After winning in pretty fashion Tuesday night, No. 24 Vanderbilt took Saturday to prove it could also win ugly, grinding out a 61-58 over Southeastern Conference Eastern Division rival Florida in front of a sellout crowd of 14,325 at Memorial Gymnasium.

While the Commodore offense could do no wrong in its 93-52 thrashing of Kentucky a few nights earlier, it struggled against Florida as 3-pointers didn't fall, possessions took longer and open looks were few and far between.
Fortunately, Florida, which no longer includes the likes of Corey Brewer, Al Horford and fan-favorite Joakim Noah, was equally anemic.

Vanderbilt (22-4, 7-4 SEC) overcame a 7:16 field goal drought to hold off Florida (19-7, 6-5 SEC) and extend its winning streak to five games.

"It's good to win one like this after any night; it's just good to win," said coach Kevin Stallings. "It certainly wasn't a masterpiece, but at this point in the year, you take them any way that you can get them."

Both teams performed under their offensive averages, with both teams shooting under 40 percent - Florida 39 percent and Vanderbilt38. With the shots refusing to fall, the Commodores had to rely on their defense.

"If you're gonna go 8-for-27 from three against virtually 38 minutes of zone, then you hope that you do something else to win," Stallings said.

Florida was even worse from long range, hitting just one out of 15 attempts.

"I think our defense has certainly gotten better, which is pleasing," Stallings said. "(Saturday) we defended well enough to give us a chance to win."

In addition to stingy defense, Vanderbilt benefited from some inopportune mistakes by a youthful Gators team. With the score tied 53-53 at the two-minute mark, Florida junior Walter Hodge elbowed A.J. Ogilvy, prompting a technical foul call.

Shan Foster made both of the free throws, which proved to be costly considering the lenient officiating. The Commodores didn't shoot their first free throw until there was 2:36 remaining in the game, but they managed seven in the final two minutes.

Foster views the clutch free throw shooting as a testament to the team's confidence late in the game.

"We really feel like we're the best team in the country when it comes to winning games down the stretch," said Foster, who led all scorers with 19 points. "The last three minutes of the game, that's probably the most comfortable we'll ever be."

Vandy exhibited that confidence when senior Alex Gordon hit two free throws to give Vandy a one-point lead, but Florida still had 24 seconds and a chance to win. Another costly mistake by Florida, a backcourt violation by Nick Calathes, gave the ball back to Vanderbilt. Florida native Alex Gordon went back to the free throw line and took care of business.

Freshman center Ogilvy added 12 points and eight rebounds for the Commodores, while Calathes and Marreese Speights led Florida with 11 points apiece.

Now Vanderbilt has a week off before hosting Georgia on Saturday. Despite the winning steak, Stallings is still grateful for the break.

"I don't know that any coach in the league would tell you they don't want to enjoy that Tuesday or Wednesday night, when everyone's beating up on each other and you get to sit and watch," Stallings said. "I like that a lot better than being the ones taking the abuse."

On Saturday, thankfully, that abuse resulted in a much-needed win.