 field-goal percentage in the first half was its second lowest of the season … The Gators shot 60 percent in the second half.
– Vanderbilt is now 14-3 when it outrebounds its opponent.
– Vanderbilt is 1-8 when its opponent tops 70 points.
– Vanderbilt lost three straight home games for the first time since 2004.
