When trying to predict what team might snap the No. 21 LSU Tigers’ 19-game Southeastern Conference home winning streak, conference powerhouses like the universities of Florida or Alabama might come to mind. Those universities will have their chance to defeat LSU in the PMAC later this season, but the Vanderbilt University Commodores are the team that can now take credit for breaking the streak Wednesday night when they beat the Tigers, 64-53. The Tigers’ last conference home setback was a 70-64 loss handed out by the University of Kentucky in February 2004. In the past eight days, Vanderbilt has defeated three nationally ranked SEC opponents. The Commodores beat No. 12 University of Alabama, 94-73, at home Jan. 17 before traveling to Lexington, Ky., and defeating then-No. 25 Kentucky, 72-67. LSU’s string of poor shooting performances continued against the Commodores. After shooting 35 percent from the field Saturday in their 72-52 loss against the University of Arkansas, the Tigers shot only 32.3 percent against Vanderbilt. The Commodores shot 41.8 percent in the contest, including 10-of-25 from behind the 3-point line. Vanderbilt outrebounded LSU, 42-36, but finished the game with more turnovers and fewer assists than the Tigers. Sophomore forward Tasmin Mitchell led LSU with 16 points on 20 shot attempts. Junior forward Glen Davis added 12 points on 5-of-15 shooting, and the Commodores’ defense held sophomore guard Terry Martin scoreless. Senior guard Derrick Byars led Vanderbilt in scoring and rebounding with 18 points and 10 boards. Former Tiger, junior forward Ross Neltner, finished with only two points, the first bucket of the game. LSU coach John Brady said his team did not play as hard as it could for the entire 40 minutes of the game. “I thought we played for about 26 or 28 minutes,” Brady said. “Then we got the game in a situation where I think everybody on our team had the opportunity to make a play. We weren’t able to make the necessary plays to win the game.” Brady said the Vanderbilt offense, which entered the game No. 4 in the SEC in scoring, is free-flowing as opposed to the methodical offense the Tigers run. “We can’t just step up and hit a 22-footer with a hand in your face,” he said. “We gotta be extremely detailed offensively, and only a few moments in the game were we.” The Commodores pounced on the Tigers early and started on a 16-3 run that forced Brady to call a time-out 6:40 into the game. The time-out did little to stop Vanderbilt’s scoring assault as they built a 23-8 lead with 8:51 left in the first half. The Commodores increased their lead to 26-10, but the Tigers showed signs of life and closed the half on a 14-8 run to end the half with only a 10-point deficit, 34-24. Vanderbilt continued its hot shooting in the second half and built its largest lead of the game when a layup by senior center Ted Skuchas pushed the lead to 49-31. A jumper by Mitchell capped a 6-0 LSU run, which cut the Commodores lead to 51-40 and forced Vanderbilt into a time-out. Although the Tigers would get as close as six points, the Commodores knocked down 4-of-5 foul shots in the final 1:02 to secure the victory. Sophomore guard Garrett Temple, who finished the game with 12 points and four rebounds, said the Tigers were prepared for the Commodores to play zone defense but could not operate against man defense. “They played us [man-to-man defense], which we wanted them to do,” Temple said. “We were just kind of caught off guard. We just didn’t get the detail and the execution in the offense like we need.” Mitchell said the Tigers’ first option is the post, but if that is not working, he said the team has to learn to look elsewhere for offense and not force the ball inside. “If we feel [the post] is not gonna happen, let’s work [the ball] around, [and] let’s get other guys involved like myself and Terry Martin,” Mitchell said. “Our jump shots might not be falling, but let’s get other people the confidence to come of the screen and shoot the ball.”
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