Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Vanderbilt Closes Out Maui on a Positive Note: Beats Arizona 84-72

Early in this game, it seemed as though we were going to see more of the same out of the Commodores. Seemingly slow, sloppy play, with no one really standing out take the game over.

Then A.J. Ogilvy snapped out of it and realized he was being guarded by a freshman.

The Big Aussie stepped up tonight in a big way and demonstrated some of the polish that his supporters have touted. Rebounds are still a concern, but a stat line of 20 points, 7 boards, 4 blocks, 2 steals and an assist is not one of a lightweight. He showed up to play tonight, and as a result this team was much better.

The Dores got a good performance out of Jermaine Beal too, as he scored 18 points, dished out 5 assists, and picked up a couple of steals. Jeffery Taylor came out of this one with a double-double on 13 points and 10 boards. Cannot underrate Andre Walker's performance either, getting 8 points and 7 boards while contributing 3 assists.

The game wasn't without concerns. Poor free throw shooting made this a lot closer than it should have been. The team is still inconsistent, going through long stretches where they are unable to score and seem to play sloppy defense. That's going to dig us into some holes we can't get out of.

But for every period of slump, we seem to get a flash of just how great this team can be when things are clicking. The last 10 minutes of basketball (which I rewatched on DVR), were the best of the tournament for our team. That's encouraging to see the Dores finish strong in the final ten minutes of their third game in three days against a talented but young Arizona team.

There's plenty to work on when the Dores get back to Nashville before their game next Wednesday against Mizzou, but Stallings has to be pleased about his team's recovery. Especially since we lost to a Cincy team that barely lost the entire tournament.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

A great effort. AJ is back (at least he showed what he's capable of). When this team is firing on all cylinders, it's a force to be reckon with. I was concerned that it would a long time until we saw another Top 25 ranking. Vandy will fall out of the Top 25 this coming week. But victories against Mizzo and DePaul should vault them back in. A loss to Illinois would not have that much impact, then it's smooth sailing (hopefully) to the new year and the SEC schedule.

Anonymous said...

Happy Thanksgiving to all and to all a good meal.

Anonymous said...

AMERICAN IDOL ***SUCKS***