The No.5-seeded Vanderbilt Commodores (19-12) and Tennessee Volunteers (14-18) meet in the second round of the SEC tournament at Bridgestone Arena. Action begins at 3:25 pm ET on Thursday, Mar. 10 and can be seen on SEC and ES3.
The Commodores are hoping for a better outcome after their 76-67 loss to Texas A&M in their last matchup. Wade Baldwin IV was the team’s leading scorer with 11 points. The Volunteers, meanwhile, are coming off a 97-59 win against Auburn in the 1. Armani Moore was the game’s top scorer, accounting for 22 points on 10-for-13 shooting.
Over the last five games, Damian Jones has taken his game to another level for the Commodores, averaging 16.4 points, 8.0 rebounds, 1.0 assist, and 1.0 block.
The Vanderbilt defense could make it difficult on Tennessee’s shooters. It ranks second in the nation in forcing misses (opponents’ eFG% of 43.0%), while the Tennessee offense is 266th with a mark of 48.0%.
The Commodores have emerged victorious in both games against the Volunteers this year, but lost their most recent matchup, an 86-69 blowout. In the victory, Moore led all scorers with 22 points.
Notes
In its last game, Tennessee won by a margin of 38 points. Vanderbilt is 9-1 in games decided by a margin of 18 points or more. Tennessee has a 4-3 record in blowouts.
The Vanderbilt Commodores have a defensive rating of 97.7 (ranked 18th), while the Tennessee Volunteers have an offensive rating of 107.3 (ranked 144th).
The Vanderbilt Commodores average a field goal percentage of 46.1% this season. The Tennessee Volunteers have an abysmal record of 1-10 when opponents have a FG% of 46.1% or greater.
On average, the Vanderbilt Commodores attempt 21.0 three point field goals per game and the Tennessee Volunteers attempt 22.0. In games where they attempt at least 20 threes, Vanderbilt is 11-9, while Tennessee has a poor record of 9-15.
Vanderbilt ranks 60th in the nation with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.27, while Tennessee ranks 90th with an A/TO of 1.21.
Vanderbilt ranks 65th in rebounds per game with 38.5 and Tennessee ranks 81st with 38.1 rebounds per game.
The Tennessee Volunteers average 5.4 steals per game. When giving up 5 or more steals, the Vanderbilt Commodores are an even 10-10 this season.
