As the Commodores trailed by 11 at halftime on Saturday, head coach Kevin Stallings deferred to his assistants.
“I didn’t get the job done in the first twenty minutes," Stallings said. "My assistants got it done in the second half. They had some louder words than normal at halftime.”
Their words resonated.
Vanderbilt (15-3, 4-0) outscored the visiting Tigers 51-30 in the second half en route to an 82-74 victory. Forward Jeffery Taylor, who was held scoreless in the opening period, spearheaded the outburst with a team-high 18 points.
“In the second half, I played smarter and more aggressive,” Taylor said. “I wanted to be out there and help my team. I wanted us to start 4-0 in the (Southeastern Conference).”
“I didn’t play a lot in the first half, and that was a big difference.”
It certainly was. As Stallings benched Taylor due to two quick fouls, Auburn blew past the Commodores. Behind the efforts of forward Lucas Hargrove, who led all performers with 19 points and 10 rebounds, the Tigers held a 41-25 advantage in the closing minutes of the first half.
“I wouldn’t say we were (not) looking ahead, but we were just starting slow,” Taylor said. “It almost cost us. They were up by 16 at one point, and we cut it to 11 at the half. We were able to keep going after halftime.”
After Hargrove opened the second half with a dunk, Taylor led the Commodores on an 11-2 run to help them claw back into contention. Supporting Taylor's stalwart efforts were guards Brad Tinsley and Jermaine Beal, who scored 15 and 14 points, respectively. Moreover, they notched a combined eight assists for a team whose cohesion showed as the afternoon progressed.
“Brad played great the whole game, and I could see it coming,” Stallings said of his previously struggling sharpshooter. “He had his best practice of the year on Monday and his second best practice of the year on Tuesday.”
Tinsley’s work paid off.
“As a shooter, you don’t want to see yourself in a slump,” he said. “My confidence wasn’t down, but our offense does a great job getting each other open, and I was still able to contribute.”
Hopefully for the Commodores, Tinsley’s struggles are behind him. In the next seven days, Stallings’ unit has road dates with Tennessee and Kentucky. Recently, Vanderbilt's trips to Knoxville haven’t gone smoothly, which resonates with junior center A.J. Ogilvy.
“We haven’t played well in Knoxville the past few years," Ogilvy said. "Last year, our youth was something we couldn’t overcome.
“These guys are a year older, and getting experience under our belt helped us.”
