Vanderbilt knocks off Tennessee, Xavier beats Marquette as two top-10 teams fall

On the same day top-ranked Auburn narrowly survived at No.

23 Georgia and No.

4 Alabama topped No.

8 Kentucky on the road, No.

6 Tennessee fell to unranked Vanderbilt, 76-75 in Nashville, as the SEC continues to distinguish itself as the toughest conference in mens college basketball this season.

Vols leading scorer Chaz Lanier missed a game-tying free throw with 2.8 seconds remaining, scuttling Tennessees last-ditch comeback effort as a 9-0 run to end the game came up short.

Vanderbilt was led by Jason Edwards with 18 points and held on for the win despite the Vols shooting 10-for-21 from beyond the arc.

The Commodores (15-3, 3-2 SEC) outrebounded Tennessee 12-to-8 on the offensive glass and finished with an 18-to-9 advantage in second-chance points.

Its Vanderbilts first victory over a ranked opponent since 2023.

Advertisement The Vols (16-2, 3-2 SEC) face a gauntlet in the coming weeks, with four straight ranked matchups vs.

Mississippi State , at Auburn, vs.

Kentucky and vs.

Florida .

Elsewhere on Saturday, No.

7 Marquette lost 59-57 at home to Xavier, the Musketeers defense locking up the Golden Eagles on the games final possession.

Marquette (15-3, 6-1 Big East) suffered its first conference loss of the season as Xavier (12-7, 4-4 Big East) won a third straight game and secured its first Quad 1 victory.

Zach Freemantle paced the Musketeers with a much-needed 14 points and 10 rebounds while the offense shot just 2-for-17 from 3-point range.

David Joplin led Marquette with 18 points, but leading scorer and All-America candidate Kam Jones had just 11 points on 5-of-13 shooting from the field.

Marquette remains atop the Big East standings at 6-1, tied for the time being with a St.

Johns team that faces Seton Hall on Saturday night.

Earlier in the day, Creighton defeated No.

14 UConn 68-63, snapping the Huskies 28-game home winning streak and handing UConn its second Big East loss.

(Photo: Johnnie Izquierdo / Getty Images).

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