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

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Vanderbilt Men’s Basketball (21-5, 8-5 SEC) fell short to Missouri (18-8, 8-5 SEC) on Wednesday evening in Columbia, 81-80. Despite another slow start from the Commodores, the team was able to rally late, scoring 42 of their 80 points in the last 10 minutes of the game. However, this effort wasn’t enough to hold off the Tigers from getting a much-needed win in their case for an NCAA Tournament berth. 
The loss ended the Vanderbilt’s two-game win streak, leaving them with uncertainties as the looming SEC Tournament nears. Both teams now sit at 8-5 in conference play and look ahead to important games, which could decide which programs receive the greatly sought-after bye seeds in the SEC Tournament. 
End of season pressure 
With the loss, the Commodores sit tied for sixth in the SEC conference standings. With just five games left in the regular season, every game plays a crucial role in the Commodores’ postseason seeding hopes. As a top 20 team, the Commodores started the season off hot, but as pressure built, they have been unable to remain perfect. While their offensive efficiency has remained consistent, especially from the beyond the arc, the Commodores’ lack of size in the frontcourt has allowed teams like Missouri to establish a strong inside presence and punish from the paint, forcing help offense to open 3-point opportunities. The Tigers capitalized, shooting 50% from beyond the arc and 44.2% from 2-point range. 
While the Tigers secured a much-needed win for their March resume, the Commodores lost another game in which they were expected to come out victorious. Mark Byington’s squad will need to re-evaluate their game plan entering their last few important in-conference games, before they face postseason play. 
Foul trouble 
The Commodores faced foul trouble from an important piece in their inside presence, Devin McGlockton, who received two flagrant-1 fouls throughout the duration of the game. McGlockton’s first flagrant came 10 minutes into the ballgame, where he was called for taking down Missouri’s Jayden Stone on an inbound play. Later in the game, McGlockton was called again during a crucial momentum-swinging run for the Commodores, where he was involved in significant contact under the basket. This led to the star forward sitting for good portions of the second half. 
Both instances hurt the Commodores in more ways than one, as their lack of bench depth without star Duke Miles hurt the team’s stamina late in the game. Furthermore, Missouri benefited in both of these instances with two free throws and the ball back, which hurt Vanderbilt’s comeback push late. Ultimately, with a lack of size from the start, McGlockton facing foul trouble stalled momentum for the ’Dores throughout the remainder of the game. 
Late game rally 
Despite scoring just eight points in the first nine minutes of the second half, the Commodores were able to rally behind Tyler Tanner (27 pts) and cut the lead to just 1 by the final buzzer. Even coming up short, Tanner continued to display his case as one of the best point guards in the SEC, taking over on the offensive front, which was similarly shown in their comeback against Oklahoma Feb. 7th.
Vanderbilt has comes out of the gates slow multiple times this season, and playing from behind certainly does not fit their offensive identity. While the squad has been able to create late-game rallies, they add another loss in a play-from-behind game. 
However, the Commodores have shown their ability to make clutch shots late, as Tyler Nickel cut the lead to 1 point with a rushed triple with 1.8 seconds remaining. The team also showed many signs of increased offensive aggression, with Tanner drawing two 3-point plays in their effort. This increased poise could help the ’Dores in close postseason matchups down the road. 
The Commodores will face Tennessee Saturday, Feb. 18, at 1 p.m. CST in Memorial Gymnasium.  
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