TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The Alabama men’s basketball team lost 69-59 to the Vanderbilt Commodores Thursday night in Coleman Coliseum. The Crimson Tide falls to 13-5 overall and 2-2 in Southeastern Conference play while Vanderbilt improves to 14-4 and 4-0 in the SEC.
Senior Andrew Steele left the game after becoming light headed on a play in first half. Steele was kept out as a precaution and will be reevaluated Friday.
Sophomore guard Trevor Releford led the Tide with 14 points to go with six steals and four rebounds, while freshman guard Levi Randolph notched a career-high 13 points. Freshman guard Trevor Lacey added 10 points for Alabama.
“I thought Vanderbilt was very good tonight,” UA head coach Anthony Grant said. “When you look at what they were able to do from a defensive standpoint, it really took us out of everything we wanted to do. They really limited our opportunities around the basket and contested everything on the perimeter.”
The Tide led 19-15 midway through the first half before an 11-0 Vanderbilt run gave the Commodores a 26-19 halftime lead. From there, Vanderbilt built the lead to as many as 23 points in the second half, holding off a late Alabama push that whittled the score down to the final 10 –point margin.
“I thought in the second half Vanderbilt was able to get some shots to fall, which really opened the game up,” Grant said. “Our guys really did fight all the way to the end, and they were able to cut the lead down, but we’ve got to regroup here in a very short amount of time.”
Vanderbilt guard John Jenkins scored a game-high 20 points to lead four Commodores who notched double figures in points scored.
Alabama travels to Lexington, Ky. to take on the Kentucky Wildcats this Saturday. Tip-off is scheduled for 11 a.m. (CST).
Release and Photos Courtesy UA Athletics
