DALLAS, Texas — After a strong first half, the Vanderbilt men’s basketball team could not overcome the high-scoring offense of SMU in the second half falling 84-72 at Moody Coliseum on Saturday night.
Scotty Pippen Jr. led the offense with 29 points while Jordan Wright posted a double-double with 14 points and 12 rebounds. Vanderbilt (5-2) held a 40-28 halftime edge, but the Mustangs (7-3) used a big second half to earn the home win.
Five minutes into the game, the Dores took a four-point edge at 16-12 on a 3 from Pippen Jr. The scoring remained tight over the next five minutes with neither team leading by more than two points.
Aided by a pair of Shane Dezonie 3-pointers, the Commodores held a 31-27 edge at the final media timeout of the first half.
There were two ties and six lead changes in the first half.
The Dores exploded for a 14-1 run to end the first half capped by a Pippen 3 on their final possession before the break. The bucket gave Vandy a 40-28 edge at the half.
SMU jumped out to a fast start in the second half, scoring the first 11 points to cut the Vanderbilt lead down to 40-39.
A pair of Pippen 3-pointers got the Dores back on track with a 46-44 lead with 15:20 left in the second half.
The SMU advantage jumped to 12 with a 16-3 run to make it 62-50 in favor of the Mustangs with 10 minutes to go in the game.
The Mustangs held on to a 72-59 lead at the final media timeout.
The Dores cut the edge down to nine in the final minute but were unable to close the gap.
Next on the schedule, the Dores return home to host Temple at 7 p.m. Tuesday.
