Box Score
NASHVILLE, Tenn.—Vanderbilt raced to a 28-point halftime lead and never looked back on Saturday night, defeating Northeastern, 79-49, in men's basketball action at Memorial Gymnasium in Nashville. The Commodores shot a blistering 76 percent in the first half en route to a 62-percent performance on the night.
The Huskies (3-11) stayed close to the Commodores (8-4) over the game's first 10 minutes, trailing by seven, 18-11, after a
Marco Banegas-Flores (Boston, Mass.) 3-pointer. Vanderbilt then ripped off a 28-7 run to close the half and put the game out of reach.
The loss was Northeastern's worst since its previous trip to the Volunteer State — an 80-48 setback at Memphis on Dec. 31, 2008.
Reggie Spencer (Tuscaloosa, Ala.) scored 15 points to lead Northeastern. Spencer also corralled five rebounds.
David Walker (Stow, Ohio) scored nine points, followed by
T.J. Williams (Pflugerville, Texas) with seven, Banegas-Flores and
Scott Eatherton (Hershey, Pa.) with six apiece,
Jimmy Marshall (Richmond, Va.) with three,
Derrico Peck (Woodstock, Ga.) with two, and
Zach Stahl (Chanhassen, Minn.) with one. Eatherton pulled down a game-best eight rebounds.
Rod Odom poured in a game-high 21 points to lead four Vanderbilt players in double figures. Odom connected on all four of his 3-point field goal attempts as Vandy shot 67 percent from beyond the arc. Damian Jones added 16 points and Eric McClellan had 14 for the host Commodores.
Spencer kept the Huskies close in the game's opening moments, scoring eight of NU's first 13 points. Despite Vandy's fast start, NU trailed by just eight as the first-half clock ticked under 10 minutes. But the Red and Black managed just two points over the next nine minutes and the Commodores raced to a 41-15 lead, before taking a 46-18 advantage into the locker room.
Northeastern played Vanderbilt on near-level terms in the second half but never threatened the Commodores' lead. After the Huskies cut the margin to 26 just over five minutes into the half, Vandy responded with a 10-0 run to push the lead to a game-high 36 points. Spencer again provided the answer for NU with a layup and dunk. Walker followed with a 3-pointer — one of three for the sophomore in the second half — to cap a 7-0 run that stemmed the Commodores' momentum. Following a VU basket, Marshall dialed in from deep for the first 3-pointer of his collegiate career to cut the lead to 28, but Northeastern would get no closer.
For the game, the Huskies shot 31 percent (17-54) from the floor, 26 percent (5-19) from 3-point range, and 48 percent (10-21) from the free-throw line. Vanderbilt had the hot hand all night, connecting on 62 percent (30-48) from the floor, 67 percent (8-12) from long range, and 69 percent (11-16) from the charity stripe. VU won the rebounding battle, 35-31.
Northeastern will open CAA play when it welcomes UNCW to historic Matthews Arena on Wednesday, Jan. 8, at 7 p.m. The Huskies won the CAA regular-season title a year ago behind a 14-4 conference mark. For ticket information, visit GoNU.com/tickets.
Game notes
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Reggie Spencer scored in double figures for the seventh time this season
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Scott Eatherton led NU in rebounding for the 12th time in 14 games, pulling down a game-high eight rebounds
> Vanderbilt shot 62.5 percent from the floor, the highest for an NU opponent since George Mason (63.4) on March 10, 2013
> Vanderbilt held Northeastern to a season-low 49 points
> The 30-point loss was Northeastern's worst since an 80-48 setback at Memphis on Dec. 31, 2008, in its last visit to the State of Tennessee
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