Nov. 20, 2017
By Zac Ellis
VUCommodores.com
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Vanderbilt’s matchup with No. 10 USC on Sunday night brought with it an atmosphere of late-season drama. A rowdy Memorial Gym watched the Commodores take the Trojans to overtime in an environment better fit for an NCAA tournament bracket than a pre-Thanksgiving tilt.
“As a coach, it felt like a game in February, with how intense it was, the back-and-forth play,” Vanderbilt head coach Bryce Drew said.
The Dores nearly engineered an upset atop a wave of Memorial Magic. But USC controlled the extra period and ultimately topped Vanderbilt, 93-89. With the loss, a chance at an early season résumé-builder slipped through the Commodores’ fingers.
Afterward, Drew said Vanderbilt can’t be content with a moral victory. Now he plans to use this loss as fuel as the season progresses.
“I told our team, no one should be happy in here,” Drew said. “You get a ranked team in your building, you have great opportunities to win, and that’s something we talked about moving forward, that we don’t want to be that close and let it slip away, especially at home.”
The Commodores appeared downright dominant in early spurts against No. 10 USC. They used an 18-2 run in the first half to lead by as many as 14 points. But the Trojans looked the part of a Pac-12 contender in ending the first half on a red-hot 15-0 run – on five consecutive 3-pointers – and stealing a 35-34 lead at the break.
The two teams traded buckets in the second half before Vanderbilt took an 80-77 lead on a three-point play from Riley LaChance with 47.7 seconds left. But USC senior guard Jordan McLaughlin responded with a cold-blooded 3-pointer that ultimately sent the game to overtime on the Trojans’ final possession.
CLEANING THE GLASS: Breaking down Vanderbilt’s loss to No. 10 USC
Then the extra period was all USC, which scored the first seven points. McClaughlin, who finished with a game-high 35 points, scored nine of the Trojans’ 13 points in overtime.
Drew said Vanderbilt simply missed too many opportunities on Sunday.
“We definitely put ourselves in a position to win,” Drew said. “USC is a top-10 team or a Sweet Sixteen [team] for a reason. They made shots and made plays when they needed it.”
A loss is a loss to the Commodores, but Drew and company showed flashes of a team that can be dangerous in the SEC — and beyond — this season. Senior Matthew Fisher-Davis caught fire and finished with 31 points on 6-13 from 3-point land, two points shy of tying his career-high. As a team, Vanderbilt shot 11-of-23 on 3-pointers and outrebounded a lanky USC squad, 38-28.
So did the Dores feel any sense of satisfaction in the postgame locker room?
“I wouldn’t say satisfaction,” Fisher-Davis said. “There are definitely things we could learn, positives we could take from it. But losing isn’t satisfying… We all feel like it’s a game we should’ve won, but we aren’t going to hang our heads.”
Vanderbilt can’t afford to let the USC loss linger. They venture to Brooklyn later this week for the NIT Season Tip-Off and a field that promises plenty of challenges. That slate begins with a matchup against ACC power Virginia on Thanksgiving.
For now, USC can serve as a learning moment for the Commodores – but it might also be a preview of just what this team is capable of.
“I was really proud of our team,” Drew said. “I thought we played hard and played with a lot of heart tonight.”
Zac Ellis is the Writer and Digital Media Editor for Vanderbilt Athletics.