Men’s Basketball: Three takeaways from Vanderbilt’s loss to Oklahoma – The Vanderbilt Hustler

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Men’s Basketball: Vanderbilt dominates Kentucky, wins 80-55 in Memorial Gymnasium
Men’s Basketball: Previewing Vanderbilt vs. Kentucky
Vanderbilt’s Men’s Basketball hosted the Oklahoma Sooners in Memorial Gymnasium on Saturday, Feb. 7, looking to extend its win streak to four. The Commodores were coming off a mid-week bye, and it certainly felt as though they had been without recent game time. Head coach Mark Byington’s squad never found its footing, falling into an early deficit before eventually losing the game, 92-91. 
The loss came after a three-game win streak for Vanderbilt and features yet another rough spot to an otherwise successful season. The ‘Dores will look to build as much momentum as they can throughout the upcoming stretch, as the SEC Tournament and March loom in the near future.  
In what has become a frequent analysis of this year’s Commodores, their slow and sluggish start in today’s game left them with a deficit they could not overcome. Head coach Mark Byington’s game plan almost always relies on an early lead. If the ‘Dores end up winning early, their guards can quickly and freely apply on-ball defensive pressure. 
As demonstrated today, Vanderbilt loses this identity when it starts slowly. When the Commodores start from behind, Byington’s guards dial back pressure and turn a proactive defense into reactive, less impactful pressure. When they lose early momentum, the Commodores no longer have the ability to speed their opponents up.  
Look for the first ten possessions of Vanderbilt Men’s basketball games to be extremely indicative of the game’s complete performance. If the Commodores can’t assert themselves early, they will struggle immensely to do so later in the game. They failed to start hot against the Sooners. 
Fifth-year guard Duke Miles missed his third game in a row, and his absence deeply impacts Vanderbilt’s offensive versatility. The Commodores’ offense relies heavily on both Tyler Tanner and Tyler Nickel; when Miles is out, that reliance becomes incredibly stark. 
Today, Tanner and Nickel missed a combined 21 shots. Tanner finished with a career-high 37 points, 26 of which came in the second half, but Vanderbilt’s offense still failed to find any consistent rhythm. As the game progressed, the Commodores’ offensive possessions frequently ended with a heavily contested shot attempt from either Tanner or Nickel.
There is no question that both of them are exceptionally talented, but without a multifaceted distributor like Miles, the ‘Dores fail to get the open shots and schemed shooting lanes that their offense is built around. That failure makes consistent offensive production almost impossible to achieve. 
The Commodores committed a combined 23 personal fouls today, a major reason Vanderbilt couldn’t claw back into the game. Both AK Okereke and Mike James reached the five-foul limit, and Tyler Tanner finished with four.  
Flirting with foul trouble takes away a natural defensive edge. In what is typically an aggressive man-to-man Commodore defense, the Sooners frequently found lanes to the basket, exposing a dwindling and ineffective Vanderbilt high press.  
This was Vanderbilt’s worst defensive performance of the season, and frequent fouling played a definite part in the Commodores’ passivity. 
The Commodores will look to bounce back early next week against Auburn, as they take on the Tigers on the road on Tuesday, Feb. 10, at 6 p.m. CST. 
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