NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Riley LaChance’s 3-pointer with 1:17 left put Vanderbilt ahead to stay, and the Commodores beat Texas Christian 81-78 Saturday afternoon in the Big 12/Southeastern Conference Challenge.
Vanderbilt (8-13) now has won two of three, and the Commodores improved to 2-3 in the showdown between the Power Five conferences. They won with coach Bryce Drew starting his 11th different lineup this season featuring seniors LaChance and Jeff Roberson with a trio of freshmen.
LaChance finished with 24 points, Roberson added 20 and freshman Saben Lee had 11 as the Commodores improved to 5-1 all-time against the Horned Frogs.
TCU (15-6) came in off an upset of No. 7 West Virginia, but the Horned Frogs now have lost five of seven overall. They now are 3-2 in the Big 12/SEC Challenge and haven’t beaten Vanderbilt since 1951.
TCU guard Alex Robinson’s layup tied it up at 76 with 2:19 left. But Robinson missed a 3-pointer as the shot clock expired with 1:27 left, and LaChance gave Vandy the lead for good with his fourth 3. Vladimir Brodziansky scored on layup to pull TCU within 79-78. LaChance hit a pair of free throws with 10.8 seconds left, and Kouat Noi’s 3-pointer hit off the front rim with 3 seconds left for TCU.
Kenrich Williams led five Horned Frogs in double figures with 17 points. Brodziansky added 15, Robinson finished with 13, Desmond Bane 12 and Noi 11.
The Horned Frogs scored the first four points of the second half to take a 44-43 lead on a bucket by Bane. But LaChance answered with a 3, and Lee scored on a fast-break layup followed by a layup by LaChance with 17:39 left.
Vanderbilt led 43-40 at halftime after leading by as many as nine in the first half. TCU used 11 straight points to go up 21-16 before the Commodores went on a 19-5 run to take the lead back.
BIG PICTURE
TCU: The Horned Frogs came in 19th nationally shooting beyond the arc. They hit only 2 of 8 in the first half from 3 before the shots started falling in the second. They also dominated on the boards 36-21 but only had a 40-34 edge scoring in the paint with the Commodores driving for layup after layup.
Vanderbilt: The Commodores give themselves a chance when they shoot well from outside the arc. They finished 11 of 25 from 3-point range. They also hit 8 of 9 at the free throw line while TCU didn’t get to the line even once.
UP NEXT
TCU: Visits Oklahoma State on Tuesday night.
Vanderbilt: Visits Kentucky on Tuesday night.
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Follow Teresa M. Walker at www.twitter.com/teresamwalker