Anchor Drop, November 18, 2023: Is there such a thing as an easy win?

Good morning.

Optional Musical Accompaniment

Vanderbilt men’s basketball won its third straight game last night after a season-opening loss to Presbyterian. They beat Central Arkansas 75-71 in a game where they were a 19.5-point favorite, so that’s good. All three of Vanderbilt’s wins have been by single digits, and they’ve dropped from 77 to 133 in KenPom since the season started.

(Although apparently beating UNC Greensboro is an accomplishment, as the Spartans went into Bud Walton Arena last night and beat Arkansas, something that Vanderbilt does basically never.)

Vanderbilt bowling lost three of its five Baker matches at the Hawk Classic and yet finished the first day in third place, thanks to going completely nuclear in the two wins. Day 2 starts at 9:05 AM CT.

Bad Gambling Advice

Yesterday: 3-7-1 ATS, 5-3-3 totals; season to date: 31-19-1 ATS, 26-22-2 totals

• Mississippi State vs. Washington State (11:00 AM CT, ESPN+): Washington State +7.5, Under 132.5

Sports on TV (non-college football edition)

All times Central. College basketball schedule here.

• 10:00 AM: NHL: Wild vs. Senators (NHL Network)
• 12:00 PM: PGA Tour: RSM Classic, Third Round (Golf Channel)
• 6:00 PM: NHL: Islanders at Flames (NHL Network)
• 7:00 PM: NBA: Mavericks at Bucks (NBA TV)

Scoreboard

SEC Men’s Basketball: LSU 66, North Texas 62 ... Miami 79, Georgia 67 ... Kentucky 101, Stonehill 67 ... Auburn 77, St. Bonaventure 60 ... Florida 89, Florida State 68 ... UNC Greensboro 78, Arkansas 72 ... Alabama 98, Mercer 67 ... Texas A&M 74, Oral Roberts 66 ... Ole Miss 70, Sam Houston 67 ... South Carolina 73, DePaul 68.

SEC Women’s Basketball: Florida State 79, Florida 75 ... California 67, Auburn 53 ... Arkansas 82, Arkansas State 67 ... LSU 73, SE Louisiana 50.

NBA: Bucks 130, Hornets 99 ... Knicks 120, Warriors 99 ... 76ers 126, Hawks 116 ... Cavaliers 108, Pistons 100 ... Celtics 108, Raptors 105 ... Kings 129, Spurs 120 ... Magic 103, Bulls 97 ... Pelicans 115, Nuggets 110 ... Suns 131, Jazz 128 ... Lakers 107, Trail Blazers 95 ... Clippers 106, Rockets 100.

NHL: Maple Leafs 3, Red Wings 2 ... Jets 3, Sabres 2 ... Panthers 2, Ducks 1.

FIFA World Cup Qualifiers: Comoros 4-2 Central Africa ... Eswatini 0-1 Libya ... Guinea 2-1 Uganda ... Ghana 1-0 Madagascar ... Liberia 0-1 Malawi ... Zambia 4-2 Congo ... Burkina Faso 1-1 Guinea-Bissau ... Cameroon 3-0 Mauritius ... Ivory Coast 9-0 Seychelles ... Mali 3-1 Chad ... Tunisia 4-0 Sao Tome and Principe.