Florida Gators vs Vanderbilt Commodores Match Player Stats On Feb 27, 2019

Florida, thanks to a hyper-efficient effort from freshman guard Andrew Nembhard, shot 48 percent from the field and 93.8 percent from the foul line in beating host Vanderbilt 71-55 at Nashville's Memorial Gymnasium on Wednesday night.

Nembhard scored a game-high 19 points on 7-for-8 shooting from the field. Guard Jalen Hudson and forward Kevarrius Hayes chipped in with 17 and 14 each, respectively.

The Gators (17-11, 9-6 Southeastern Conference) never trailed, and have won five straight. That started with a 66-57 win over Vandy on Feb. 13.

Vanderbilt (9-19, 0-15) extended its school-record losing streak to 16 games.

Guard Saben Lee (10 points) and forwards Simi Shittu and Matthew Moyer (10 each) led the Commodores.

Florida held guard Aaron Nesmith, the Commodores' top player in league play, to six points on 2-for-10 shooting. The freshman scored a season-high 26 in the teams' first meeting.

Florida also kept Vanderbilt -- which ranked No. 11 in the country in free-throw attempts per field goal, according to Ken Pomeroy -- off the charity stripe. Vandy attempted only 14 free throws and hit seven.

The Gators led by a dozen at the break and quickly made it 17 after guard KeVaugnn Allen's jumper with 18:28 left.

That lead never went under double digits in the second half. Vandy got it to 10 on a dunk by Moyer off a Lee assist before Hayes scored the game's next six points.

The Gators led 41-29 after the first 20 minutes thanks to 53.6 percent shooting, including six 3-pointers, and an 8-4 edge in turnovers.

Nembhard (40.8 percent from the field on a 7.7-point average coming in) and Hudson (36.4 percent, 7.2) were unlikely first-half heroes, scoring a dozen each before the break.

Florida sprinted to a 20-8 lead before eight minutes had run off the clock. The Gators hit seven of their first 11 shots, while Vanderbilt had more turnovers (four) than field goals (three) in that span.

--Field Level Media