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Search for defense continues for Vanderbilt against Rice

Jan 3, 2008 - 3:13 PM Rice (3-8) at No. 15 Vanderbilt (13-0) 8:00 pm EST

NASHVILLE, Tennessee (Ticker) -- No. 15 Vanderbilt has had no trouble scoring this season. However, its defense has been an issue.

Vanderbilt looks to step up its play on the defensive end of the floor Thursday when its hosts Rice.

The Commodores are tied with Tennessee for the fourth highest scoring offense in the nation, averaging 87.4 points per game.

But Vanderbilt is giving up 76 points a contest while allowing the opposition to shot at least 40 percent from the floor in 10 of 13 games this season.

Despite victories in its last two games, Vanderbilt allowed Iona and Tennessee-Martin to shoot 49 percent from the field. But the pair of wins lifted the Commodores to their best start in school history, surpassing the 2003-04 team which started 12-0 and made it all the way to the regional semifinals of the NCAA tournament.

Shan Foster and Andrew Ogilvy each scored 20 points for Vanderbilt en route to a 97-73 victory over Iona on Monday. Foster is averaging a team-high 20.1 points per game this season while Ogilvy, who was named SEC Freshman of the Week, is averaging 19.2 points.

The Commodores defense should look better against Rice, which is averaging just 58.1 points per game and is coming off its worst offense performance of the season - a 68-41 setback to No. 12 Texas A&M on Monday.