Commodores Defeats South Carolina, 75-65

Commodores Defeats South Carolina, 75-65

3/2/2005

Box Score | Photo Gallery | Post-game Quotes

NASHVILLE (AP) – Mario Moore scored 22 points and Vanderbilt erased a 10-point second-half deficit to defeat South Carolina 75-65 Wednesday night.

Freshman DeMarre Carroll scored 10 of his 12 points in the final six minutes and Corey Smith added 13 points for Vanderbilt (18-11, 8-7 Southeastern Conference), which snapped a five-game home losing streak to the Gamecocks.

Carlos Powell scored 19 points and Antoine Tisby had 17 to lead South Carolina (14-12, 6-9). Renaldo Balkman had a career-high 16 rebounds for the Gamecocks and Rocky Trice scored 10 points.

Vanderbilt trailed 55-45 with 8:30 to play, then went on a 12-0 run to take the lead on a Moore shot in the lane. Smith had tied the game on a driving layup on the previous possession.

South Carolina tied it at 57 on a Balkman dunk, but Vanderbilt answered with a 3-point play by Carroll with 2:49 left and never trailed again.

Vanderbilt closed the game on a 30-10 run. South Carolina had just three field goals in the game’s final eight minutes.

The Gamecocks held Vanderbilt, the SEC’s second-best 3-point shooting team, to 18 percent from behind the arc (4-for-22).

South Carolina jumped out to a 10-2 lead, dominating the early going by controlling 11 of the game’s first 12 rebounds. The rebounding eventually evened out over the course of the first half, as Vanderbilt took a 34-31 lead into halftime after Shan Foster hit a leaner with two seconds to play.

Vanderbilt improved to 16-2 at home this season, avenging an earlier 68-63 loss at South Carolina.

Post-game Quotes

Head Coach Kevin Stallings:

“I’m really proud of our effort tonight. We could have ducked our heads when we got 10 points down, but we didn’t. We came back and became the aggressor late in the second half. That turned the game around for us.

“On a night when we didn’t shoot it particularly well, we were still able to get it done.

“I thought Mario’s play was big (in the second half). It was the catalyst for us tonight, directing our team like he did. I don’t think he had a turnover (in that stretch). To accomplish what he did against this team (no turnovers), the quickest team in our conference, is a big feat.”

On the play of freshman forward DeMarre Carroll?
“I thought his activity on the boards and his energy level was very important in the win tonight. One of the best things about DeMarre is he takes coaching. It doesn’t bother him. He plays with so much effort and energy. He doesn’t seem to stop and won’t be denied.”

On senior Corey Smith’s continued positive play?
“Corey has been a very good player for us all year, but I wouldn’t want to be in his shoes because I expect so much out of him. My expectations of Corey are out the roof.”

On the play of South Carolina.
“That team (South Carolina) has been real tough on us, a very difficult team for us to beat. I told the seniors not to feel bad that it has taken them four years (to beat South Carolina). It took me six years (to win in Nashville).”

His thoughts about what others might say about his Commodores.
“It doesn’t matter, and I don’t pay any attention to that stuff. What I’m proud about our team is they don’t care what others say about us. It doesn’t bother us a bit. What our players care about is doing what they have to get better, and do what they need to do to improve.”

Vanderbilt Forward DeMarre Carroll

“I have been trying to come off the bench and just give energy. Tonight we didn’t have enough emotion on the court. I wanted to come in and do it for the team. I wanted to give everything I had for the seniors. If I were a senior, I would want our freshmen to help us win our last home game.”

Vanderbilt Guard Mario Moore

“We needed a sense of urgency. We tried to go out and limit their second chance points. I wanted to do it for our seniors, like DeMarre [Carroll] said. I love [those] guys and I just wanted to leave it all out on the court.”

On the two game-clinching runs:
“You can only take so much from a team. They came into our house, got rebounds, and got physical. We had to get physical and then get locked in on winning the game.”

Vanderbilt Forward Corey Smith:

“It’s a great feeling to get a win on senior night. I hit a few milestones in my career tonight, but now we have to put it behind us and get ready for LSU.”

On the residual effect from last year’s altercation with South Carolina:
“I don’t think there were any grudges. We talk a lot on the court and there wasn’t any talk of animosity. We have great communication and didn’t want the past to affect future games. It was a great feeling. They set the tone to me that everything was cool and it didn’t affect the game.”

Vanderbilt Forward Jason Holwerda

“We haven’t even thought about the LSU game until just now. The whole week, we have been focusing on South Carolina. Without this win, nothing else is possible.”

USC Head Coach Dave Odom

On the play of the Gamecocks as a whole:
“I am very proud of our effort. We practiced well in our last two practices and played very hard. On most nights, we play hard enough to squeeze out a win, but not tonight. We weren’t able to overcome the deficit at the free throw line. We lost control of the boards around the 8:00 minute mark. We ran out of bodies at the end. I thought we took good shots, but we found it difficult to get the ball inside and get shots off. They closed off the middle. It was bad that we didn’t get to the free throw line and then didn’t kick the ball back out.”

On Vanderbilt’s four turnovers:
“They have good ball-handlers and are very quick. We played some good defense. We have to give them credit for that.”

On the play of Mario Moore and DeMarre Carroll:
“Mario Moore was a load for us. He got to the line nine times. Tre (Kelley) had a hard time guarding Mario. (DeMarre) Carroll is a good player. I’ve been watching him all year. He is a factor that is going to have to be dealt with.”

On the Vanderbilt crowd:
“The fans here at Vanderbilt are always good, good fans. They are very supportive. Memorial is one of the top old gyms in the league. They have good players and also good fans.”