Wake Forest at No. 24 Vanderbilt Basketball: Game Central Rundown – Sports Illustrated

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NASHVILLE — Vanderbilt basketball is back on the court for the second time this week.
The Commodores began their season Monday night with a convincing 93-47 victory over Bellarmine to start off the third season under head coach Mark Byington. Tonight, Vanderbilt faces its first intriguing test of the season as it hosts Wake Forest.
This year’s matchup is the back half of a home-and-home series that began last season. The Commodores went to Wake Forest in 2025 and dominated the Demon Deacons. Now, they will look to sweep the series.
Vanderbilt and Wake Forest are scheduled to kickoff at 5 p.m. CT on ESPN2. Here is all the information you need to know before tonight’s tipoff.
If a player goes down during the game, we'll keep tabs on it and share any and all updates.
– The biggest injury news is the status of Vanderbilt freshman guard Gabe Nesmith. Nesmith missed the season-opener Monday and was seen on a scooter with a wrap on his right leg. After the win, Mark Byington said that Nesmith had surgery and will be out for a “couple of months” with the potential of Nesmith’s injury being season-ending.
Who: Wake Forest (1-0) vs. No. 24 Vanderbilt (1-0)
When: Thursday, Nov. 5, 5 p.m. CT
Where: Memorial Gymnasium, Nashville, Tenn.
TV: ESPN2
Series History: Vanderbilt leads the all-time series over Wake Forest 3-2.
Last time out, Vanderbilt: Vanderbilt won its first game of the new season over Bellarmine 93-47
Last time out, Wake Forest: Wake Forest took down Maryland Eastern Shore 83-62 in its season-opener.
Spread: Vanderbilt -16.5 points
Over/Under: 153.5 points
Source: FanDuel Sportsbook
Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER
Coming out of the win over Bellarmine, Vanderbilt’s defense was perhaps the biggest talking point and its potential going forward. It was a dominating effort that included a 50-7 scoring run. Read Graham Baakko’s story on how the Commodores demonstrated their defensive ceiling.
With the blowout win Monday, it feels like a little bit of a new era in Nashville. It is the overwhelming era for Vanderbilt basketball. Read Joey Dwyer’s column on what Vanderbilt’s win over Bellarmine really says about the program this season.
Vanderbilt guard T.O Barrett is going to be a vital piece off the bench this season for the Commodores and it showed in the game Monday. Here is Joey Dwyer’s story on why Barrett has to do more than just score off the bench.
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Graham Baakko is a writer for Vanderbilt Commodores On SI, primarily covering football, basketball and baseball. Graham is a recent graduate from the University of Alabama, where he wrote for The Crimson White, WVUA-FM, WVUA 23 as he covered a variety of Crimson Tide sports. He also covered South Carolina athletics as a sportswriting intern for GamecockCentral.
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