COLUMBIA, S.C. — Tyler Tanner had 19 points and a career-high 14 assists, AK Okereke scored 17 points, and the 11th-ranked Vanderbilt men’s basketball team improved to 14-0 with an 83-71 victory over South Carolina on Saturday in the Southeastern Conference opener for both teams at Colonial Life Arena.
The Commodores are off to their best start since the 2007-08 team opened 16-0. They did it against the Gamecocks (9-5) without Duke Miles, their leading scorer this season, as he missed a second straight contest with an undisclosed injury.
Miles’ absence didn’t slow down Vanderbilt one bit. It used an early 13-0 run — which started on Okereke’s 3-pointer — to lead 15-4 over the first six minutes. When South Carolina closed to 34-30 with 4:13 before halftime, Vanderbilt ended the period with an 8-4 run sparked by another 3 from Okereke to lead 42-34.
Vanderbilt ended any chance of a rally by the Gamecocks with a 12-3 run to start the second half, and the visitors were never pressured the rest of the way.
The Commodores face a test to keep their streak going next time out when they return home to play No. 14 Alabama (11-3, 1-0) on Wednesday in Nashville. If they get past the Crimson Tide, they’ll look to match their program-best 16-0 start at home next weekend against LSU.