NFL Tickets
TV Schedule: Wednesday, Dec. 9, 9 p.m. ET, ESPNU
Arena: Memorial Gymnasium, Nashville, Tenn.
Line: Vanderbilt (-8.5)
The No. 16 Vanderbilt Commodores fell to the No. 25 Baylor Bears, but the good news for both the Commodores and their fans is that Vandy lost the game at the end more than Baylor won it. It seemed like everyone on the floor except Wade Baldwin IV and Damian Jones panicked in the last three minutes, which led to horrible possession after horrible possession, eventually costing them the game.
However, Kevin Stallings and Co. will have an opportunity bounce back at home on Wednesday night as they face off with the 6-1 Dayton Flyers.
The Flyers rebounded from their first loss of the season to the Xavier Musketeers with a 15-point win over the underrated North Florida Ospreys. Dayton will come into their game with Vanderbilt desperate for a marquee win, because their non-conference schedule is bereft of NCAA tournament-bound teams. A win on the road against Vandy could mean that all this team needs to do is finish in the top three of the Atlantic 10 to earn an at-large bid in the 2016 NCAA tournament.
That being said, Vanderbilt is clearly the better team in this one. Despite winning the game against UNF, Dayton allowed Dallas Moore and Beau Beech, the Ospreys’ best guard and forward respectively, to score 33 points combined. Jones and Baldwin are both NBA-bound and should tear apart the Flyers’ defense. If this game was on the road, I might give Dayton more of a chance, but Vanderbilt stomps Dayton by double-digits, shaking off their disappointment at Baylor.
Prediction: Vanderbilt 82, Dayton 69
Taylor Sturm is a Featured Writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @TSturmRS, like him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.
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