Melanie Balcomb has seen first-hand the difficulty of facing LSU’s No. 2 rated scoring defense in her seven seasons coaching Vanderbilt.LSU (9-6, 2-1) had held Vanderbilt (14-4, 3-0) to just less than 56 points per game in the teams’ last four match ups. The Lady Tigers rank No. 2 nationally in scoring defense this season, allowing 49.9 points per game.So with clean looks at the basket figuring to be at a premium for No. 18 Vanderbilt on Sunday, Balcomb’s Lady Commodores attacked the boards and out-rebounded LSU on the offensive glass, 21-8, to score 18 second-chance points en route to a 75-67 Vanderbilt win.”We were able to get a lot of offensive rebounds, and that led to  second-chance points,” Balcomb said in her postgame press conference. “If we can rebound on the offensive end like we did [Sunday] in every game this year, we will have a great chance to win.”The Lady Tigers jumped out to an early 18-10 lead midway through the opening half.LSU’s interior trio — freshmen Courtney Jones, LaSondra Barrett and Ayana Dunning — opened the game showing no early jitters from their second Southeastern Conference road game and scored 16 of LSU’s first 18 points.Dunning led the trio for the game and scored 20 points and pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds.But Vanderbilt’s bench helped spark a 21-12 run to give Vanderbilt a 31-30 halftime lead.The Lady Commodores’ reserves outscored the Lady Tigers’ bench, 13-0, in the opening half and 20-0 for the game.LSU’s reserves were shorthanded, as sophomore guard Katherine Graham was out because of a knee injury sustained in Wednesday’s win against the University of New Orleans.Jones filled Graham’s spot in the starting lineup, which gave the Lady Tigers problems filling the role Jones usually fills as the team’s top reserve.The Lady Commodores stretched their lead to seven early in the second half.Dunning hit a jump shot with a little more than 11 minutes to play to push LSU to within 3 points with 11:13 to play in the game.But the Lady Commodores went on a 9-2 run during the next three minutes to keep LSU at a distance for the remainder of the game.The Lady Tigers shot 49 percent from the floor to just 38 percent for the Lady Commodores.But 20 LSU turnovers and 21 Vanderbilt offensive rebounds allowed the Lady Commodores to attempt 15 more shots than the Lady Tigers for the game.”The two things that hurt us [Sunday] were 21 offensive boards and 20 turnovers,”  LSU coach Van Chancellor said after the game. “We have to get a lot tougher and more physical on the road.” Senior forward Christina Wirth led the Lady Commodores’ offense with 17 points.
 
 
 
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