NASHVILLE -- After losing by 16 to Texas on Wednesday, Vanderbilt fell by four points to the reigning National Champion Florida Gators at home Saturday. These t
NASHVILLE -- After losing by 16 to Texas on Wednesday, Vanderbilt fell by four points to the reigning National Champion Florida Gators at home Saturday. These two losses are the only two on the record so far this year for the Commodores, who now sit at 16-2.
It was a back-and-forth first half with both teams having a few scoring runs. Florida had the biggest run of the first half with a 13-0 streak, but an offensive rebound and buzzer-beater mid-range make from Jalen Washington gave the Commodores a one-point halftime lead. It was more of the same in the second as both teams found themselves in foul trouble early in the half. There were a collective 35 free throws shot in the second half, but in the end, Florida was able to squeak out the win.The Commodores gave up 98 points to an excellent rebounding Florida team. The Gators out-rebounded Vanderbilt 40 to 26. Head coach Mark Byington praised how good the Gators are on the glass. “You know, I think coming to the game, they might have been the best rebounding team in the country. If not, they're close. And so, there was a major focus in our short preparation to be able to get ready to try to do the best we can, and it's tough. I mean, the ball goes up, and they come whaling on you. I mean, they're pushing and grabbing and everything else, and you've got to hold your ground,” Byington said.The Commodores team that typically makes more than 10 threes per game this season on average was held to just eight tonight, and Florida, which averages just over seven, outshot its norm by two, hitting nine three pointers. They found success behind the arc from players whom they normally wouldn’t. “I mean a lot of it was getting misses back… But another part of it is, sometimes guys just hit tough shots. They hit some tough contested, step back, threes and stuff that historically, throughout the year, they had not made. And then they have guys that in certain percentages that we want to shoot. And certain guys are making shots, that they haven't made all year. It's not that we played perfect defensively, but sometimes guys have days that you know it is what it is,” said Commodores sharpshooter, Tyler Nickel.If this Vanderbilt team wants to fight for an SEC title, they are going to have to correct some things from this game. The Commodores head to Fayetteville, Arkansas, on Wednesday night for another tough matchup with John Calipari’s Razorbacks at 8 p.m. on ESPN.Tyler Jorden is currently interning with Vanderbilt Commodores on SI. He's currently studying Sports Media at nearby Lipscomb University in Nashville. Tyler has worked with ESPN, announcing live sporting events. He enjoys watching all sports, has a love for great crowd atmospheres at live games and is the president of the Lippy Lunatics student fall group at Lipscomb.Rebounding Struggles Continue in Vanderbilt Basketball’s Second Consecutive Loss
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