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No. 5 Seed Vanderbilt Opens Up NCAA Tournament Play Against No. 12 Seed Montana
3/16/2005
No. 5 seed (#18 AP Poll/#18 ESPN Coaches Poll) Vanderbilt (22-7, 10-4 SEC) makes its 18th NCAA Tournament appearance when the Commodores open up play in the NCAA’s Kansas City Regional Saturday night against No. 12 seed Montana. Game time is set for approximately 9:30 p.m. (C T)/7:30 p.m. (PT) or 30 minutes after the conclusion of the Kansas State vs. Bowling Green contest that begins at 7 p.m. (CT)/5 p.m. (PT). It will be televised live on ESPN2.
The Lady Grizzlies won the Big Sky Tournament Title to earn the NCAA automatic bid. It will be the teams second ever meeting as VU leads the series, 1-0, winning during the 1994-95 season, 69-65, in the Pre-season WNIT. The Commodores lost in the Sweet 16 last season to Stanford, who earned the No. 2 seed in the Kansas City Regional.
Vanderbilt has won nine of its last 11 games with both losses coming to No. 3 Tennessee. The Commodores went 1-1 in the Southeastern Conference Tournament knocking off Arkansas, 79-60, in the SEC quarterfinals, before falling to No. 3 Tennessee, 76-73, in the semifinals of the tournament. In the SEC Tournament, senior forward Ashley Earley averaged 20.5 points and 10.5 rebounds while shooting 73.1 percent (19-of-26) in the SEC Tournament. She was named to the all-tournament team. Fellow senior Abi Ramsey registered her 1,000th career point in the Arkansas game and averaged 13 points while connecting on 7-of-14 three-pointers in the two games.
Earley, a unanimous First-Team All-SEC selection, has posted a SEC-leading 14 double-doubles on the season including nine in league play. She leads the team averaging 18.5 points and 9.7 rebounds. Earley ranks third in the nation in field goal percentage (.643). Sophomore forward Carla Thomas ranks second on the team scoring 15.9 points and 6.4 rebounds. Sophomore point guard Dee Davis runs the offense with a team-leading 181 assists which ranks second in the SEC. She averages 13. 7 points and 6.2 assists per contest. Ramsey also averages double figures chipping in 11.2 points. She has connected on 80-of-196 three-point attempts and need just four more treys to set a news single season VU record. Caroline Williams has also been hot from long range lately. Since becoming a starter, Vandy is 9-2 with Williams in the line-up. She led the SEC in three-point field goal percentage (53 percent) having made 44-of-83 three-point attempts. Vandy ranks second in the nation in field goal percentage shooting 49.9 percent from the field and 38.9 percent from three-point range.
SCOUTING THE MONTANA LADY GRIZZLIES
No. 12 seed Montana, under the direction of head coach Robin Selvig, enters the NCAA Tournament having rattled off six consecutive wins including two wins in the Big Sky Tournament to capture the tournament title and earn the Big Sky’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Lady Grizzlies are 22-7 overall and finished conference play 13-1. Montana will be making its 16th trip to the NCAA Tournament. Senior Hollie Tyler scored a career-high 29 points to lead the Lady Grizzlies to an 80-64 victory over Weber State in the championship game of the Big Sky Conference tournament. The Lady Grizshot 58.5 pecent in the win. Tyler went 13-for-17 from the field against the Wildcats and earned most valuable player honors. Senior Lynsey Monaco was also named to the all-tournament team. Vanderbilt leads the series with Montana having played once in Missoula in the WNIT.
Tyler leads the team averaging 14.8 points and 7.2 rebounds. Katie Edwards chips in 12.6 points. Lynsey Monaco runs the Montana offense. Monaco leads the team with 165 assists. On the season, the Lady Griz shoots 41.5 percent from the field and holds its opponents to 37.1 percent.
THE SERIES
Vanderbilt and Montana have met only once on the basketball court with the Commodores leading the series, 1-0. The Commodores defeated the Lady Grizzlies in the Preseason WNIT during the 1994-95 season, 69-65, in Missoula, Montana.
Vandy Versus the Big Sky Conference
Vanderbilt owns a 4-0 record against teams from the Big Sky Conference. The Commodores have defeated Idaho State, Montana, Portland State and Weber State. The last time VU played a team from the Big Sky Conference was during the 2003-04 season. Vanderbilt defeated Weber State at home, 73-47.
Postseason Momemtum
Vanderbilt has won nine of its last 11 games with the only two losses coming to in-state foe and Philadelphia Regional No. 1 seed Tennessee. VU had rattled off five straight wins before falling to Tennessee, 76-73, in the SEC Tournament Semifinals. The Commodores are in familiar territory as VU got hot towards the end of last season in which the Commodores reeled off eight consecutive victories and captured their fourth SEC Tournament championship. That streak was snapped at 10 games when VU fell to Stanford in the Sweet 16.
VANDERBILT AND THE NCAA FIRST/SECOND ROUNDS
? VU is 28-17 all-time in the NCAA Tournament
? VU is 22-6 all-time in First/Second Round Games
? VU is 13-4 all-time in tournament openers and has won five in a row
? VU is 9-1 in First Round games since the bracket expanded to 64 teams in 1994
? VU is 1-1 in First Round overtime games and 1-2 overall
? VU has scored over 80 points in a First Round game four times
VANDERBILT AND THE State of Washington
? This will be Vanderbilt’s second ever trip to the state of Washington. The Commodores played the University of Washington during the 1997-98 season in Seattle. The Commodores fell to the Huskies, 82-71, thus making the Commodores 0-1 all-time in Seattle.
? Vanderbilt’s all-time leading scorer Chantelle Anderson, a 6-6 center, hails from the state of Washington. Anderson, a native of Vancouver, Wash., scored 2,604 career points in four seasons for the Commodores and shot 65.1 percent from the field.
VANDERBILT AND THE Midwest Region
Since the NCAA has changed its format to naming regionals after the site that is hosting. The Commodores are the No. 5 seed in the Kansas City Regional which is located in the midwest. VU is 12-6 all-time in the Midwest Region. Vandy made its only Final Four appearance (1996) coming out of the Midwest Region.
VANDERBILT AND THE 2005 NCAA TOURNAMENT FIELD
? Vandy has faced six teams in the tournament already this season – Auburn, Georgia, LSU, NC State, Ole Miss, St. Francis (Pa.), Tennessee.
? VU is 4-6 in 2004-05 against those six teams.
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