Vanderbilt’s Tuesday night matchup with Memphis looked tight at halftime, but the Commodores turned the second half into a runaway. After trailing by just five at the break, Vanderbilt exploded for 58 points after halftime and rolled to a 105-81 win to improve to 3-0.
The biggest swing came from Ace Glass. He was held scoreless in the first half and coughed it up three times, but the second half belonged to him.
Glass poured in 23 points over the final 20 minutes and knocked down five shots from beyond the arc, finishing as Vanderbilt’s leading scorer. Tyler Tanner added 17 points and gave the Commodores another strong offensive night, but Glass was the engine behind the blowout.
Vanderbilt also got a strong showing from its frontcourt. Berke Buyuktuncel posted 16 points, eight rebounds and four assists, while Sebastian Williams-Adams scored 11 and Bangot Dak added 11 off the bench. That kind of production gave the Commodores another layer behind their guards, and it helped them reach 100 points against a quality opponent.
There was also a bright spot from the freshman group. Gabe Nesmith was hurt, and Ethan Mgbako played only two minutes, but Ant Brown Jr. made the most of his time on the floor.
In 12 minutes off the bench, he scored six points and matched a team high with four assists. Having another ball-handler to ease the load on Glass and Tanner gives Vanderbilt another option in the rotation, and Brown looked like a real part of that mix on Tuesday night.
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Former Memphis Fan Favorite Just Tapped Into A Tigers Debate
Nathaniel Roots return to campus brought a familiar face back into the conversation around Memphis basketball, and he had plenty to say beyond memories of his playing days from 2000 to 2003. The former Tigers guard talked through his career, the lessons he carried from it and how much the college game has changed since he wore the jersey, offering a perspective that still resonates with fans who remember him as part of an earlier era of the program.
Root also weighed in on one of the sports biggest ongoing debates, pointing to NIL and the transfer landscape as factors that have altered player loyalty in ways that would have been hard to imagine when he played. He touched on the influence John Calipari and Penny Hardaway have had on Memphis, and while he made clear he sees progress in the program, his comments left plenty of room for the larger question of where college basketball is headed next. [Read more 🡒]
Memphis Just Exposed A Defensive Problem Penny Hardaway Must Fix
Memphis first loss of the season came with a reminder that the Tigers still have some real work to do on the defensive end. No. 19 Vanderbilt controlled the night in a 105-81 win, beating Memphis on the glass 44-29 and piling up 15 three-pointers in a game that exposed how quickly things can unravel when the Tigers are chasing from behind.
The result was one thing, but the injury scares involving Luke Almodovar and Jayden Reid added another layer of concern. Almodovar briefly lost consciousness before later saying he was all right, and Reid also had to be checked during the game, leaving Penny Hardaway with more than just a lopsided loss to sort through as Memphis moves on from its first setback. [Read more 🡒]
Memphis First Loss Exposed A Rotation Problem Fans Cant Ignore
Memphis first loss of the season came with a jolt, and it arrived in a game that already had a different feel because the Tigers were without suspended center Nemanja Popovic. Vanderbilts 105-81 win exposed how much the rotation can change when one of the frontcourt pieces is missing, and it left Memphis searching for answers after a night that got away from it early.
Luke Almodovar led the Tigers with 21 points before briefly leaving after a head injury, then quickly returning to the bench, while Brandin Cummings gave Memphis a lift with nine points off the bench. Even with that small step forward from Cummings, the Tigers did not find enough scoring balance or stability to keep pace, and the larger concern now is how the group responds the next time the lineup is tested. [Read more 🡒]