Jan. 13, 2006
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THE BASICS
The South Carolina women’s basketball team returns home when it hosts the No. 23 Vanderbilt Commodores at 3 p.m. Sunday at the Colonial Center.
ON THE AIR
The game will be broadcast live on WISW 1320 AM Columbia, with Andy Demetra handling play-by-play and Robin Muller providing analysis. For listeners outside of Columbia, the live radio broadcast will also be aired worldwide via the internet on the official web site of South Carolina athletics, www.uscsports.com.
ACCESSING THE WEB BROADCAST
To access the internet broadcast, go to www.uscsports.com, then go to the women’s basketball home page and click on “Schedule/Results”. At the top of the page is a link for Audio Broadcasts. Click on that link, then select the game you wish to listen to.
THE COACHES
Susan Walvius is in her ninth year at the helm of the South Carolina women’s basketball program and her 16th year overall as a head coach. Prior to USC, she coached at Virginia Commonwealth and West Virginia. The 2002 SEC Coach of the Year led the Gamecocks to consecutive top-20 national finishes and NCAA tournament appearances in 2002 and 2003. Her 2002 squad advanced to the Elite Eight. In her fourth year in Nashville, Melanie Balcomb led Vanderbilt to back-to-back trips to the Sweet 16 in 2004 and 2005. Balcomb held her first head coaching job at Ashland from 1993-95 before moving on to Xavier from 1995-2002. She took the Vanderbilt job in 2002 and guided the Commodores to the SEC Tournament championship in 2004 and has led Vandy to the NCAA Tournament in each of her three seasons.
COACHING QUICK HITS
South Carolina
Susan Walvius
Alma Mater Virginia Tech, 1986
USC Record 123-123/9th year
Overall Record 221-224/16th year
Vanderbilt
Melanie Balcomb
Alma Mater Trenton State, 1984
Vanderbilt Record 84-30/4th year
Overall Record 247-134/13th year
OFFENSE VS. DEFENSE
Sunday’s game will be a battle of strength vs. strength, as Vanderbilt enters the game shooting the ball at a very high percentage from both the field and from beyond the arc, while South Carolina ranks among the national leaders in field goal percentage defense and scoring defense.
CAROLINA FROM A DISTANCE
Height, experience, defense and balanced scoring are the name of the game for South Carolina, as the Gamecocks boast eight players that stand 6-0 or taller and rank as the 15th-tallest team in the nation. Carolina’s roster is dotted by eight juniors and one senior, but freshman Demetress Adams has emerged as an early bright spot, ranking among the team leaders in scoring, rebounding, blocked shots and steals. South Carolina enters Sunday’s battle with Vanderbilt having won seven of its last 10 games, with the lone losses coming at the hands of No. 1 Tennessee, at Kentucky and at No. 3 LSU.
VANDERBILT FROM A DISTANCE
Vanderbilt shoots the ball at a very high percentage, thanks largely to the inside-outside duo of Liz Sherwood (14.1 points per game along with an NCAA-best field goal percentage of 69.3 pct.) and Caroline Williams (12.9 points per game on 45.9 percent shooting from three-point range. Speedy point guard Dee Davis knows how to put her teammates in a position to score, evidenced by the fact that she ranks among the top 10 nationally with 7.2 assists per game. Vandy opened its season with a surprising 52-51 overtime loss at Arkansas, with its other defeats coming at the hands of Arizona State, North Carolina State and North Carolina.
COMMON OPPONENT – CLEMSON
Both Vanderbilt and South Carolina claimed lopsided wins over Clemson this year, with the Commodores defeating the Tigers, 86-49, and Carolina handing Clemson a 77-46 thumping.
A CAROLINA WIN WOULD:
>> Mark the Gamecocks’ eighth win in their last 11 games, with the lone losses coming to top-ranked Tennessee, at No. 3 LSU and at Kentucky.
>> Mark the Gamecocks’ third win in their last five games against the Commodores.
>> Mark Carolina’s third win in the last four meetings with the Commodores played in Columbia.
>> Mark the Gamecocks’ third win over a team that played in last year’s NCAA Tournament, as Carolina has already claimed wins over Minnesota and Western Carolina this season.
>> Improve the Gamecocks’ record to 9-2 in games played at the Colonial Center this year.
BRIGHT SPOT EMERGES FROM LOSS AT LSU
Though No. 3 LSU claimed a convincing win over South Carolina on Thursday, the Gamecocks can take a bright spot from that contest, as their 45.2 shooting percentage from the field was the highest figure surrendered by the Tigers all season. LSU entered Thursday’s game ranking second in the SEC and seventh in the nation by holding the opposition to 33.9 percent shooting from the field, but Carolina was able to convert on 19 of its 42 field goal attempts.
ROUGH SCHEDULE TO OPEN SEC PLAY
Of the three SEC games South Carolina has played this year, one was against No. 1 Tennessee and another was at No. 3 LSU. Sandwiched in between the two conference heavyweights was a trip to Lexington for a road battle with a 12-3 Kentucky squad that just knocked off No. 24 Florida in Gainesville on Thursday. The combined record of Carolina’s first three SEC opponents is 42-3. Consequently, the Gamecocks are off to an 0-3 start in the league and both player and team stats have taken a dip.
SCHEDULE NOT GETTING MUCH EASIER
With games against No. 1 Tennessee and No. 3 LSU now in the past, South Carolina would be wise not to think the schedule becomes any easier, as two of the Gamecocks’ next three games are against No. 23 Vanderbilt and No. 13 Georgia. Head coach Susan Walvius has seen this before, however, as it marks the fourth time in her nine-year tenure in Columbia that the Gamecocks have faced four ranked SEC opponents in its first six conference games. It also happened during the 2002-03 season, the 2000-01 season and the 1997-98 season.
BOOKER, SIMMS HEATING UP
Guards Stacy Booker and Lauren Simms are two of South Carolina’s most capable scorers, and they have been true to form of late. Booker has scored in double figures in six of Carolina’s last seven games, with Simms scoring 10 or more points in five of Carolina’s last seven contests.
OTHER INDIVIDUAL PLAYER TRENDS OF NOTE
>> A different player has led the Gamecocks in scoring in five of the last six games.
>> Lea Fabbri has dished out either more or equal assists than she has committed turnovers in nine of the last 10 games.
>> Demetress Adams has made eight of her last nine free throw attempts.
>> Stacy Booker has drained a three-pointer in each of her last 10 games.
>> Lauren Simms has averaged 14.3 points per game since SEC play started. To put that figure into perspective, she averaged 7.3 points per game prior to the start of conference play.
USC DEFENSE AMONG NATION’S BEST
The Gamecocks sit atop the most recent NCAA rankings in field goal percentage defense (32.7 pct). In addition, Carolina leads the SEC in blocked shots (7.40 per game) and ranks second in scoring defense (52.9 ppg) and defensive rebounds (27.20).
SPEAKING OF DEFENSE…
Through South Carolina’s first 15 games, only Tennessee, Kentucky and LSU have shot 40 percent or better from the field. Carolina established school records by limiting Bethune-Cookman to only seven points in the first half and 26 points in the game, with the Gamecocks matching a school record by limiting Bethune-Cookman to 14.0 percent shooting from the field (8-of-57). The Gamecocks have limited seven different opponents to either 30 percent shooting from the field or lower this year.
THE BENCH MOB
Through South Carolina’s first 15 games, the Gamecock bench averages 35.6 points per game against 16.5 points per game from the opponent’s bench. During South Carolina’s seven-game winning streak that recently ended, the Gamecocks’ non-starters combined to average 46.1 points per game, whereas the opposition’s non-starters combined to average 9.3 points per contest.
COMMON THREADS IN CAROLINA’S NINE WINS THIS YEAR
>> The Gamecocks led at the half.
>> The opponent shot less than 40 percent from the field.
>> No Carolina player fouled out of the game.
>> The Gamecocks scored more points in the paint than the opponent.
>> The Gamecocks scored more points off turnovers than the opponent.
>> The Gamecocks scored more second-chance points than the opponent.
>> The Gamecocks had more fast break points than the opponent.
>> The final margin of victory was 18 points or more.
>> The Gamecocks scored 70 or more points.
COMMON THREADS IN CAROLINA’S SIX LOSSES THIS YEAR
>> The opponent’s starting five outscored Carolina’s starting five.
>> The Gamecocks had equal or less free throws made than the opponent.
>> The Gamecocks scored 66 points or less.
3FGM STREAK REMAINS INTACT AT 133
The Gamecocks have knocked down at least one three-pointer in 133 consecutive games during a streak that dates back to November of 2001 and is the longest such streak in school history.
WHAT’S NEXT
Carolina is back in action when it travels to Tuscaloosa for a date with Alabama set to tip off at 3 p.m. (ET) on Sunday, Jan. 22. The game will be broadcast live on WISW 1320-AM with Andy Demetra handling play-by-play and Robin Muller providing analysis.
