Field Level Media
Jan 30, 2021
Vanderbilt snapped a six-game losing streak as it throttled South Carolina, 93-81, at Nashville on Saturday night.
The Commodores have been seeking a third scorer throughout conference play and they got that in a big way from Max Evans, who averaged 4.3 points coming in but had a season-high 29.
Scotty Pippen Jr. added 23 points and seven assists and Dylan Disu had 17 points and seven rebounds, helping Vanderbilt (5-9, 1-6 Southeastern Conference) to a season-high in points.
Vandy hit 81.5 percent of its foul shots and outscored Carolina by 13 at the charity stripe. It also won the turnover (16-15) and rebounding (38-31) battles.
South Carolina's AJ Lawson scored 21 points while Keyshawn Bryant added 13 for the Gamecocks (4-6, 2-4), who led for only 58 seconds and never got closer than 12 in the second half.
An Evans 3 just 58 seconds into the second half made Vandy's lead 18, the biggest for either team to that point. Isaac McBride's 3 with 11:37 left made it 72-52, the first 20-point margin for either team.
Each team had a 14-0 run in a fast-paced and often sloppy first half that ended with Vanderbilt up 52-37. Disu and Pippen each had 15 in the first half.
Vanderbilt got off to a quick 19-8 lead on a Disu 3 with 14:22 left in the half, prompting South Carolina coach Frank Martin to take a time out rather than wait for the media break. The Commodores had six points off three Carolina turnovers and were 3-of-4 from 3 during that spell.
The TO didn't help. Disu picked up a steal right away, leading to a breakaway and two free throws on the other end. Evans then followed with four fastbreak points off a turnover and a defensive rebound, making for 30-13 lead with 12:20 left.
But that's when Carolina scored its 14 unanswered points, some of that coming with Disu and Pippen on the bench.
The Gamecocks got within two, but Vandy then went on another run to go up 15, punctuated by Pippen's 3 with 54 seconds left and his breakaway dunk 19 seconds later.
Evans added a reverse lay-up with 11.2 seconds left before Trae Hannibal's buzzer-beating jumper to end the half.
This was Vandy's first SEC win since March 7, 2020. That also came against South Carolina at home.
--Field Level Media