AK Okereke Shines In Vanderbilt’s SEC Opener

The Cornell transfer made a huge impact in a game where Vanderbilt needed someone to step up.

Jan 3, 2026; Columbia, South Carolina, USA; Vanderbilt Commodores forward Ak Okereke (10) grabs a rebound in front of South Carolina Gamecocks forward Myles Stute (10) in the first half at Colonial Life Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Blake-Imagn Images | Jeff Blake-Imagn Images

Vanderbilt basketball tipped off its conference slate Saturday afternoon on the road against South Carolina. Going into Colonial Life Arena was not going to be an easy task given that Vanderbilt was short-handed despite being a heavy road favorite.

Without Duke Miles and Frankie Collins, Vanderbilt needed someone other than a guy like Tyler Tanner or Tyler Nickel to step up and make a compromise for the absences. Vanderbilt big man AK Okereke answered that call from the opening tip.

Through the first nine minutes of the game, Okereke hit an early three-pointer and was a strong presence in the post, but it was the final 10 minutes of the first half where Okereke picked it up both offensively and defensively. Nickel and guard Tyler Harris both were in foul trouble and missed a good chunk of time, and Okereke immediately turned it up a notch.

He finished the first half with 12 points on 5-for-10 shooting and 2-for-5 from the three-point line in addition to his two rebounds and a block in the first 20 minutes. It was the first time he had scored in double figures since Nov. 20 against Texas Southern.

“He was great. He was playing so hard he cramped up. We did not like not having him on the court,” Byington said. “He ran some point guard for us, he guarded the other team’s guys, he rebounds and makes threes.”

His 12 points in the first half led the team as guard Tyler Tanner trailed behind him with 11 points himself. The two combined for 23 of Vanderbilt’s 42 points in the first half.

To start the second half, Okereke hit a three immediately and helped extend Vanderbilt’s lead en route to a season-high of 17 points. Okereke looked confident during the entirety of the game. Whether it was spot up shooting, scoring in the post, defending or rebounding, Okereke was playing with conviction and looked the best he has so far in the black and gold.

His 3-for-6 performance from beyond the arc stood out to Byington as he was coaching from the sideline. Byington felt that the way in which South Carolina was playing Okereke from the three-point line gave Okereke plenty more opportunities to shoot and make shots from downtown.

“I could tell right away how they were going to play him from the three-point line. It was during one of the timeouts I think he was 1-for-2, but he passed on a couple more. I just told him ‘this might be a game where you take seven, eight, nine or ten threes. You’re going to make a bunch of them,’” Byington said. “Then he made a couple more. If teams play him like that, he’s going to make a lot of shots. But that was the strategy for them to help out on Tyler Nickel and Tyler Tanner and leave him open.”

Despite the absence of Miles and Collins, Okereke gave Vanderbilt exactly what it needed. Okereke delivered on his shooting that Miles usually provides and he delivered in his defending and play inside the arc that Vanderbilt fans are used to seeing from Frankie Collins. 

It may not be every game that Okreke plays like the way he did against South Carolina. But if he is able to score in double figures a little more consistently, Vanderbilt becomes an even more dangerous team because it gives opponents another thing to worry about during game planning.

Going forward, the way in which teams defend Okereke will be something worth watching. Will opposing defenses give extra help to defend Tyler Tanner and Tyler Nickel, thereby leaving Okereke open on the wing knowing he can pose as a shooting threat? Or will opposing teams start to pay more attention defensively against Okereke in addition to Tanner and Nickel? Byington and his staff will find out soon, but Saturday afternoon showed that Vanderbilt has plenty of shooting threats to go around.