At the buzzer: Vanderbilt defeats Kentucky mens basketball 80-73 in quarterfinals of SEC Tournament
Kentucky Wildcats forward Jacob Toppin (0) drives the ball during the No. 3 Kentucky vs. No. 6 Vanderbilt mens basketball game in the SEC Tournament quarterfinals on Friday, March 10, 2023, at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee. Photo by Jack Weaver | Staff
March 10, 2023
Nashville, Tn. – Kentucky mens basketball was defeated 80-73 by the Vanderbilt Commodores in the quarterfinals of the SEC Tournament on Friday.
The Wildcats entered the game after defeating the Arkansas Razorbacks in Fayetteville 88-79 to end the regular season. Vanderbilt, which defeated Kentucky in the Cats’ home finale, entered the game after defeating No. 14 LSU in the second round of the SEC Tournament the night prior.
With both squads looking for a date against No. 2 Texas A&M in the semifinals, the game tipped off at almost 9 p.m. EST.
Kentucky utilized a starting lineup of Antonio Reeves, Cason Wallace, Jacob Toppin, Chris Livingston and Oscar Tshiebwe, while the Commodores opted to start Tyrin Lawrence, Jordan Wright, Ezra Manjon, Colin Smith and Quentin Millora-Brown.
It was Kentucky that would win the opening tip off and score the first basket as Tshiebwe overpowered Millora-Brown in the post.
Manjon would score Vanderbilt’s first basket of the night with almost two minutes played as Kentucky racked up three turnovers.
Wallace would quickly turn a broken play into the first 3-pointer of the night with just over three minutes off the clock return the lead to the Wildcats.
Both teams would struggle on the offensive side of the ball until Reeves erupted for back-to-back 3-pointers to give the Cats a 14-4 lead.
The Commodores fought back, getting back within one point of the lead before the Cats went on a 6-0 scoring run to push the lead back to seven. Vanderbilt fought back once again however, tying the game with less than two minutes remaining in the half to force a Kentucky timeout.
Much like the game inside Rupp Arena just a week prior, the Commodores eventually took the lead over Kentucky, entering the halftime break with the score at 39-34.
Reeves was the leading scorer of the half, notching 11 points, while Vanderbilt’s Wright and Toppin followed behind with 10 each.
As a team Kentucky shot 41% from the field while the Commodores shot 56% from the field.
The Commodores scored the first basket of the second half courtesy of Lawrence to extend their lead up to seven, the largest of the night for the team up to that point.
Kentucky’s Livingston promptly made a layup at the other end to record Kentucky’s first points of the half.
Despite the effort, the Commodore lead only seemed to grow as Vanderbilt went up by 12 with the score at 52-40.
Kentucky’s offense sputtered back to life as time continued to tick away, with the Wildcats going 6-8 from the field to reach the 50-point mark, but the Commodores’ offense continued to perform at a higher level, with Vanderbilt still shooting 56% from the floor and 45% from the field with just under 12 minutes left to play.
The Cats and Commodores seemed to be involved in a stalemate, though the Cats managed to get within seven with 7:20 left on the clock. Reeves continued to be the leading scorer of the game with 17 points, followed on his own team by Tshiebwe and Toppin (14) and Lawrence (16), Wright and Manjon (15) on Vanderbilt.
Kentucky then managed to get back within three points with the score at 63-60 after an 8-0 scoring run by the Cats.
The Commodores managed to keep the lead back at six as the clock dropped below four minutes with the scoreboard displaying a 70-64 Vanderbilt advantage. As a team Kentucky was just 4-19 (21%) from beyond the arc heading into the home stretch.
Vanderbilt then managed to extend the lead to seven with a trip to the free throw line by Wright with under three minutes remaining on the board.
While the Cats fought to regain the lead, costly fouls led to their unraveling, with the final whistle declaring the Commodores victorious.
Kentucky was led in scoring by Reeves, who scored 22 points before fouling out, followed by Toppin (21) and Tshiebwe (19). The Commodores were led by Manjon, who dropped 25 points, followed by Lawrence and Wright (18).
Kentucky will return to action in the NCAA Tournament with its SEC Championship ambitions dashed. The NCAA Selection Show will take place at 6 p.m. EST on Sunday, March 12.
