Saint Louis Outlasts Vanderbilt, 57-49, in Sloppy Affair in Nashville

Vanderbilt led for most of Monday night's matchup against Saint Louis. Unfortunately, the Commodores couldn't come up when it mattered most, falling to the Billikens 57-49 in a non-conference matchup.

Vanderbilt faltered late as the SLU defense kept the 'Dores at bay, leading the Billikens to their 12th win of the season.. Vandy led by three with under five minutes to play, but Saint Louis came back with a 12-0 run to effectively close this one out with under a minute to play.

Damian Jones led the 'Dores with 12 points and five rebounds, but was unable to score in the paint when Vandy needed baskets as the clock wound down. The team collectively shot just 33.9 percent from the field in the loss. They also committed 17 turnovers against a stout SLU defense.

The loss was a familiar one for Commodore fans in 2013. The 'Dores held late leads over both Butler and Providence this year, but were unable to hold their momentum in either game to record a big out-of-conference win. This team has shown plenty of promise despite losing three key players from last season's squad, but they have had difficulty closing out these opportunities to record a quality win.

The Commodores fell to 7-4 on the season with the loss. Vanderbilt will have one last non-conference game before taking on SEC competition. They'll host Northeastern at home this Saturday.