NASHVILLE, Tennessee – LSU’s Max Mackinnon had his best game as a Tiger on Saturday, scoring 27 points in the 84-73 loss to No. 11 Vanderbilt at Memorial Gymnasium.
Mackinnon hit 9-of-16 field goals, 3-of-6 from distance and all six free throws to go with four assists and two steals in 37:30 of playing time. He had just one turnover on the day.
Marquel Sutton got back on the double figure scoring train with 13 points and six boards in 30:40 on the court.
It was the second straight game when the opponents countered LSU with a fast start and opened up a big lead before the Tigers attempted to rally in the second half. Vandy hit 6-of-14 three-pointers in the first half and built a 20-point advantage 12-minutes in before LSU knocked it down to 14 before intermission.
The Tigers trailed, 52-38, at halftime.
In the second half, the Commodores shooting began to tail off and LSU began to connect consistently inside the arc. The Tigers used a 12-1 run in the second half to cut the margin to 58-50 with 14:11 to play and down to seven at 59-52 following a Mackinnon pull up jumper inside the lane.
LSU got the margin to seven on two other occasions at 64-57 on a Robert Miller III layup with 9:39 to play and later at 8:55 on two Mackinnon free throws.
But Vandy had enough response and made 15-of-18 free throws in the second half to not allow LSU to get any closer.
After both teams shot it okay from distance in the first half, the two teams combined to go 2-of-21 from behind the arc with LSU 1-of-6 and Vandy 1-of-15.
Vandy had five players in double figures with Tyler Tanner scoring 20, Tyler Nickel 19, Duke Miles 17, AK Okereke 12 and Jalen Washington 11. Nickel had four three-pointers and 10 rebounds to lead the Commodores.
Vandy, now 16-0 and 3-0 in the SEC, shot 42.9 percent for the game (27-of-63) and 7-of-30 from distance. The Commodores were 23-of-29 from the free throw line
LSU finished the game at 45.8 percent (27-of-59), 7-of-20 from the three-point arc and 12-of-17 at the line.
The Tigers are now 12-4 and 0-3 in the SEC.
Miller posted nine points in 17 minutes for LSU and Mike Nwoko led the team in rebounds with seven.
For the game, LSU was 20-of-39 inside the arc.
Vanderbilt out rebounded LSU, 36-35. The Tigers did have another 40 points in the paint game with 40 even (Vandy 38). LSU had 14 turnovers, its third consecutive double digit turnover game, compared to seven for the Commodores and Vandy had a 16-10 advantage in points off turnovers.
LSU returns to action on Wednesday night at 6 p.m. at the Maravich Center against Kentucky.
LSU at #11 Vanderbilt
January 10, 2026
LSU Head Coach Matt McMahon (Post-Game Press Conference)
Opening Statement
“I’m really proud of our guys for fighting their way back into the game. Great credit to Vanderbilt, everyone gives them a lot of credit nationally for offensive firepower, and they’re really good. They are very difficult to attack on their defensive side, and I think Tanner and Miles’ ability to get after the basketball, it makes it really difficult on you. Their rim presence, Washington giving them a huge lift there with their rim protection. When we got it down to single digits, we had a couple of opportunities there at seven, and we were not able to execute to get it any closer. Tyler Tanner is turning into one of the great closers in college basketball, they put him in those middle ball screens, Coach Byington does a great job. They have a lot of different actions and looks there, and he’s a difficult cover regardless of what you try to do, so credit to Vanderbilt on a good win on their home floor, and we’ll get back home and prepare for Kentucky on Wednesday.”
On Vanderbilt’s offensive weapons and how difficult they are to stop…
“I think Tanner makes it all go, then Tyler Nickel’s availability to stretch the floor, his shot making is terrific, his range is beyond the NBA three. Okereke is a really difficult matchup as well with his size and physicality, he’s really skilled down in the post. The majority of the time, they have five players on the floor who can score, and so it makes it really difficult to defend.