Jan. 14, 2015
Teams: Alabama-Huntsville (8-8) at Vanderbilt (9-7)
Day, Date: Thursday, Jan. 15
Tip-off time: 7 p.m. (CT)
Site: Memorial Gym (Nashville, Tenn.)
Radio: 560 AM & 95.9 FM
Viewing: SEC Network-Plus (online)
Tickets: Tickets can be purchased by calling 615-322-GOLD, visiting the McGugin Center ticket office or logging on to vucommodores.com.
Four days after collecting their first SEC victory with an impressive 78-62 win over previously unbeaten and No. 14/15-ranked Mississippi State on Sunday afternoon, the Vanderbilt women (9-7) will find themselves in a somewhat unusual situation on Thursday night. They’ll be stepping outside of SEC play to host NCAA Division II member Alabama-Huntsville at 7 p.m. at Memorial Gym. This is just the second time in head coach Melanie Balcomb’s tenure that Vanderbilt has faced a non-conference opponent in the midst of their SEC schedule. The only other time it has happened in the Balcomb era was during the 2006-07 season, when the Commodores hosted Georgia Tech on Jan. 21, 2007. That season, Vanderbilt had already played five SEC games before defeating the Yellow Jackets, 72-55, in the non-conference game. Throughout the 1980s and ’90s, the Commodores routinely played one — and sometimes, two — games against non-conference opponents in the middle of the SEC schedule, but the trend stopped after the 1999-2000 season. Here are a few storylines surrounding Thursday’s contest:
l FOR US, IT COUNTS: Thursday’s game is a regular-season game for the Commodores and will count toward Vanderbilt’s win/loss record. However, it will be only an exhibition game for the NCAA Division II Chargers.
l HOMECOMING FOR THE JARNAGINS: Thursday’s game is sure to be special for UAH players Halle and Sara Jarnagin, who each played high school basketball at Brentwood High. Halle, a junior guard, leads the Chargers in both scoring (10.7 points per game) and rebounding (5.6 rpg).
l SO LONG, SHOOTING SLUMP: After enduring a two-game offensive recession, the Commodores got back on track against Mississippi State — and that’s putting it mildly. During the 78-62 victory over the previously-unbeaten Bulldogs, Vanderbilt shot a season-high 62.9 percent from the floor, finishing 22-of-35. Three Vanderbilt players — Heather Bowe, Morgan Batey and Rebekah Dahlman — combined to go 17-of-23 from the field (74 percent), and the trio produced 52 points to help the Commodores improve to 1-3 in the conference. Batey matched her career high with 18 points, and Bowe and Dahlman added 17 points each. … Vanderbilt’s big offensive numbers came on the heels of back-to-back cold-shooting games. While suffering losses to Tennessee and LSU, the Commodores went a combined 32-for-94 (34 percent) from the floor and were limited to 16 field goals in each game. But Vanderbilt, traditionally one of the SEC’s best-shooting teams, couldn’t seem to miss against Mississippi State. At the 11:30 mark of the second half, Vanderbilt was 16-of-22 from the floor and owned a 13-point lead. The Commodores cooled off slightly down the stretch, but still managed to top the 60-percent mark for the second time this season (also doing so in a loss to Arizona State on Nov. 30). … Prior to Sunday’s game, VU had shot 44 percent or less from the field in six of its past seven games, including shooting 39 percent or less in four of those games.
l WE SEE YOU, MORGAN: Morgan Batey was back to being Morgan Batey against Mississippi State. The junior, who is Vanderbilt’s most versatile player, had been held scoreless in each of the Commodores’ two previous game, but she broke loose against the Bulldogs, matching her career-high with 18 points while going 7-of-9 from the floor. She also pulled down a team-high 10 rebounds to secure her third double-double of the season and the fifth of her career. Batey, who is the only VU player to start every game this season, logged 36 minutes of playing time in the win, finishing with one steal and one blocked shot to complete her well-rounded stat line. The only small downside of her performance? She finally missed a free throw. Batey came into the game having converted 20 consecutive attempts from the foul line (dating back to the St. Louis game on Nov. 24) but missed her fifth — and final attempt — from the line against MSU, ending the streak at 24.
l SCOUTING THE CHARGERS: Alabama-Huntsville, members of the Gulf South Conference, is averaging 57.8 points per game and is allowing 62.0 per contest. … The Chargers are led in scoring by former Brentwood High star Halle Jarnagin, who is averaging 10.7 points per game. She is shooting 46 percent from the floor and 76 percent from the foul line. Jarnagin, who is the lone UAH player to average double figures this season. She is also the team’s leading rebounder at 5.6 per game. … The Chargers aren’t shy about shooting from long-range. They are averaging 19.8 attempts from 3-point range per game, and 43.6 percent of their field goal attempts this season have come from beyond the arc. Overall, eight players on the UAH roster have attempted 20 or more 3-pointers this season. …
l SIZING UP THE SERIES. Sunday’s game marks just the third all-time meeting between the Commodores and Chargers, and is the first matchup since the 1985-86 season. The Commodores own a 2-0 lead in the series, including a 1-0 mark against UAH at Memorial Gym. … The first meeting between the teams came on Dec. 3, 1982, when Vanderbilt posted a 76-71 win in the opening round of the Lady Eagle Classic in Morehead, Ky. … The teams matched up again three years later, with Vanderbilt rolling to a 100-47 victory at Memorial Gym on Feb. 12, 1986. … Phil Lee was Vanderbilt’s head coach for both of the game against UAH.
l ALABAMA-HUNTSVILLE’S SEASON TO DATE. The Chargers, who are averaging 57 points per game and allowing 62 per contest, can certainly say they are having an even season. While compiling their 8-8 overall record, they have posted a 5-5 mark in their conference and have gone 4-4 at home and 4-4 on the road. (UAH hasn’t played any neutral-site games). They have had three separate two-game winning streaks, one two-game losing streak and one three-game skid. … Alabama-Huntsville’s road wins have come against Barry University, West Georgia, Lee University and Christian Brothers. The home wins have come against Montevallo, Hiwassee, West Alabama and Mississippi College.
l NUMBERED OPPONENTS: When the Commodores visit Georgia on Sunday afternoon to play the No. 18/16 Lady Bulldogs, it will mark the fourth time in five SEC games that Vanderbilt has faced a ranked opponent. The Commodores opened SEC play on Jan. 2 with a 75-61 loss to No. 11/12 Texas A&M, and dropped a 57-49 decision at home to No. 6/6 Tennessee three days later. The Commodores then downed No. 15/18 Mississippi State last Sunday. There are two other SEC teams in this week’s polls — No. 1/1 South Carolina and No. 10/11 Kentucky — that Vanderbilt will face in February.
l CHANGING IT UP. The Commodores have used eight different starting lineups this season, and junior Morgan Batey is the only Vanderbilt player to start every game. The first change to the lineup came in just the second game of the season, and it changed again in the fourth game. Since then, new combinations have been used in Game 8, Game 9, Game 11, Game 13 and Game 14.
l MOST RECENT GAME: VU UPSETS MISSISSIPPI STATE: Vanderbilt notched its first SEC win, and delivered a big statement, on Sunday afternoon by knocking off previously-unbeaten Mississippi State, 78-62, at Memorial Gym. The Commodores led from start to finish and shot 62 percent from the floor. Morgan Batey had her third double-double of the season, finishing with 18 points — which matched her career high — and 10 rebounds to lead Vanderbilt in both categories. Heather Bowe and Rebekah Dahlman added 17 points each and Rachel Bell had 12 for the Commodores (9-7, 1-3), who went 33-of-42 (78 percent) from the foul line. … Vanderbilt built a double-digit lead midway through the first half, stayed in control for much of the second half, and then fended off a Mississippi State comeback bid by closing the game on a 14-4 run over the final 4:03 after the Bulldogs had trimmed the deficit to six points. … Vanderbilt set the tone for the victory early, jumping out to a 16-3 lead in the first 8½ minutes. Mississippi State opened the game 0-of-9 from the floor, and didn’t make its first field goal until the 11:32 mark of the first half. … The Bulldogs trimmed Vanderbilt’s lead to 21-18 with 7:01 left in the half, but the Commodores responded with a 13-6 run, capped by Bowe’s buzzer-beating layup, to take a 34-24 lead into the locker room. … Vanderbilt maintained a comfortable lead for much of the second half until Mississippi State made one final push, closing the Vanderbilt lead to 64-58 with 4:03 to go. But a layup by Bowe — set up by a terrific pass from Jasmine Jenkins — swung the momentum back to Vanderbilt, and sparked a 9-0 run for the Commodores. … Free throws played a large role in the win, as the Commodores went 26-of-31 (83 percent) in the second half to keep Mississippi State at bay.