Vanderbilt got a much needed win last night, defeating outmatched Longwood 99-71 to improve to 7-4 on the season.
Jeffery Taylor continued his torrid streak in non-conference play, scoring 29 points in just 23 minutes against a Lancer squad that couldn't handle him. In his last three games against lower-level competition, he's averaged 26.3 points, five rebounds, and 2.7 three-pointers per game. Unfortunately, his strong performance couldn't translate into a home win on Saturday, where the Commodores lost to Indiana State.
Lance Goulbourne had a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds, while John Jenkins scored 19 points in a relatively inefficient performance from the All-SEC guard. However, the win may not have been enough to wash out the bad taste of this season's four non-conference losses.
Vanderbilt failed to impress against an underperforming team, but still left Memorial with a 28 point win. The 'Dores missed opportunities to control the glass against the diminutive Lancers and failed to get solid performances from the bench during a gain that afforded the starters plenty of time to rest. Vandy improved to 4-3 at home, a mark that suggests that Memorial Gym isn't having its usual effect on visiting teams in 2011.
The 'Dores got some validation from across the midwest when Davidson knocked off #11 Kansas. Vanderbilt defeated the Wildcats last week in a tough road contest, and that win will help validate their early season-schedule. Unfortunately, a whipping at the hands of Cleveland State and three come-from-ahead losses versus Xavier, Louisville, and Indiana State have sucked this team's momentum away. Last night's win against Longwood did nothing to prove that this team is learning from mistakes, or that they can score in the final five minutes of close ballgames. Unfortunately for Commodore fans, we won't get a chance to see if this team is learning until next week's showdown at #10 Marquette.