|
Home > SECWB News & More! > SEC Teams > Vanderbilt > Vanderbilt vs. Western Kentucky Preview
Vanderbilt vs. Western Kentucky Preview
by LeAnne Harrington, SECWB.com
Posted: December 5th, 2007 @ 11:13pm
The Vanderbilt Commodores (#17 ESPN/USA Today, #20 AP) hoping to get back on track after dropping their second road game of the season at Cal, will host the Western Kentucky Lady Toppers on Thursday, Dec. 6. Vanderbilt (7-2) begins a series of six home games with tomorrow night’s matchup against WKU (6-2). The Lady Toppers, fresh off a 78-74 overtime victory over the University of Kentucky, will be facing their second SEC foe in as many games. WKU’s two losses have come at the hands of ranked opponents, with the Lady Toppers falling 78-59 at #23 Notre Dame on November 13, and then suffering an 80-63 defeat at #15 George Washington on November 24.
Vanderbilt, which has played sporadically so far in the 2007-2008 season, is looking to establish some consistency in their game, and coach Melanie Balcomb is still looking for the combination of Commodores to put on the floor to get the job done. Balcomb has tweaked the starting lineup several times, with freshman Jence Rhoads now coming off the bench and sophomore Merideth Marsh back at point. Lauren Lueders has also gained a starting spot, and sophomore Jessica Mooney has been especially productive off the bench, almost single-handedly taking over the Duke game and posting solid minutes against St. Mary’s at last weekend’s Contra Costa Times Classic in Berkeley, CA. Juniors Christina Wirth and Jen Risper have been the two most consistent Commodores, and each has started all nine games for the Commodores so far this season. Senior Liz Sherwood started the season strong, but has struggled of late, but Amber Norton has done well in the post through several games. As a team, the Commodores are still committing too many turnovers and need to improve their free-throw shooting performance, connecting on only 64.2% of their shots from the charity stripe.
Western Kentucky is led by senior Crystal Kelly, who is averaging a double-double per game (23.9 points, 10 rebounds). Kelly was just named the Sunbelt Conference Player of the Week for the second time this season after scoring 27 points and pulling down 12 rebounds against UK. Sophomore guard Kenzie Rich is the only other Lady Topper to average in double-digit scoring with an 11.6 points per game average. As a team, WKU is very evenly matched with the Commodores, averaging 75.5 points per game to Vandy’s 76.6, and 40 rebounds per game to Vandy’s 37. WKU is averaging 14.3 assists per game while committing 19.3 turnovers per game, and Vanderbilt is averaging 16.8 per game in both statistical categories. Western Kentucky is better from the free-throw line, coming into the game hitting 70.9% from the line, but Vandy is better from behind the arc, connecting on 40.1% of their 3-pointers compared to WKU’s 32.6.
Probable starters for Vanderbilt:
Christina Wirth, 6’1” junior F - 14.8 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 3.2 apg
Liz Sherwood, 6’4” senior C - 13.1 ppg, 4.9 rpg
Jen Risper, 5’9” junior G - 9.2 ppg, 6.6 rpg, 2.8 apg
Lauren Lueders, 5’8” sophomore G - 8.8 ppg, 2.9 rpg
Merideth Marsh, 5’9” sophomore G - 7.6 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 3.6 apg
Probable starters for WKU:
Crystal Kelly - 6’3” senior F - 23.9 ppg, 10 rpg, 2.4 apg
Dominique Duck, 5’11” junior F - 9.4 ppg, 4.5 rpg
Charlotte Marshall, 5’10” senior F - 9.3 ppg, 7.8 rpg, 2 apg
Kenzie Rich, 5’7” sophomore G - 11.6 ppg, 1.9 rpg, 2 apg
Hope Brown, 5’8” freshman G - 6.6 ppg, 1.4 rpg, 2.5 apg
My prediction is Vanderbilt must find a way to stop Crystal Kelly. This post player is having a whale of a senior season and may be one of the best Liz Sherwood has matched up against all season. If Sherwood gets in foul trouble early, Amber Norton must be ready to come in and provide some big help in the post. This may be a tight one, but Vandy is capable of taking the win if they get some consistency back in their game. They need to connect on some threes early to open up the inside, and they must take care of the ball.
Game time is set for 7 pm CST in Memorial Gym and admission is free with the donation of a children’s book to the Charles Davis Foundation. Davis, a 1981 Vanderbilt graduate and 12 year veteran of the NBA, began his foundation as a way of offering positive role models, programs, activities, resources and opportunities that build character and self esteem for inner city youth.
Game notes: There are two familiar faces on the WKU bench for SEC afficionados. Assistant Amy Wright was a 2002 graduate of Arkansas, and assistant Nikki McCray was a two-time All-American at UT and 2-time SEC Player of the Year. Remember: there's always an SEC connection...
|
|
|
|
