University of Tennessee Athletics
University of Tennessee
14-9, 6-5SEC
Vanderbilt
13-11, 3-8SEC
Vols Rally To Beat Vandy, 76-73 In OT
February 11, 2015 | Men's Basketball
Feb. 11, 2015
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NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- In the latest chapter of the Tennessee-Vanderbilt rivalry, Tennessee rallied for a stunning win in overtime. The Vols came back from down five points with 15 seconds left in regulation to send the game to overtime and captured a 76-73 win in the first overtime game between the teams in 22 years.
Robert Hubbs' driving layup as regulation time expired sent the game to overtime. In the extra session Josh Richardson scored five of the Vols' nine points to secure the win in the Vols' first OT game under the orange-blazer wearing Donnie Tyndall.
Tennessee (14-9 overall, 6-5 SEC) now leads the all-time series, 115-71, dating to the initial meeting in 1922. Vanderbilt fell to 13-11 and 3-8 in the SEC.
Richardson rebounded from a two-point game at Georgia with a game-best 27 points. Richardson hit 10-of-18 from the floor. He also added seven rebounds -- including a game-saving offensive rebound in the final seconds of overtime.
Junior Armani Moore scored 13 points Junior Derek Reese also regained the scoring touch as he tallied a career-high tying 12 points, making 5-of-6 shots. Kevin Punter had 10 points.
The Commodores were led by Damian Jones, who scored 16 points and grabbed nine rebounds. James Siakam (14 points) and Jeff Roberson (12) also scored in double-figures.
The Vols are now 10-1 when leading the half as they had to use extra time to post the win on Wednesday.
In overtime, the teams traded leads several times before Tennessee held on.
Punter's pair of free throws with 1:18 left put the Vols in front 74-73. Richardson saved a late possession for the Vols on his own missed jumper with a tremendous effort to grab an offensive rebound.
Richardson proceeded to make a pair of fee throws with 8.6 seconds left in overtime to put the Vols up 76-73.
After Moore missed two free throws with less than a second remaining, Vanderbilt's last-chance effort fell short and Vol Nation celebrated in Nashville.
Richardson opened the scoring in overtime with a 3-pointer to give the Vols a 70-67 lead.
Hubbs III sent the game to overtime with a driving layup as time expired to tie the game at 67. The Vols continued to battle out of a hole in the final minutes of the game. Vanderbilt's missed free throws opened the door the Tennessee to have the opportunity.
A pair of Richardson jumpers and a clutch 3-pointer by Kevin Punter put the Vols in position to send the game into the extra session. Tennessee trails by five points with 15 seconds left in regulation.
Vanderbilt took its first lead of the second half on a dunk by Luke Kornet with 8:22 left in the second half to put the Dores up 52-51. The Commodores used an 8-0 run to build a 55-51 lead with 6:26 remaining. Tennessee ended a four-minute scoring drought with a 3-point play by Moore.
Richardson tied the game at 56 with four minutes remaining. From that point, Vanderbilt regained the lead and held it until the clock expired to end regulation.
Both teams shot the ball very well in the first half as the Vols held a a 3-point lead at intermission. Reese's 3-pointer inside the final minute put Tennessee up 35-32 at the half. Richardson led all scorers with 12 points in the first half.
The lead changed hands 11 time in the first half as the largest lead was six points, by Vanderbilt at 15-9 early in the half.
Tennessee shot 58.3 (14-of-24) in the first half including 5-of-9 from 3-point range. The Commodores also made 5-of-9 from trifecta land while shooting 46 percent overall. Vandy made its first five 3-pointers of the half.
Tennessee returns to action on Saturday as the Vols host LSU at 4 p.m., inside Thompson-Boling Arena. That game airs on the SEC Network and can be heard on the Vol Network.
