A second half wave of momentum swept Vanderbilt to a 79-54 victory over Division II Drury in a preseason women’s basketball exhibition Saturday afternoon at Memorial Gym.
Staunch defense and forced turnovers fueled a 27-4 run in the second half for the Commodores, enabling them to overcome mental lapses that resulted in the Lady Panthers narrowing the deficit to five points.
Seniors Lauren Lueders and Ashlee Bridge scored 11 points, while junior guard Jence Rhoads had 10. Lindsay Ballweg netted a game-high 12 points for the Lady Panthers but surrendered five of the 24 turnovers forced by the Commodores.
Despite dominating the first half on the defensive side, Vanderbilt’s offense failed to click, and complacent play put the outcome in jeopardy early on in the second half.
“We’re playing in spurts right now,” said Vanderbilt coach Melanie Balcomb. “We don’t have the consistent effort, especially on the defensive end, that we need to have to open our game up and be down with it.”
A change in defensive scheme from a match-up zone to man-to-man provided a spark for the Commodores on both ends of the court after Drury knocked down seven of its first 14 attempts from beyond the arc. Vanderbilt disrupted the passing lanes and pressured shooters, forcing seven turnovers in the course of four minutes and limiting the Lady Panthers to just 1-7 shooting on 3-pointers for the rest of the game.
“We just tried to dictate [our will on] them,” Lueders said. “We like to create offense off our defense, and we started doing that in the second half.”
The Commodores also got strong performances from their freshmen. Gabby Smith contributed 9 points while Tiffany Clarke matched that output despite being hampered by an injured finger. Elan Brown recorded five rebounds, including two on the offensive end.
“I think the freshmen are coming along,” Balcomb said. “They’re progressing the way they should right now.”
Even in a 25-point victory, though, Balcomb maintains that there is plenty of work to be done.
“I’m never satisfied, and they’re never where I want them to be, but they’ll get there,” she said. “I’m pretty positive.”
