Though the Badgers started off with an explosive 17-2 run against the Vanderbilt Commodores, they ultimately fell 67-58 in Wednesday's contest at the Kohl Center.
The Badgers dominated the first eight minutes of the game with their stout defense and efficient shooting, eventually leading the Commodores by 15 and holding them to under 25 percent shooting.
While there was much optimism in the building after the 12 minute mark in the first half, the Commodores persisted, capping off a 13-4 run and closing the lead quickly. Vanderbilt redshirt freshman guard Rebekah Dahlman led this comeback as she scored 12 points, and the Commodores were only down by seven points by the end of the first half.
The Commodores’ persistence continued in the second half, as they tied up the score at the 11:44 mark on freshman forward Audrey-Ann Caron-Goudreau’s layup. The layup seemed to be the turning point of the game.
From then on, the Badgers struggled with turnovers on offense as they could not adjust to the Commodores’ new established zone defense.
Head coach Bobbie Kelsey agreed that the team had a tough time against the new style of defense and suggested that “it’s just recognition and you have to recognize what’s open and not force things thats not there.”
Senior forward Jacki Gulczynski saw the “energy kind of dropping” after the beginning of the second half as the Commodores began to pull away.
Eventually, the Commodores were up by 11 points at the 3:12 mark and the Badgers simply could not find a new way to get their mojo back.
In the first half, the Badgers scored 41 points and shot 54.8 percent from the field, but in the second half they were held to 17 points and only shot 28.6 percent in the field.
While the loss does sting for the players and fans, Gulczynski asserts that she “has no doubt we’ll be fine” and there is much optimism for the team as one of their top players, junior guard Nicole Bauman, was on the sidelines tonight due to an ankle sprain.
Kelsey agreed that Bauman “is a big part of what we’re doing” and that the team missed her tonight.
Redshirt senior forward Michala Johnson led the Badgers with 17 points, while Dahlman topped Vanderbilt with 18 points.
The Badgers will try to shake this loss off and improve their record to 2-1 when they face Drake in Des Moines, Iowa this Sunday.
