Three Keys and a Prediction: Vanderbilt Basketball Vs. Georgia – Sports Illustrated

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NASHVILLE—Vanderbilt basketball has dropped two in a row and needs to get on track heading into a grueling stretch of three road games–two of which are against Kentucky and Tennessee–in the final week. But, it's got a favorable opportunity on Wednesday as Georgia comes to Memorial Gymnasium.
The Commodores are multiple-point favorites on Wednesday night. Here's what they've got to do in order to leave senior night happy.
Not too fast
Georgia is No. 15 in the country in tempo and is at the top of just about every raw, non-efficiency-related scoring metric in the country. That’s something that appears to be a hurdle for Vanderbilt on Saturday. 
The Bulldogs are going to want to make this thing into a track meet–and while Mark Byington wants to play up-tempo, Vanderbilt would be doing itself a disservice by not slowing down and going through its actions. 
Don’t let it become a track meet, Vanderbilt. 
Don’t let Somto Cyril by Somto Cyril
Cyril is the embodiment of everything that Vanderbilt may struggle with against this Georgia team–which is No. 29 in the country in offensive rebounding percentage. The Georgia big man is physical, supremely athletic and appears to be hard-nosed, as well. 
If you were to draw up a big that might give Vanderbilt trouble, it would likely be Cyril. He’s No. 6 in the country in two-point percentage, No. 58 in offensive rating and–although he may not get the ball every time down–he’s got a lot of the makings of a big that can get Devin McGlockton and Jalen Washington in foul trouble. 
Cyril has been in double figures in three of the last four games. 
Get Duke Miles going again
The best thing Vanderbilt can have happen for it long term on Wednesday is Duke Miles getting back to being Duke Miles. 
Miles went for double figures against Tennessee, but did it on 3-for-13 shooting. The Vanderbilt guard looked to be in game shape, but couldn’t find a shotmaking rhythm down the stretch on Saturday. Vanderbilt needs Miles to shake the rust of here and find his way back to being a dynamic gamechanger. 
“You can kinda just go with the stats,” Byington said before Miles return. “So, he gives us a lot on the offensive end. He gives us another ball handler along with Tyler Tanner, that kind of makes plays out there. And then his steals are impactful. He might have been leading the league in steals before he got hurt, I know the stats are different now, but he makes impact everywhere he goes.”
Prediction: Vanderbilt: 86, Georgia: 77
Georgia is an NCAA Tournament contender, but this Vanderbilt team can beat the Bulldogs at their own game and appears to be rounding into form as it holds senior night on Wednesday. A win appears to be tracking with logic here.
Joey Dwyer is the lead writer on Vanderbilt Commodores On SI. He found his first love in college sports at nearby Lipscomb University and decided to make a career of telling its best stories. He got his start doing a Notre Dame basketball podcast from his basement as a 14-year-old during COVID and has since aimed to make that 14-year-old proud. Dwyer has covered Vanderbilt sports for three years and previously worked for 247 Sports and Rivals. He contributes to Seth Davis' Hoops HQ, Basket Under Review and Mainstreet Nashville.
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