Vanderbilt tops Mississippi State on Riley LaChance's buzzer-beater

Vanderbilt's Riley LaChance knew he made the game-winning 3-pointer, even if his teammates did not.

LaChance drilled a shot with his left foot barely behind the 3-point line and the final horn sounding for what appeared to be an 81-80 win over Mississippi State on Wednesday night.

He was then mobbed by his teammates near mid-court, but the post-game celebration was put on hold for a couple of minutes as officials reviewed the footage.

Was it a two-point or 3-point shot?

"I was sure it was a 3, but some people on the bench were saying that it might not have been," LaChance said. "I'm just happy that it went in."

Video review showed LaChance was behind the line, but a half-second was added to the game clock.

No worries, though. LaChance secured the win by intercepting Mississippi State's full-court in-bounds pass as the clock ran out again — this time, for good.

LaChance finished with 16 points and a career-high eight assists, moving past 400 assists for his career.

Fellow senior Jeff Roberson led Vanderbilt with 22 points and 11 rebounds. Joe Toye added a season-high 16 points. Payton Willis had a season-high 15 points on a career-high five 3-pointers.

Home win streak stays alive

Vanderbilt (10-16, 4-9 SEC) kept up its season-long narrative of strong play at home and weak on the road. The Commodores are 0-11 away from Memorial Gym, but they won their fourth consecutive home game, all against teams ranked in the RPI top 100.

Vanderbilt's 11-point second-half lead slipped away amid the Bulldogs’ furious late charge. Xavian Stapleton completed the comeback with a 3-pointer at the 3:53 mark to put Mississippi State ahead 72-71 and begin a back-and-forth final stretch.

With Vanderbilt trailing 79-76 with eight seconds remaining, Roberson made only one of two free throws. Toye was then fouled as he attempted to pull down a long offensive rebound, but he also missed one of his two free throws to keep Mississippi State ahead 79-78.

Vanderbilt hit 14 of 27 3-pointers on the night. But it struggled from the foul line, making only 11 of 17.

"I actually told (LaChance) before the game that I was going to miss five free throws, so he could make that shot," joked Roberson, who was 7 of 12 from the foul line. "But he really saved me and a couple of others that didn't make free throws at the end."

Mississippi State's Stapleton then made only one of two foul shots with six seconds remaining. Roberson pulled down the defensive rebound, which led to LaChance's game-winner on the other end.

"I couldn't be happier for Riley," coach Bryce Drew said. "That was a shot he'll be showing his kids one day."

Stapleton led Mississippi State (18-8, 6-7 SEC) with 18 points.

Up next

Vanderbilt will play Florida at 3 p.m. Saturday on ESPN2. The Commodores have won five of their last six games over the Gators, including last season’s three-game sweep.

Vanderbilt won 68-66 in Gainesville, 73-71 at Memorial Gym and 72-62 in overtime in the SEC tournament last season. It lost 81-74 at Florida on Dec. 30 this season.

Reach Adam Sparks at asparks@tennessean.com and on Twitter @AdamSparks.