Feb. 7, 2016
Teams: Vanderbilt (15-7, 4-5) vs. Arkansas (9-14, 4-6)
Day, Date: Monday, Feb. 6
Tip-off time: 6 p.m.
Site: Bud Walton Arena (Fayetteville, Ark.)
Radio: 560 AM / 95.9 FM
TV: SEC Network
Game Notes: Vanderbilt Game Notes (vs Ark) 
Hoping to set the tone for what is likely a crucial week, the Vanderbilt women travel to Fayetteville, Ark., on Monday night to face the Razorbacks. The Commodores (15-7, 4-5) are looking to rebound from back-to-back losses, while Arkansas (9-14, 4-6) will be hoping to end a four-game skid. Monday’s contest begins a stretch in which Vanderbilt will play three games in six days, including hosting rival Tennessee on Thursday and Kentucky on Sunday. The Commodores are currently in ninth place in the SEC, and are looking to start a late-season push that will lead them to the postseason. The trip to Arkansas on Monday night might be a good starting point for the Commodores, who own a 23-6 lead in the all-time series against the Razorbacks, and have won four of the past five match-ups in Fayetteville. Arkansas has played a challenging schedule this season, facing nine ranked opponents and going 3-6 in those games. Seven of the Razorbacks’ first 10 conference games came against ranked teams. Here’s a closer look at Monday’s game:
l Update on the Commodores: After dropping their past two games — a home loss to Georgia last Sunday and a road loss to Auburn on Thursday night — the Commodores enter the weekend in ninth place in the SEC. But a victory on Monday would likely allow Vanderbilt to make a major move in the tightly-crammed conference standings. (Entering Sunday’s games, there is only a 1½-game separation between fourth place and 11th place). … With seven games remaining on the regular-season schedule, the Commodores have already matched their win total from last season, when they finished 15-16 and missed the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1999. Vanderbilt is also just one SEC victory away from matching last season’s conference win total. (VU finished 5-11) … Last week’s upset of Kentucky was VU’s first road win over a ranked opponent since Dec. 16, 2012, when they won at Oklahoma. … Vanderbilt has gone 14-5 since Nov. 22).
l What’s trending for VU: Although the numbers have dipped slightly since the start of conference play, the Commodores are still putting together a strong statistical season on both ends of the floor. They are No. 13 in the country in field-goal percentage at 46.3 percent and No. 12 in the nation in defense, allowing 52.9 points per game. Vanderbilt is ranked second in the conference in both of those categories… The Commodores are ranked No. 23 in the country, and second in the SEC, in 3-point accuracy at 36.1 percent. … Vanderbilt has held its opponents to less than 50 percent shooting from the floor in 21 of its 22 games this season. (South Carolina is the lone exception. The Gamecocks shot exactly 50 percent in a win over VU on Jan. 7). … The Commodores have out-rebounded their opponents in 17 of their 22 games this season.
l Morgan nears milestone: Vanderbilt’s Morgan Batey needs just one more rebound to reach the 500 mark for her career. The senior from Atlanta has led the Commodores in rebounding in each of the past two seasons.
l Star Power: Sophomore sharpshooter Christa Reed, who is averaging a team-high 11.0 points per game, is leading the SEC — and ranked No. 5 in the nation — in 3-point accuracy at 46.5 percent. … Point guard Minta Spears ranks fifth in the SEC in assists (4.5 apg) and sixth in the SEC in minutes played (33.2 mpg). … Junior Marque’s Webb is VU’s top rebounder at 5.4 per game. She is averaging 8.4 rebounds in the past four games. … Kendall Shaw has seen action in eight of VU’s nine SEC games, and is shooting 50 percent from the floor (11-of-22) in those games.
l Scouting the opponent: Arkansas enters Monday’s contest on a four-game losing streak that began with back-to-back overtime losses to Auburn and Florida, followed by losses to Mississippi State and Tennessee. … The Razorbacks opened SEC play with five straight games against ranked opponents. They posted an impressive 3-2 mark in that stretch, with wins over Texas A&M, Tennessee and Missouri. … The Razorbacks rank 242nd in the country in scoring (60.8 points per game) and 158th in defense (allowing 62.3 ppg). … Jessica Jackson is the team’s top scorer at 17.0 points per game, which ranks fourth in the SEC. She also ranks sixth in the SEC in field-goal percentage at 41.2 percent … Melissa Wolff leads the team and ranks eighth in the conference in rebounding at 7.7 rpg.
l Series History: Monday’s game is the 30th all-time meeting between the teams, with the Commodores owning a 23-6 lead in the series, including winning the last three matchups. Vanderbilt has won 11 of the past 12 and 16 of the past 18 against the Razorbacks. … The Commodores are 10-8 all-time in Fayetteville, and have won four of the past five games on the Hogs’ home floor. … Vanderbilt head coach Melanie Balcomb is 15-2 against Arkansas, including 5-2 in Fayetteville. … The series dates back to the 1991-92 season.
l Last year’s game: Holding Arkansas without a field goal over the final 12:26 of the second half, the Commodores rallied for a 55-53 victory on Jan. 22, 2015 at Memorial Gym. The Razorbacks missed their final 18 field goal attempts of the game as Vanderbilt put together a 20-7 run to erase an 11-point deficit and earn the win. Rebekah Dahlman’s layup with 1:48 remaining gave Vanderbilt its first lead of the night, 49-47, and the Commodores held on from there during an eventful finish. Rachel Bell and Kristen Gaffney finished with 11 points each for the Commodores, who did not attempt a 3-pointer in the second half. Kelcey Brooks, the SEC’s leading scorer, had a game-high 20 points for the Razorbacks. Gaffney came off the bench to play a pivotal role for the Commodores, going 5-of-8 from the floor. In addition to her 11 points, she filled out her stat line with four rebounds. three assists, two blocks, one steal. Arkansas owned a 46-35 lead with 12:26 remaining, but Vanderbilt held the Razorbacks scoreless for more than nine minutes. During the Razorbacks’ drought, Vanderbilt flipped a 47-39 deficit into a 51-47 lead.
l VU’s most recent game: Guilty of a season-high 29 turnovers and limited to 17 percent shooting from 3-point range, the Commodores suffered a 53-45 loss at Auburn on Thursday night. Vanderbilt (15-7, 4-5) had won nine consecutive games on Auburn’s home floor, including posting a 7-0 record during head coach Melanie Balcomb’s tenure. But the Commodores never got in sync on Thursday, shooting just 35 percent from the floor, including 3-of-17 from 3-point range. Brandy Montgomery finished with a game-high 16 points for Auburn, and Jasmine Jenkins led the Commodores with 11 points. Vanderbilt’s Christa Reed, who is Vanderbilt’s leading scorer and is ranked sixth in the nation in 3-point accuracy, was hampered by foul trouble and played just 15 minutes, finishing with five points before fouling out. Vanderbilt fell behind in the first two minutes of the game, and never retook the lead. The Commodores faced narrow deficits at each quarter break — trailing 10-8 after the first quarter, 24-21 at the half and 31-29 after the third. But the Tigers opened the fourth quarter with a 10-3 run to extend the lead to 41-32 and eventually pushed the lead to as many as 13 points, 48-35, with 1:55 to go.