Kentucky Returns the Favor, Vanderbilt Dominated in Rupp
Earlier this season, the Commodores and Wildcats squared off in Memorial Gym. Vanderbilt blitzed Kentucky and cruised to an 80-55 victory. With just three regular-season games remaining, the two teams now sat tied in the SEC standings at 9-6. Both teams had struggled as of late, but picked up victories recently and hoped to carry that momentum forward into this matchup and down the home stretch.
The summary of this game is simple. Kentucky played better at the beginning of the game, the middle of the game, and the end of the game. Kentucky Dominated Vanderbilt from start to finish and won 91-77 in Rupp Arena.
The Wildcats came out hot, shooting 10-15 from the field and 5-8 from behind the arc through the first 10 minutes of game action. Collin Chandler was particularly lethal, going 3-3 from behind the arc early and 6-8 overall. Uncharacteristic bad turnovers plagued the Commodores in the first half and throughout the game as a whole. Vanderbilt committed 6 turnovers in the first half, resulting in 11 Kentucky points. The Wildcats committed just three turnovers and the Commodores were unable to convert any into points. Kentucky led 42-22 with 3:46 remaining in the half before the Commodores made a quick run. Duke Miles and Jalen Washington cut the lead to 42-29 over the next two minutes and it felt like Vanderbilt may be able to carry some momentum into half. Kentucky sharpshooter Collin Chandler quickly put a stop to that.
Vanderbilt trailed 46-31 entering halftime. Kentucky shot 9-16 (56%) from behind the arc, while Vanderbilt shot just 2-11 (18%). Collin Chandler led all scorers at half with 15 points.
The second half was more of the same. Vanderbilt and Kentucky traded baskets. Every time it seemed like Vanderbilt might put together a run, Kentucky would knock down a shot or force a turnover. The Commodores cut the lead to 15 with just over 8 minutes remaining but were unable to pick up stops consistently throughout the entire game. Vanderbilt put on full court pressure late, but Kentucky cruised to a 91-77 victory. A disappointing performance from the Vanderbilt Commodores, who felt like they got back into rhythm a bit in their previous game against Georgia.
Kentucky shot 59% from the field and 50% from three as a team. It would be easy to say “Kentucky was just hot today” or “the defense was terrible”. I think the truth, in boring fashion, is somewhere in the middle. Vanderbilt’s defense was uninspired today. Too many open looks for Kentucky shooters and too many easy buckets. But the opposing team has to hit those open looks, and the Wildcats were more than up to the task. On top of knocking down open looks, Kentucky moved the ball well and hit some high difficulty shots. Collin Chandler and Otega Oweh both scored a game-high 23 points, while Denzel Aberdeen also knocked down three three-pointers.
Another stat that jumps out – Kentucky shot 20-25 from the free throw line while Vanderbilt shot just 10-11. While normal gripes can be had with referees, this was a case of one team playing aggressively while the other team played passively. Kentucky was the aggressor in all facets of the game, but particularly forced the issue on offense. Vanderbilt also had a lot of uncharacteristic turnovers that resulted in easy Kentucky points. The Commodores need to regroup and get ready for Ole Miss.
Vanderbilt takes on Ole Miss Tuesday, March 3rd, at 8pm on SECN+.
Box Score
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