Vanderbilt Men’s Basketball took down the Texas Southern Tigers on Thursday night to improve to 5-0 on the season for the second-straight year. The Commodores dominated from the opening tip, eventually winning 109-74 to reach the 100-point mark for the fourth time this season. Head coach Mark Byington opted to start Tyler Tanner, AK Okereke, Duke Miles, Tyler Harris and Devin McGlockton in the contest.  

It was an incredible offensive showing from the Commodores all evening, as they shot 53% from the field and 35% from deep. Tanner and Tyler Nickel paved the way in terms of scoring, as they both dropped 20 points in the victory.  

“Guys are playing the right way, and we don’t have guys playing selfish,” Byington said postgame. “Our efficiency has been good because of the guys we are playing — we’ve got terrific payers. If they play unselfish, I think all of them all look good.”

First half 

Vanderbilt lost the opening tip, and Texas Southern took control of the ball first. The teams exchanged empty early possessions as it was a slow start to the game, before Texas Southern’s Troy Hupstead knocked in a layup to get points on the board. Nickel quickly followed with a 3-pointer to give Vanderbilt the early 3-2 lead. The Commodores then started to pour them in, as Tanner hit a layup after a steal. Duke Miles was fouled on a made 3-pointer, too, extending Vanderbilt’s lead to 14-6 just under four minutes into the half. Another forced turnover gave Tanner the easy jumper to bring Vanderbilt’s advantage to 19-6 as the first media timeout hit at 15:20.  

The Commodores were hot out of the break, as Tanner nailed a deep ball to extend the lead. Miles then went on a tear, earning two buckets around the rim before going 1-for-2 from the line to give Vanderbilt the 23-9 lead.  

Harris knocked in a jumper to bring the lead to 27-9 as the second media timeout arrived at the 12:02 mark. Chandler Bing checked in for his first minutes, knocking in a layup off a turnover to bring the lead to 32-12 just a minute later. Texas Southern’s Cameron Patterson made a jumper on the other end, but McGlockton responded with a bucket of his own around the rim.  

Vanderbilt continued to pour it on, spearheaded by Tanner and Okereke, who both hit jumpers. Tigers forward Anthony Andrews then hit a bucket and then another after picking the pocket of Tanner. As the third media timeout of the half arrived at 6:48, the Commodores’ lead had grown to 41-20.  

Two big dunks by Jalen Washington set a physical tone in Vanderbilt’s frontcourt as the Tigers couldn’t keep up. Andrews tried to keep Texas Southern afloat, but another made deep ball from Nickel put this one firmly in Vanderbilt’s control, 48-28, as the buzzer sounded for the final media timeout at 3:53.  

McGlockton cashed an uncharacteristic 3-pointer at the 2:26 mark to bring the Commodores’ lead to 55-32 before Harris hit one of his own shortly following. The final buzzer of the half sounded as Vanderbilt had built a 60-33 lead. 

The Commodores shot 61% from the field and 43% from deep in the first half, proving their efficiency across the floor. Tanner led the team in scoring with 12 through the first 20 minutes.  

“I thought the first half we were really sharp,” Byington said postgame. “We played the right way [and] we were efficient.”

Second half 

Vanderbilt began the half strong with three straight layups from Nickel and McGlockton. Texas Southern’s Jaylen Wysinger hit a layup before McGlockton cashed in a shot from beyond the arc off a turnover. The first media timeout of the half hit at 15:43 as Vanderbilt’s lead had grown to 71-39. 

Hupstead earned a bucket out of the break before Washington threw down an emphatic slam to energize the small crowd in Memorial Gym. The big man continued to his hot hand, cashing in another dunk with a foul to bring Vanderbilt’s lead to 76-41.  

Texas Southern’s Duane Posey then hit two free throws before the second media timeout of the half arrived at 11:54, with Vanderbilt up 78-54. The Commodores continued to apply pressure out of the break as McGlockton earned several buckets to bring his total to 14 on the night. Andrews continued to have a solid night, making a quick turnaround jumper, but Vanderbilt’s defense practically shut down every lane to the basket.  

Tanner hit a 3-pointer to make it 89-59 with 7:07 to go before Nickel backed it up with a 3-pointer of his own. The Commodores were just in reach of the 100-point mark with 5:04 remaining, sitting at 96 following Tanner’s three made foul shots. Nickel was then fouled on a 3-point attempt, and he cashed all three to successfully get the Commodores to 100 points.  

Texas Southern’s Zaire Hayes made a late 3-pointer, but even Vanderbilt’s backups, consisting of Jayden Leverett, Jaylon Dean Vines and Mike James, were too much for the Tigers. Mason Nicholson put down a final emphatic dunk to get Memorial Gym on their feet and close out the game. 

The Commodores shot 53% on the night to successfully get past a struggling Texas Southern team. Tanner and Nickel led the way with 20 points each to build on Vanderbilt’s already historic season. This is the first time in program history that the Commodores have reached four 100-point victories through five games.  

The Commodores return to action at the Battle 4 Atlantis in the Bahamas on Wednesday, Nov. 26.