Nov. 20, 2007
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CLEMSON, S.C. (AP) – Liz Sherwood scored 22 points on 10-of-11 shooting and grabbed 12 rebounds to lead No. 19 Vanderbilt to the 74-56 victory over Clemson Tuesday night at Littlejohn Coliseum.
Sherwood, a 6-foot-4 senior, displayed why she entered the contest shooting a robust 81.8 percent from the field. Every time she got the ball within five feet of the basket she scored.
“She’s always been this accurate,” Vanderbilt coach Melanie Balcomb said of her center. “It’s just a matter of how many shots she gets. It’s her senior year and she’s getting more confident and assertive.”
Thanks mostly to Sherwood, the Commodores (3-1) made a tied game to start the second half a blowout with 10 minutes still remaining. Vanderbilt opened the second half by outscoring the Tigers (2-3) 24-8, with 11 of those points coming from Sherwood.
It was quite a contrast from the opening half, where the Commodores raced to a 10-point lead, only to see it evaporate due to 17 first-half turnovers and watched Clemson take its own six-point advantage. By the time the first half was over, the teams were tied at 32-32.
“In the first half, we hesitated like crazy and that led to our turnovers,” Balcomb said. “We played not to lose rather than to win. We made a couple of adjustments at halftime that they listened to.”
Clemson entered the game shorthanded, having three key players already out for the season due to ACL injuries. Also, sophomore guard Christy Brown had a bad ankle, while senior guard D’Lesha Lloyd had a bad shoulder. Even so, Lloyd managed to pace the Tigers with 17 points.
“You don’t make excuses, but there’s no question that injuries are a big factor,” Tigers coach Cristy McKinney said. “I’ve not had any of my seniors, really. You’ve just got to go forward.”
