Feb. 4, 2012
Vandy Game Notes (at Mississippi State) 
| Mississippi State Game Notes
The Vanderbilt women’s basketball team (17-5, 5-4 SEC) heads to Starkville, Miss., in search of its fourth-straight win against Mississippi State (13-9, 3-6 SEC). Tipoff at Humphrey Coliseum is set for 2:00 p.m CT on Sunday, February 5. The game can be heard in Nashville on WNSR 560 AM and around the world on VUCommodores.com.
Scouting The Commodores
Vanderbilt takes a three-game winning streak to Starkville, Miss., coming off its first SEC road win of the season, a 66-61 win at Auburn. Christina Foggie continues to lead the way for Vanderbilt, averaging an SEC-best 17.8 points per game despite being held to nine points at Auburn, the first time since January 5 she did not reach double-figures. Right behind her is fellow sophomore guard Jasmine Lister, who is averaging 12.1 points per game and 5.3 assists per game. Next is junior forward Tiffany Clarke, who thanks to a 26 point performance at Auburn is averaging 12.1 points per game. She is tied for the team lead in rebounds with center Stephanie Holzer at 7.1 per contest. Holzer contributes 10.6 points per game. During the three-game winning streak, Vanderbilt has had three different players reach the 20-point mark in each contest – Foggie vs. Georgia (34 points), Kady Schrann vs. LSU (29 points) and Clarke vs. Auburn (26 points).
Scouting The Lady Bulldogs
Mississippi State enters the contest with a 13-9 mark and having lost their last three contests (vs. Arkansas, at South Carolina, at Georgia). The Lady Bulldogs are led by the duo of Diamber Johnson and Porsha Porter, who are scoring 16.4 and 13.6 points per game, respectively. Johnson scored 14 off the bench in a 70-60 loss at Georgia on Thursday, tying for the team lead with Kendra Grant. Porter added 12 points and eight rebounds in the loss. On the season, Martha Alwal is the leading rebounder at 7.7 boards per contest, while Johnson runs the point and is averaging 4.0 assists per game. Mississippi State is just 1-3 at home in SEC play this season.
Vanderbilt vs. Mississippi State – The Series
Sunday is the 47th meeting between the Commodores and Lady Bulldogs, with Vanderbilt holding a 32-14 edge in the series. The teams have met every season that Vanderbilt has had women’s basketball, starting with the 1978-79 season. Mississippi State is the only program Vanderbilt has played every season in program history. Since Melanie Balcomb arrive on West End, Vanderbilt is 8-4 against the Lady Bulldogs, including wins in all three meetings last season. The most recent meeting was in the first round of the SEC Tournament, when the Commodores won at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena, 69-55. Tiffany Clarke led the way for Vanderbilt, scoring 23 points and grabbing nine rebounds. Prior to last season, Mississippi State won the three prior meetings. The series is tied at 10 wins for each time in Starkville.
On-Deck
The Commodores return home for their second meeting of the year with rival Tennessee. Tipoff at Memorial Gym is set for 8:00 p.m. and the game can be seen on CSS. It will be Vanderbilt University Employee Celebration Night.