Live Blog: No. 15 Vanderbilt Basketball at No. 20 Arkansas

Vanderbilt tries to snap its two-game losing streak in a tough road environment.

Jan 17, 2026; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Vanderbilt Commodores forward Ak Okereke (10) drives to the basket against the Florida Gators during the second half at Memorial Gymnasium. Mandatory Credit: Steve Roberts-Imagn Images | Steve Roberts-Imagn Images

Time to see if Vanderbilt can get a notable conference win on its resume or if the slide will continue.

Vanderbilt takes a trip to Fayetteville, Arkansas Tuesday night for a showdown with No. 20 Arkansas in a game where Vanderbilt is looking to get back on track after a rough time over the past week. The Commodores will enter Bud Walton Arena on a two-game losing streak with losses to Texas and a top 20 Florida team that went down to the wire.

Vanderbilt’s last two games took its record from 16-0 to 16-2 and tied with six other teams at 3-2 in the SEC standings. The Commodores have had trouble staying out of foul trouble and winning on the boards, being outrebounded by 14 or more in each of their last two games.

Arkansas is one of those teams that Vanderbilt is tied with in the conference standings. The Razorbacks have been one of the most up and down teams in the conference with wins against Tennessee and Ole Miss and blowout losses to Auburn and Georgia.

Tuesday night, who knows which Arkansas team Vanderbilt is going to get. Either way, Vanderbilt is going to have to find a way to win in the post. Arkansas is not the best team in the conference in offensive rebounding, which is good for Vanderbilt. But the Commodores have got to limit second chance opportunities in the game. In their latest game against Florida, the Commodores were outscored 22-8 in second chance points and was a deciding factor in the loss.

The game could come down to guard play between Vanderbilt’s Tyler Tanner and Duke Miles and Arkansas’ Darius Acuff Jr. and Meleek Thomas. The highest producers for Vanderbilt must show up in a big way both scoring the ball and defending Arkansas’ lethal guards.

Vanderbilt and Arkansas are set to tipoff at 8 p.m. CT on ESPN.

Follow the live blog here for live updates from tonight’s Vanderbilt-Arkansas game.

Live Blog

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2nd Half

• FINAL: Vanderbilt loses to Arkansas 93-68, its third consecutive loss. The Commodores head to Mississippi State Saturday for a 5 p.m. CT tip.

• Arkansas has just dominated all half, outscoring Vanderbilt by nearly 20. Arkansas had a 30-point lead at one point. Vanderbilt has bothered all half.

• Arkansas once again has started to get into the paint and take the ball to the hoop often. Vanderbilt now trails 62-45. Defensively, Vanderbilt has just been getting outphysicaled by Arkansas down low.

• Arkansas went on a 6-0 run to extend its lead to 17, but Tyler tanner hits a three to make it 56-42 at the first media timeout of the half. Seems like Arkansas has adjusted a little to the changes Vanderbilt made defensively.

1st Half

• HALF: Vanderbilt goes into halftime down 46-35 to Arkansas. The Commodores were down 20, but their offense has woken up thanks to Tyler Nickel and Duke Miles. Vanderbilt seemed like it switched to a different zone defense and it has worked well thus far. Vanderbilt still very much has a chance to win.

• Tyler Nickel continues to cook for Vanderbilt as he is 5-for-8 from three and has 17 points. Duke Miles also joined in on the scoring with a three of his own as Vanderbilt only trails by 10 now in the final 30 seconds. The Commodores are far from out of it now.

• Tyler Nickel has been the bright spot for Vanderbilt tonight. He's got 11 points on three made threes. Vanderbilt down 39-24 pending Arkansas free throws with 3:50 before halftime. Commodores have to get this within 10 by half to feel like it has a chance here. Vanderbilt has to win the middle eight minutes.

• Vanderbilt's offense is starting to wake up, but it is trading twos for threes as Arkansas has caught fire from downtown. Commodores deficit is now 34-17 with 5:51 before half. Just all-around not a great day for Vanderbilt. Arkansas' guards have gotten hot and Vanderbilt is struggling on the glass again.

• Tyler Nickel hits Vanderbilt's first three-pointer, but Duke Miles gets his second foul shortly after. One of the leading scorers for Vanderbilt will be on the bench for quite a while one would expect. 18-8 Arkansas at the under 12 timeout.

• Arkansas is pouring on the offense right now as Vanderbilt now trails 15-4. Arkansas is driving to the basket at will and scoring seemingly every time. Definitely not the start Vanderbilt wanted.

• Vanderbilt finds itself in trouble early down 9-2. Commodores are 1-for-6 shooting and have turned the ball over. Mike James took a hard fall on the last play before the first media timeout.

Pregame

• Vanderbilt and Arkansas are set to tipoff at 8:10 p.m. CT on ESPN.

• According to the injury report, Vanderbilt guard Frankie Collins was listed as “doubtful” for today’s game. That is actually good news considering he has been listed as simply “out” in the initial injury reports for the past few weeks. Perhaps that could indicate that he is close to returning, but time will tell.

• With Vanderbilt going on the road tonight, Vanderbilt On SI will be covering the game today remotely. Karl Ravech and Jimmy Dykes will be on the call on ESPN tonight in Fayetteville in what is going to be a game that is sure to have a meaningful impact on the standings.