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

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No. 25 Vanderbilt (22-6, 9-6 SEC) traveled to Rupp Arena on Saturday, Feb. 28, to take on Kentucky (18-10, 9-6 SEC) in the teams’ second meeting of the season. In their first matchup, the Commodores secured their largest victory over the Wildcats since 2008, coming away with an 80-55 victory in Memorial Gymnasium. This time around, in a tough road environment, it was a much different story. 
The Black and Gold found themselves in a hole very early on, as their only lead came at the 19:26 mark in the first half with a score of 3-2. Kentucky’s lead grew exponentially throughout the first half, and it held strong for the full 40 minutes for a near wire-to-wire victory for the ’Cats. Tyler Tanner was his usual self, efficiently earning a solid 19 points and 4 assists, but the ’Dores’ production was otherwise lackluster. 
Let’s take a look at what contributed to Vanderbilt’s blowout road loss in this one. 
Coming out flat 
Something that began as uncharacteristic for Vanderbilt has recently become a commonality in its losses: slow starts. This one was no different, as the Commodores were in a 10-point deficit less than seven minutes into the game. Kentucky’s lead ballooned to 15 just four minutes later and again snowballed to 20 before the end of the first half. 
While the ’Dores found some offense at points in the second half, they could never cut the lead to single digits. They dug their own grave in this contest, and graves are increasingly tougher to crawl out of when they are dug so deeply. Ultimately, head coach Mark Byington’s squad couldn’t get within reach to turn this game’s story from a dominant Kentucky win to a monumental Vanderbilt comeback. 
Similar trends arose in the Oklahoma and Missouri losses, and even though the final scores were tighter in each of those, the same narrative existed. Stumbling out of the gate will make winning incredibly difficult, especially in the SEC. The Commodores have two more games to right the ship and end the season on a strong note, and they’ll need to come out stronger in those to stand a chance at winning. 
Lost beyond the arc 
44.5% of Vanderbilt’s field goal attempts come from beyond the arc. Whether you like it or not, the Black and Gold live and die from deep. Against Kentucky, they did not stay alive. 
Knocking down just 7 of their 28 attempts from deep, the Commodores shot 25% from downtown — over 10% lower than their average 3-point percentage this season. Tyler Nickel went 3-for-12 from behind the line, Tanner went 0-3 and both Devin McGlockton and Chandler Bing went 0-2. In the deepest conference in America, this type of shooting night simply will not lead to winning. 
On the other hand, Kentucky cashed in on 50% of its looks from deep, draining 11 3-pointers en route to a comfortable victory. Sophomore guard Collin Chandler was especially productive, going 6-for-8 from beyond the arc, with five of those makes coming in the first half alone. 
Typically, the ’Dores limit opposing teams to shoot just 30.2% from 3-point range, which ranks 32nd in Division I. Perhaps this was just an “on night” for the Wildcats, and there was nothing truly wrong with Vanderbilt’s perimeter defense. Despite this, the reality remains that the Commodores will not be able to win games with this large of a discrepancy in 3-point efficiency and volume. 
As the regular season nears the finish line, Nickel, Tanner, Duke Miles and the rest of the squad will need to make sure they’re able to find their usual production from beyond the arc to stay competitive. 
Turnovers tell the tale 
The box score won’t tell you this one, as Vanderbilt and Kentucky finished with the same number of turnovers: 11. Even points off turnovers don’t tell enough of the story for this game, as the ’Cats outmatched the ’Dores by a mere 17-12 margin in this category. 
If you were watching the game, though, you’d know how crucial some of Vanderbilt’s turnovers were. In the first half alone, the Wildcats picked up 11 points off the Commodores’ 6 turnovers. How many points did Vanderbilt score in transition? None. As described above, the first-half deficit was insurmountable for the Black and Gold, largely due to the turnover differential. 
Scrutinizing the turnovers even more, it’s clear how influential live-ball giveaways can be on the road. A bad pass, a sloppy dribble move or a weak drive to the basket can lead to the other team easily getting out in transition for quick baskets. Kentucky was able to do just that, with Otega Oweh and Chandler scoring easy layups on the fastbreak after Vanderbilt turnovers. 
Byington and Co. will need to clean things up if they hope to remain a top-five seed, where they are currently projected as of now. Selection Sunday is looming and just two weeks away, but there’s still time for the Commodores to right the ship. 
Vanderbilt will look to get back on track on Tuesday, March 3, when it once again will be on the road to face Ole Miss in Oxford, Miss. 
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