Three-point barrage isn’t enough as Vanderbilt loses 92-81 to SMU

The Vanderbilt Commodores didn’t wait long to extend their streak of games with a made three-pointer to 1,077 games, with Dylan Disu making a corner three on the team’s first offensive possession — but then the Commodores settled in for a cold stretch, missing six of their next seven from behind the arc as they could get nothing going on the offense end early. Meanwhile, SMU’s Ethan Chargois came out on fire, scoring ten points before the first media timeout of the game. Things were going so poorly that with 12:55 left in the first half, we got a rarity: a Jerry Stackhouse timeout, with SMU leading 20-8 and the Commodores ice cold.

Out of the timeout, Aaron Nesmith connected for his second three of the game, sparking a 10-0 run to bring the Commodores right back into it. But SMU responded with a 6-0 run to get its lead back out to 29-21, thanks to opening the game shooting 11-of-17 from the floor and 5-of-7 from three in the game’s first twelve minutes.

The Mustangs cooled off, though, and Aaron Nesmith’s fifth three of the first half just before the buzzer sent the teams into the break tied at 40. Maxwell Evans gave Vanderbilt its first lead since 3-2 with a three-pointer to open the second frame, and after SMU got the lead back, Ejike Obinna scored on a putback and then made two free throws on the next possession to get the Commodores the lead back, before Nesmith hit another three and forced an SMU timeout with 16:22 left and Vanderbilt holding a 52-47 lead. Another Nesmith three and a Scotty Pippen Jr. three extended it to 58-47.

SMU responded with an 8-0 run, stopped by another three from Pippen. Vanderbilt would extend its lead out to 72-57 on Nesmith’s career-best eighth three-pointer, though like the Davidson game on Monday night, the Commodores would go cold — and SMU had a run left in them. With Vanderbilt holding a 77-71 lead in the final minute, SMU’s Tyson Jolly cut the lead in half with a three — and then Vanderbilt turned it over on the inbounds, leading to a tying three by Isiaha Mike. Vanderbilt had a chance to win in regulation, but Scotty Pippen Jr. fired up a contested 23-footer at the buzzer that bounced off the rim.

The Commodores’ cold snap continued in the extra period, as Vanderbilt scored just four points and SMU pulled away for a 92-81 win. Aaron Nesmith finished the game with 29 points and Vanderbilt as a team shot 15-of-35 from three-point range, but it wasn’t enough as the Commodores dropped to 8-5 on the season.