Vandy upsets Vols in last half-second

Almost a really good game … better shooting … fewer whistles … stunning conclusion.

You could say Vanderbilt upset Tennessee, 66-65, on a three-pointer launched by Tyrin Lawrence a fraction of a second ahead of the final buzzer.

Or you could say the Vols had to go out of their way but found a way to lose. It wasn’t easy.

High drama preceded the ending. The Commodores went up by three on three free throws from a foul by Tobe Awaka on a three-point shot. Tennessee’s great three-point defense wasn’t supposed to foul.

Santiago Vescovi answered with a very big three to tie at 63. Olivier Nkamhoua added a goal from the lane. That created a problem for the home team. Tennessee went into a holding pattern. Vandy was five fouls short of forcing the Vols to shoot and miss a free throw.

Vanderbilt hurried to commit foul after foul. Tennessee did well to retain possession under pressure.

Freshman Julian Phillips had a rare opportunity, a breakaway off an out-of-bounds play, a dunk for the taking with 16 seconds remaining. He turned down the 100 percent shot and a two-goal lead to dribble off two more seconds before the next foul.

“I am not sure what was going through his head there,” Rick Barnes said. “I don’t think he will ever make that mistake again.”

The Commodores committed their seventh foul with eight seconds to go. Vescovi, great on free throws under duress, missed the front end of the one-and-one.

Lawrence rebounded. Ezra Manjon sped up the floor with the ball. Coach Jerry Stackhouse got the clock stopped with four seconds showing. Officials checked the monitor and restored 8/10ths of a second.

The Commodores flawlessly executed Stackhouse’s plan. Manjon dribbled toward the basket at full speed. Vols converged. Manjon snapped the ball to a wide-open Lawrence in the left corner. He barely – BARELY – beat the buzzer and Tennessee.

Vanderbilt had lost 11 in a row to the Vols.

Vanderbilt’s 10th three was the most allowed this season by Tennessee. Its three-point defense has been best in the country. Opponents had been hitting 21.9 percent. Vandy shot 40.

Lawrence finished with 19 points. Liam Robbins contributed 14 and nine rebounds. Jordan Wright scored 14.

Vescovi and Tyreke Key scored 14 each. Phillips and Nkamhoua had 10 each. Awaka, much improved, scored eight and claimed nine rebounds.

Barnes was asked what happened during the final timeout.

“Well, the one thing we said, we can’t give up a three-point shot. Under no circumstances can we give up a three-point shot. And we did. And they made it, so give them credit.”

Coach, what happened to Josiah-Jordan James there at the end?

“He sprained his ankle.”

Coach, how did Lawrence get so wide open?

Barnes did not scream.

“It was a defensive breakdown.”

Bits ‘n pieces:

Tennessee, ranked No. 2 before the poor performance against Florida and the almost-as-bad game against Auburn, is now 19-5 for the season and 8-3 against SEC foes.

Minutes in and out: Uros Plavsic played only three minutes. Awaka played 22. Zakai Zeigler missed more than eight in the first half because of early fouls.

Barnes said an experienced team shouldn’t be making so many mental mistakes this late in a season. Barnes didn’t say who is in charge of smarts.

Missouri, 18-6 overall, 6-5 in the SEC, plays at Thompson-Boling at 6 on Saturday. If you are keeping score, Vandy is now 12-12 and 5-6.

Marvin West welcomes comments or questions from readers. His address is marvinwest75@gmail.com