Vanderbilt stays perfect, UConn completes wild rally: What happened in college hoops Wednesday

The worst possible thing happened Wednesday night in the highly anticipated top-15 matchup between No. 11 Vanderbilt and No. 13 Alabama: The officials thought people packed Memorial Gymnasium to see them, not some of the SEC’s best players.

Insert annoyed emoji here.

Vanderbilt remained perfect on the season with a 96-90 win over the visiting Tide, but it was hard to watch. Were those officials being paid per foul called? It sure felt like it for a stretch in the second half, when the two teams were in the double bonus with more than 11 minutes to play. There’s a reason the game took nearly three hours, and it’s that there were 63 fouls and 88 free throws. It interrupted the flow of the game, which meant we focused on that instead of Vanderbilt’s sophomore guard Tyler Tanner’s (29 points, 7 assists, 4 steals) stellar play.

Vanderbilt (15-0, 2-0 SEC) continues to impress. Earlier this week, Brendan Marks called them the surprise team of the college hoops season. Yes, the Commodores being undefeated is probably odd when you consider the long history of college basketball, but there’s a lot of that going around in big-time college sports right now. Indiana is still in the mix to play for a national football championship! Nebraska basketball is undefeated!

We are living in the upside-down, so lean in with Vandy — and don’t discount the advantage provided by that weird gym, where teams sit on the baseline, and visiting coaches never seem to know exactly where to stand to direct traffic.

Taking a conference loss isn’t ideal, but Alabama might have bigger problems. Early in the second half, freshman phenom Labaron Philon left the game and headed to the locker room with an apparent lower leg issue. Had he played the entire second half, the outcome could have been different, considering he scored 15 points in 16 minutes in the first half. We’ll have to wait to see his status for Saturday when the Crimson Tide host Texas.

Elsewhere, the only upset in rankings was unranked Clemson knocking off No. 24 SMU, 74-70.

Here’s what else caught our eye Wednesday:

UConn’s starting five is better than every other team’s

UConn survived an overtime scare at Providence, reeling off a 14-3 run in the final 3:12 of regulation to force the extra period after trailing by as much as 13. The Huskies, by far the best team in the Big East this season, won 103-98 because of two newcomers.

Freshman Braylon Mullins scored 24 points, including eight in overtime, while Silas Demary Jr., a transfer from Georgia, scored 23 points, dished 15 assists and grabbed five steals, an eye-popping performance for the junior. Fittingly, it was Demary, who completed his stellar stat line with just one turnover, who hit the dagger, draining a step-back with 11 seconds to go to bump UConn’s lead to five, 103-98.

Right before that late second-half run, when UConn was trailing 86-75, KenPom estimated the Huskies’ win percentage was just 3.2.

Afterward, UConn coach Dan Hurley called it “a hell of a win, as good of a win as I’ve had in my career in terms of coming back.”

Alex Karaban, who Hurley described as “one of the best players” in UConn history, added 23 points for the Huskies, while Tarris Reed, Jr. chipped in 20 points and eight rebounds. The Huskies needed big nights from their starting lineup — Solo Ball scored 10 — because Providence’s bench outscored UConn’s 41-3. UConn struggled for long stretches in regulation, but the reality is that when its starters take over games, not many teams can play with them.

“We never win games like that, we usually have to play with a big deal to win, or so I’ve been told,” Hurley deadpanned. The Huskies won partially by turning Providence over 17 times, which led to 26 UConn points.

It’s a bittersweet loss for Providence coach Kim English, who is feeling pressure to make the NCAA Tournament in his third season. A win over UConn (15-1, 5-0 Big East) would have been tremendous for the Friars’ resume, much like this behind-the-back reverse layup from Ryan Mela was late in the second half. That’s sure to be a “SportsCenter Top 10” play, but alas, it comes with a 1-3 conference record.

MELA AROUND-THE-BACK-REVERSE😱😱😱 pic.twitter.com/aSkqQSWrV5

— Providence MBB (@PCFriarsmbb) January 8, 2026

Iowa State, Arizona stay undefeated

Vanderbilt, of course, isn’t the only team that’s blemish-free. No. 1 Arizona and No. 3 Iowa State stayed that way after wins over Kansas State and Baylor, respectively. These games pretty much went as expected, though it’s worth pointing out Joshua Jefferson’s 19-point, 17-rebound performance in the Cyclones’ 70-60 victory. He also had 3 assists and 3 steals. Iowa State is 15-0, and if it beats Oklahoma State on Saturday will be undefeated when it travels to play Kansas next Tuesday.

Also of note, always, is Koa Peat’s dunking ability. Is anyone brave enough to step in front of this guy and try to take a charge? Probably not, and I can’t blame them. Arizona (15-0, 2-0 Big 12) rolled past Kansas State (9-6, 0-2) 101-76.

Koa. Peat. Throw it down!😤 @ArizonaMBB pic.twitter.com/ooFLSsTrw7

— FOX College Hoops (@CBBonFOX) January 8, 2026

Is Kentucky a bubble team?

Honestly, that might be a generous description given the Wildcats’ mess. Missouri (12-3, 2-0 SEC) recorded its first-ever program win at Rupp Arena on Wednesday despite Kentucky (9-6, 0-2) being favored by 12.5 points. The Tigers’ victory makes perfect sense when you watch Kentucky’s last offensive set, coming out of a timeout.

Kentucky’s last offensive play, coming out of a timeout. pic.twitter.com/ARcyVmHoJq

— Tristan Pharis (@TristanUda) January 8, 2026

Woof. There’s no way that’s what Mark Pope drew up, right?

Relatedly, we should all probably memorize the year 2021. That’s the last time Kentucky missed the NCAA Tournament.

Saint Louis wins a rock fight

What had been billed as the potential mid-major game of the year was mostly a letdown offensively, as Saint Louis topped VCU 71-62.

Midway through the first half, color analyst Steve Lappas summed it up perfectly when he cried, “This is the most entertaining game I’ve ever seen where neither team can score!”

That’s not an exaggeration. The Rams connected on just 29 percent of their field goal attempts, ending the first half hitting just 1-for-10 and ending the game hitting just 1-for-8. An offensive showcase it was not, as Saint Louis also struggled to put the ball in the basket for long stretches.

Saint Louis (14-1, 2-0 Atlantic 10) led for more than 38 minutes, earning a key win for its NCAA Tournament at-large hopes, as well as one that could come in handy in the Atlantic 10 race. VCU (11-5, 2-1) closed late and took a 1-point lead with 2:30 to go, but the Billikens ended the game on a 10-0 run to leave Richmond a winner.

Here’s hoping the rematch on Feb. 20 is better.