Jan. 23, 2018
By Zac Ellis
VUCommodores.com
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Vanderbilt guard Riley LaChance knows a thing or two about facing Tennessee in Knoxville. The senior has never lost on Rocky Top, and that history favors the Commodores as they prep for a road meeting vs. No. 22 UT on Tuesday.
“We’re just trying to get another win,” LaChance said this week. “It doesn’t really matter who it’s against at this point.”
Wait – the Volunteers don’t matter a little more to the Dores?
LaChance considered the question and, after a moment, amended his statement.
“They came in here a week and a half, two weeks ago and won on our home floor, as our rival,” LaChance said. “So, I think it definitely means a little more to us. We want to go in there and get a little bit of revenge for what they came in here and did to us.”
As always, LaChance will be a key piece of Vanderbilt’s approach against rival Tennessee (6 p.m. CT ESPNU). Last Saturday, he scored 26 points (4-7 on 3-pointers) in a 77-71 Commodore win over LSU, just one point shy of tying his career-high. The victory snapped a four-game losing streak and sent Vanderbilt to Knoxville riding momentum.
But the win over LSU was also a bounce-back for LaChance. In the Dores’ previous home game — a 74-67 loss to Kentucky on Jan. 13 – they trailed 70-66 with 29 seconds left when LaChance stepped to the foul line for three free throws. But the 88.9 percent foul shooter uncharacteristically missed all three shots, helping Kentucky hold on for the win.
CLEANING THE GLASS: How Vanderbilt topped LSU
In response, LaChance put up extra shots in the gym and worked on his shooting form with assistant coach Jake Diebler. The result? The senior hit all six of his free throws against LSU, including two clutch freebies with 2:01 left.
Vanderbilt head coach Bryce Drew said that’s the LaChance he sees everyday in practice.
“He wishes he had shots back against Kentucky our last home game, and he has been in the gym,” Drew said. “He has been focused, and mentally he’s been in a really, really good place. And it was great to see him want the ball down the stretch [against LSU] and wanting to get to the free-throw line.”
LaChance, whose .465 3-point percentage leads the Commodores, plans to keep up the pace in SEC play. On Jan. 9, then-No. 24 Tennessee rallied in the second half to top Vanderbilt, 92-84, at Memorial Gym. Volunteers’ forward Grant Williams amassed a career-high 37 points in the victory. But entering Tuesday, the Dores have won three straight games in Knoxville for just the second time since 1955-57 – though they have never won four in a row at UT.
Barring a meeting in the SEC tournament, Tuesday will mark LaChance’s last game against rival Tennessee. He doesn’t plan to waste it.
“[LSU] was a big for us,” LaChance said. “For a while now, we’d been talking about closing our games better, the last seven minutes of the game, playing a lot better, making winning and tough plays. We definitely did that down the stretch, and I think that should be a confidence-booster for us going forward and knowing we can make those plays.”
Zac Ellis is the Writer and Digital Media Editor for Vanderbilt Athletics.
