Jan. 24, 2007
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POST-GAME NOTES
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 Skuchas BLOCK PARTY
Ted Skuchas provided a spark off the bench against the 21st-ranked Tigers by blocking four shots to raise his season total to 21. He's within 3 swats of matching his personal best in a season (24). Skuchas also contributed on the other side of the floor, collecting six points highlighted by a left-handed hook over Glen "Big Baby" Davis.
DEFENSE SETS TONE
The Commodores recent success can be attributed to their stifling defense. The 'Dores locked down the LSU offense, holding the Tigers to 32% shooting (20-62 FG), including 5-for-22 from behind the arc. LSU big man Glen Davis was limited to only five field goals on 15 attempts. VU also controlled the boards, outrebounding the Tigers 42-36. LSU came into the game ranked second in the conference in rebound margin (+7.1/game)
CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD
The smallest 'Dore on the court was able to hold his own on the glass. Alex Gordon pulled down a career-high 10 rebounds, doubling his previous high. The floor general also provided another solid effort running the offense by committing no turnovers in 29 minutes.
MORE RANKED RECORDS
Not only did Vanderbilt extend their school record for number of wins over top 25 teams during one season (5), the 2006-07 squad became the first VU team to win back-to-back road games against ranked opponents.
THE RIGHT FOOT
The Commodores are now 4-2 in the SEC, making it their best league start since opening the 1993 conference slate at 7-1.
SHOW SOME LOVE
After back-to-back road wins, what better way to honor your 'Dores than to show up to Memorial Gym this Saturday to cheer on the Commodores as they face the Ole Miss Rebels. Game time is scheduled for noon CT. Tickets can be orded by calling 615.322.GOLD. It's Good To Be Gold! |
Next Home Game: January 27 vs. Ole Miss - Buy Tickets 
CN All Access (FREE): Joe Fisher's Post-Game Interview with Kevin Stallings
Box Score | Quotes
BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) -- Derrick Byars scored 18 points and Shan Foster added a pair of baskets in the final minutes to give Vanderbilt its fifth straight victory over a ranked team with a 64-53 triumph over LSU (No. 22 ESPN/USA Today; No. 21 AP) on Wednesday night.
LSU was doomed by a poor start and Vanderbilt (14-6, 4-2 SEC), coming off of victories over Alabama and Kentucky, remained consistent enough down the stretch to hold of a charge by the Tigers in the final 10 minutes.
Vanderbilt led 51-34 after Ted Skuchas' jump hook made it 51-34 with a little over 10 minutes to play.
Tasmin Mitchell and Garrett Temple fueled an 18-6 LSU run to get the Tigers (13-6, 2-3) as close as 55-49 with 2:56 left.
Foster followed with a layup and a 3-pointer to halt the Tigers' momentum and send the fans to the exits.
Foster finished with 14 points, as did Dan Cage, while Byars and Alex Gordon each grabbed 10 rebounds.
Mitchell led LSU with 16 points, while Temple and Glen Davis each scored 12. Davis, who was averaging 18.6 points per game coming in, was called for his fourth foul with eight minutes remaining and sat out several key minutes thereafter.
LSU was out of synch and cold shooting early, resulting in a quick double-digit deficit.
The Tigers hit only one of their first 10 shots and turned the ball over four times in the first seven minutes. Foster had seven points during that span, including a 3-pointer and Cage's 3-pointer shortly after gave Vanderbilt a 16-3 lead.
LSU also had trouble shooting over the 6-foot-11 Skuchas, who had four blocks in the first half.
Byars, who scored 23 points in Vanderbilt's victory over Kentucky last weekend, had 11 points in the opening 20 minutes, including a layup when Cage found him on a cut to the basket to give the Commodores a 23-8 lead.
LSU shot only 29.4 percent in the first half, and that was after Mitchell found his outside shot late in the period, hitting a pair of 3-pointers and another jumper to help the Tigers trim their deficit to 34-24 at halftime.
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