Who/When/Where: UF (14-6, 3-2 SEC) vs.
Vanderbilt (14-6, 3-2 SEC), 7 p.m. EST, O'Connell Center
Last Time Out:
UF won 60-57 at South Carolina on Sunday
Vanderbilt won 83-50 vs. Mississippi on
Sunday
Last Meeting:
March 2, 2007: Vanderbilt defeated UF 105-77
in the SEC Tournament quarterfinals in Duluth, Ga.
Projected Starters:
Vanderbilt:
F Hannah Tuomi (6-1, Fr.)
F Christina Wirth (6-1, Jr.)
G Jennifer Risper (5-9, Jr.)
G Jence Rhoads (5-11, Fr.)
G Merideth Marsh (5-7, So.)
"color: black;">
UF:
F Marshae Dotson (5-11, Jr.)
C Aneika Henry (6-3, Jr.)
G Lonnika Thompson (5-4, So.)
G Sha Brooks (5-7, Jr.)
G Depree Bowden (5-11, Sr.)
Why Vanderbilt Might Win:
The Commodores shoot lights-out, and they
force you to do the same with their great zone defense. Coming into
tonight's contest, Vanderbilt is shooting 48.2 percent from the
field, good for fifth nationally. Its stingy defense is allowing
opponents to shoot only 36.3 percent, and the Gators had a lot of
problems with Georgia's stingy, aggressive defense, which let the
Bulldogs open a big lead early. Center Liz Sherwood gives the
Commodores one of the best sixth women in the country.
Why UF Might Win:
The Gators should be hungry to play after
their disappointing last showing at home, a week ago against
Georgia - an 82-55 whipping as UF coach Amanda Butler called it. UF
is getting decent contributions from its bench lately but those
need to be in addition to normal big games by Dotson, Brooks and
Bowden. Still, it's hard to count the Gators out at home where they
normally play even above their potential. Their best win so far
came in their season opener against Xavier, a team now ranked in
the RPI's top 50.
Final Word:
The three-game home stretch coming up for UF
could make or break its last part of the season. Vanderbilt visits
tonight with No. 8 LSU coming Sunday, and then Auburn pays a visit
a week from today. All three are potential losses and would make it
hard for the Gators to stay March-bound, considering road dates
with Tennessee and Georgia still await. The coaches took the time
to address the team about the NCAA Tournament prior to Sunday's
must-win rebound victory at South Carolina. They must realize that
to stay in contention, the Gators really need at least one of the
next three, and two wins would do a lot for them. UF must continue
to take care of the games later on that they "should win" but must
also pick up one marquee win. This game probably wouldn't qualify,
but it'd be a big boost to team confidence nonetheless coming on
the heels of last week's home disaster.
