The Vanderbilt Commodores (#17 AP, #20 ESPN/USA Today) will host the Colorado Buffaloes this afternoon at 2 pm CST. Vanderbilt is coming off a solid 76-54 win over Western Kentucky on Thursday, Dec. 5, and Colorado (5-2) is riding a four-game win streak, having most recently defeated #21 Wyoming by a score of 69-55. Statistically speaking, these two teams are very evenly matched, with Vanderbilt averaging 76.6 points per game on 49.1% shooting from the field, and Colorado is connecting on 43.6% of their shots for an average of 69.9 points per game. Vanderbilt’s 49.1% field goal percentage places them in the Top 10 in the nation. Colorado is winning on the boards, pulling down 41.7 rebounds per game compared to Vandy’s 36.5, but Vandy is taking the ball away more often, snagging 10.4 steals per game compared to the Buffaloes’ 6.3. Colorado is averaging 16.7 assists and 19 turnovers per game, while Vandy is taking care of and distributing the ball better, averaging 16.8 assists to only 16 turnovers per contest. Colorado is shooting more 3-pointers per game (9.6 compared to VU’s 6.9) but Vandy has a better 3-point field goal percentage (38.8% to Colorado’s 36%). Colorado is led by senior All-America candidate Jackie McFarland, who is leading the team in scoring, averaging 18.2 points per game, while hitting 62.2% of her shots. Her 8.9 rebounds a game are second on the team, as are her 3.3 assists per game. She leads the team in free throw shooting at 74% and is only the third player in Colorado history to have scored 1,400 points and pulled down 800 rebounds. McFarland has tallied three double-doubles in the Buffaloes’ seven games. Senior guard Susie Powers has stepped up her game over the past four contests. After being held scoreless for the first three games of the season, Powers has averaged 9.5 points, 6.5 assists and 6.0 rebounds over the last four. The rest of Colorado’s roster looks more like a Grammy nomination sheet than a basketball program, with names like Brittany Spears and Whitney Houston on the Buffalo squad. Spears is a freshman forward who has had an immediate impact on the Colorado team, ranking second on the team in scoring (14.1 ppg) and third in rebounding (7.3 rpg). Houston has come off the bench to get extended minutes in the Colorado backcourt, while sophomore Aija Putnina and junior Hannah Skildum have played their way into the starting lineup after coming off the bench to begin the season. Putnina has started the last four games and has responded with a pair of double-doubles and four-straight double-digit rebounding games. She is averaging 9.5 points, 12.3 rebounds and 2.0 blocks as a starter. Putnina has vaulted into second place on the league rebounding chart with a team-best 9.4 per game. Skildum, who has started the past three contests, is averaging 5.6 points and 3.4 rebounds over the last five. Vanderbilt is led by junior forward Christina Wirth at 14.2 points per game and she is also averaging 4.9 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game. Senior center and Castle Rock, Colorado native Liz Sherwood is second in scoring at 13.8 points per contest and is averaging a nation-leading 74 percent from the field, having connected on an amazing 63 of her 85 shots from the field. Junior guard Jennifer Risper is averaging 9.5 points per game and a team-best 6.4 rebounds a contest. Sophomores Lauren Lueders and Merideth Marsh have worked their way into the starting lineup, having come off the bench at the beginning of the season.

 
Probable starters for Colorado:
Susie Powers, 5’10” Senior Guard – 5.4 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 4.4 apg
Hannah Skildum, 6’ Junior Guard – 4 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 1 apg
Brittany Spears, 6’1” Freshman Forward – 14.1 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 2.1 spg
Aija Putnina, 6’3” Sophomore Forward – 8.1 ppg, 9.4 rpg, 1.4 bpg
Jackie McFarland, 6’3” Senior Forward – 18.4 ppg, 8.9 rpg, 62.2 fg%

 
Probable starters for Vanderbilt:
Liz Sherwood, 6’4” Senior Center – 13.8 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 74% fgp
Christina Wirth, 6’1” Junior Forward – 14.2 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 3.1 apg
Jennifer Risper, 5’9” Junior Guard – 9.5 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 2.9 apg
Lauren Lueders, 5’8” Sophomore Guard – 8.7 ppg, 2.9 rpg
Merideth Marsh, 5’9” Sophomore Guard – 6.9 ppg, 2 rpg, 3.6 apg