Free Live Odds - Scores and Odds - Sports News - Sports Information - Live Scores - Sports Statistics - Sports Articles - Sports Standings - Live Scor

GAME NOTES: The Mississippi State Bulldogs and the 20th-ranked Vanderbilt Commodores are set to collide in the semifinal round of the 2010 SEC Tournament.

Tomorrow, the winner of this contest will take on either Kentucky or Tennessee for the championship.

The Commodores struggled early against Georgia in yesterday's quarterfinal game, but the team proved superior in the second half and knocked off the Bulldogs by a 78-66 final. Vanderbilt, the second seed from the East Division, earned its lone SEC Tournament title way back in 1951, by far the longest drought of any of the teams that have won the crown. The Commodores are 30-47 in this event, but this year's team is one of the best in recent memory. Vandy is 24-7 overall and went 12-4 in conference during the regular season.

Mississippi State, the top seed from the West Conference, knocked off Florida yesterday by a 75-69 final in the quarterfinal round. Considering the fact that the club closed out the regular season with back-to-back losses, fans of the Bulldogs were happy to see the solid performance against the Gators. MSU, which is 22-10 overall, is the defending champion of this event, as it defeated Tennessee in a 64-61 final in the 2009 title game, and the program has three SEC crowns to its credit. Still, the 26-46 record at this event is poor.

Vanderbilt won its only regular-season meeting with Mississippi State, 75-72, and the Commodores own a 72-43 advantage in the all-time series.

Yesterday, Vanderbilt earned a 43-32 rebounding advantage over Georgia and limited the Bulldogs to 3-of-16 shooting from three-point range, two obvious keys to victory. The Commodores shot an impressive 9-of-18 from three-point range and got solid contributions from several individuals. John Jenkins, a freshman guard, was sensational for Vanderbilt, as he poured in a career-high 25 points on the strength of a 5-of-8 effort from three-point range. Jenkins took the game over in the second stanza, scoring 22 of his points over the final 20 minutes. Jermaine Beal tallied 16 points and six assists, while A.J. Ogilvy registered 10 points. Andre Walker only scored six points, but he did grab 10 rebounds for Vandy. The Commodores are scoring 78.1 ppg while allowing 69.2 ppg to foes. Beal leads the well-balanced club with 14.8 ppg, and Ogilvy checks in with 13.8 ppg and 6.3 rpg. Jeffery Taylor (13.5 ppg) and Jenkins (11.0 ppg) are both talented scorers.

Barry Stewart scored 17 points to lead the Bulldogs to the six-point victory over Florida in the quarterfinal round. Jarvis Varnado added 15 points for Mississippi State, while Ravern Johnson tallied 12 points. Both Dee Bost and Kodi Augustus posted 10 points apiece for the Bulldogs, and the balanced scoring was key to the victory. Mississippi State opened the game with a 10-0 run and led 39-28 at intermission. The squad led by as many 19 points in the second half, but Florida ripped off 14 unanswered points and made the game much closer than it should have been. MSU tied an SEC Tournament record by hitting 10 three-pointers in the contest, as the club finished 10-of-20 from behind the arc. While the Bulldogs suffered a 32-20 rebounding disadvantage in the tilt, they were able to knock down 57.1 percent of their field goal attempts on the night. Overall this season, MSU is scoring 72.8 ppg while limiting opponents to 64.5 ppg. Both Johnson and Varnado entered this tournament averaging 13.5 ppg, but Varnado has gotten most of the attention, especially considering the fact that he recently became the NCAA's all-time leader in blocked shots.

MSU is a well-balanced team, but expect Varnado to be the man who garners the headlines today. The big man, who has been named the SEC Defensive Player of the Year for the third straight season, will be a force in the paint at both ends of the floor and lead his Bulldogs back to the title game.