Feb. 8, 2008
| GAME AT A GLANCE | ||||
 Last Game:Ross Neltner hit two key baskets down the stretch to help Vanderbilt defeat Georgia, 67-59, Wednesday. Recap No. 20 Vanderbilt (19-4, 4-4 SEC) TELEVISION: FSN South RADIO: 104.5 the Zone SIRIUS: Channel 123 SERIES INFORMATION LAST MEETING COACHES USC TIDBITS USC PLAYER TO WATCH |
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SEC Quotes: Stallings and Odom Discuss Matchup
VU Notes | USC Notes & Preview | Season Stats | SEC Standings
Upcoming Home Games at Memorial Gym
Tuesday, Feb. 12, vs. Kentucky at 8 p.m. CT
Saturday, Feb. 16, vs. Florida at 2 p.m. CT
Saturday, Feb. 23, vs. Georgia at 3 p.m. CT
NASHVILLE – The road beckons for another time this week as the #23/20 Vanderbilt Commodores travel to South Carolina to take on the Gamecocks at Colonial Center in Columbia. Tip-off time is set for 4 p.m. CST, with the game being televised regionally on FSN South. Joe Fisher and Tim Thompson will have the call on the Vanderbilt/ISP Radio Network.
The Commodores are coming off of a 67-59 win at Georgia on Wednesday night, its first road SEC victory of the 2007-08 season. Senior guard Alex Gordon led four Vanderbilt players in double figures with 14 points. Seniors Shan Foster and Ross Neltner each netted 13 points, and freshman center A.J. Ogilvy tallied 12 points in the win.
The key run in the game came with Vanderbilt trailing by one with 7:23 to go in the first half. The Commodores went on a 10-3 run to make the score, 34-28, and would not relinquish the lead the rest of the game. Georgia cut the lead to one at 58-57 with 4:53 to go in regulation, but the Commodores scored nine out of the last 11 points in the game to come away with the win.
The Commodores held Georgia to only 29.4% from the floor (5-17), and had only nine turnovers on the night, its second-lowest total of 2007-08.
Vanderbilt and South Carolina will meet for the second time this season and the 42nd time in the history of the two schools. South Carolina leads the all-time series, 21-20, and holds a 10-8 advantage in Columbia.
VU head coach Kevin Stallings is a career 7-10 against South Carolina, and has a 4-4 record all-time in Columbia. His record is 2-3 at the Colonial Center, which opened in the 2002-03 campaign, and has won the last two games in Columbia.
Vanderbilt defeated South Carolina earlier this season on January 9 in Memorial Gym, 80-73. The Gamecocks will be the first SEC opponent VU has played twice. In fact, the next five games will all come against SEC East foes Vanderbilt has already faced.
South Carolina enters Saturday’s contest with an 11-10 record and a 3-4 mark in SEC play. The Gamecocks have had the week off after a good road win at Ole Miss, an 80-77 decision on February 2nd in Oxford.
Devan Downey leads South Carolina in scoring, averaging 19.8 points per game, which is tied for the best average in the SEC (Marcus Thornton, LSU). Fellow backcourt mate Zam Frederick averages 16.1 points per contest, and forward Dominique Archie also averages double digits at 11.0 points per contest. Archie leads the Gamecocks on the glass at 6.2 rebounds per game.
Vanderbilt will be seeking its 16th 20-win season Saturday against South Carolina, and Kevin Stallings’ fourth 20-win season. Only legendary coach Roy Skinner has put together more seasons with 20 or more wins (six) than the current Vanderbilt mentor. Vanderbilt has only posted back-to-back (or more) 20-win seasons five times in the history of the program with Coach Stallings accomplishing that feat one of those times, when his 2003-04 team posted 23 wins (23-10) and his 2004-05 team had 20 wins (20-14). It would also be the quickest Vanderbilt team to 20 wins – the 1973-74 Commodore team got to 20 wins on February 16.
Tip off is set for 4 p.m. CST.
SOUTH CAROLINA’S PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP
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