Feb. 14, 2018
By Zac Ellis
VUCommodores.com
NASHVILLE, TENN. – Riley LaChance saved Vanderbilt on Wednesday night.
Trailing 80-78 with six seconds to play, the Commodores’ senior drilled a 3-pointer with a half-second left to lift Vanderbilt to an 81-80 victory over Mississippi State at Memorial Gymnasium.
Here’s how it went down:
THE SKINNY: Mississippi State led by as many as eight points midway through the first half before Vanderbilt took control of the game. A Jeff Roberson layup at 7:55 gave the Commodores a 22-21 lead. But the Dores dominated the end of the half and held Mississippi State scoreless for more than four minutes to secure a 40-31 halftime lead. The Bulldogs answered by roaring back from an 11-point second-half deficit and taking an 80-78 lead with six seconds left. Then Riley LaChance sank a 3-pointer with less than a second remaining to seal the win at Memorial.
TURNING POINT: Six seconds remained when Mississippi State’s Xavian Stapleton stepped to the line with his team leading 80-78. After hitting the first shot, Stapleton missed the second and Roberson grabbed the rebound. The Commodores streaked down court before finding LaChance for an elbow 3-pointer that splashed through the net with a half-second left. Mississippi State launched a last-ditch heave on the ensuing possession, but LaChance hauled it in to secure the victory.
IMPACT PLAYER: LaChance. After struggling in late-game situations in recent weeks, the senior was clutch on Wednesday. LaChance scored 16 points and hit a trio of 3-pointers, but none were bigger than his game-winning bucket. LaChance also dished out a team-high eight assists.
STARTLING STAT: 14 – Vanderbilt 3-pointers. The Commodores shot 14-of-27 from downtown for a 65-percent clip on the night. Their 14 treys mark a season-high against an SEC opponent.
WHAT IT MEANS: The Commodores improve to 10-16 overall and 4-9 in SEC play with five regular-season games left. Vandy has now won four straight games at home.
WHAT’S NEXT? Vanderbilt welcomes Florida to Memorial Gym on Saturday for a 3 p.m. CT tipoff on ESPN or ESPN2.
Zac Ellis is the Writer and Digital Media Editor for Vanderbilt Athletics.
