Vanderbilt edges Auburn 67-65 for fifth straight SEC victory

Published Feb. 18, 2023 11:07 p.m. ET

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Liam Robbins scored 24 points and grabbed 12 rebounds and Ezra Manjon made a layup with one second left as Vanderbilt rallied last in a 67-65 victory over Auburn on Saturday night.

Robbins made just 3 of 10 shots from the floor with a 3-pointer, but he sank 17 of 20 free throws for the Commodores (15-12, 8-6), who have won five straight Southeastern Conference games for the first time since 2015. The game featured 16 lead changes and 12 ties. Vanderbilt coach Jerry Stackhouse picked up his first win in four tries against Auburn's Bruce Pearl.

Johni Broome finished with 20 points and six rebounds to pace the Tigers (18-9, 8-6). Jaylin Williams added 17 points and six boards.

Robbins sank 8 of 10 free throws on his way to 13 first-half points and Vanderbilt took a 31-27 lead into intermission. Williams had 12 points at the break for the Tigers on 6-of-8 shooting. The rest of his teammates made only 5 of 22 attempts.

Broome scored the first six points of the second half to give Auburn a 33-31 lead. The lead changed hands nine times over the next nine minutes and neither team took a two-possession lead until Dylan Caldwell grabbed a rebound and scored and Lior Berman buried a 3-pointer to give the Tigers a 55-49 advantage with 7:58 remaining.

Tyrin Lawrence and Robbins combined to score eight points, Trey Thomas sank a 3-pointer to cap an 11-2 spurt and the Commodores grabbed a 59-57 lead with 3:24 left. Allen Flanigan hit a jumper and Wendell Green Jr. made the second of two foul shots to put Auburn on top 62-61 with 1:53 to go.

Robbins grabbed an offensive rebound and was fouled with 1:03 left. He hit both free throws and Manjon added two more with 23 seconds left before K.D. Johnson buried a 3-pointer to knot the score with 10 seconds left and set the stage for Manjon.

Vanderbilt leads the all-time series 90-56, including a 51-18 mark at home.

UP NEXT

Vanderbilt: The Commodores travel to play LSU on Wednesday.

Auburn: The Tigers return home to host Mississippi on Wednesday.

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AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25

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Liam Robbins

Ezra Manjon

Vanderbilt Commodores

Auburn Tigers