Duke Miles scored seven of his game-high 22 points in overtime to lead No. 13 Vanderbilt to a 77-70 road victory over Memphis on Wednesday that kept the Commodores unbeaten.
Vanderbilt (11-0) made 11 of 13 free throws in the extra period, including a 5-of-5 effort by Miles and 5-of-6 success by Jalen Washington. Tyler Tanner finished with 16 points and seven rebounds for the Commodores, and Washington contributed 14 points.
Sincere Parker led Memphis (4-6) with a season-high 18 points. Dug McDaniel also scored 18 for the Tigers, and Hasan Abdul Hakim had 13 points and 10 rebounds. Memphis had won four straight in the series.
The Commodores entered the game averaging 95.4 points, which ranked fifth nationally, but were hampered by poor shooting and miscues. Vanderbilt shot 32.3% and committed 20 turnovers.
In overtime, Memphis led 64-62 after a putback by Hakim. Then the Commodores scored 12 of the next 14 points — eight from the free throw line — to avoid the upset. Miles finished 12 of 13 from the line, and Washington was 10 of 14.
The Tigers fell behind by 11 early in the second half but gradually rode their pressure defense to a turnaround. A 15-3 run gave Memphis a 42-40 advantage, its first lead of the game, with 12:19 to go. Parker’s baseline jumper gave the Tigers the two-point cushion.
Memphis extended its advantage of 40-44 on a 3-pointer by McDaniel and then two foul shots from Parker with 9:05 to go. The Commodores rallied with an 11-3 surge, getting six points from Tanner to go up 55-52 with 3:55 remaining.
Vanderbilt was ahead 62-59 with 34 seconds left following two free throws by Tanner. Memphis got a free throw from Aaron Bradshaw with 16 seconds to go and a twisting layup by Hakim in the final moments to send it into overtime.
Neither team shot well in the first half. Memphis, which missed its first six field-goal tries, shot 29.6% and Vanderbilt shot 27.3% before halftiime. The Commodores led 28-22 at the break.
Vanderbilt never trailed in the opening 20 minutes and led by as many as 10 (22-12) late in the half.
