Vanderbilt injury updates: Mark Byington updates status of multiple Commodores players

First-year Vanderbilt men’s basketball head coach Mark Byington opened up about the Commodores’ injury situation ahead of Saturday’s epic in-state showdown vs. No. 6 Tennessee. Turns out not much change is expected following Wednesday’s 66-63 win over visiting South Carolina.

Senior guards Alex Hemenway and Grant Huffman aren’t likely to play Saturday against the Volunteers, while freshman guard Tyler Tanner should be a full participant as he was Wednesday.

Tanner played 21 minutes and scored four points on 2-of-5 shooting, but — much like the entire Commodores team — struggled from 3-point range, finishing 0-of-3 from beyond the arc. Vanderbilt finished a miserable 4-of-21 from 3-point range against the Gamecocks.

“Tyler Tanner made it through, so unless he re-injured it, he should be OK,” Byington said in Wednesday’s postgame press conference. “Grant (Huffman) wasn’t able to practice the last couple of days, so hopefully he gets better and gets back. Alex Hemenway will be out for awhile. … Tonight, when you’re 4-for-21 from the 3-point line, you kind of wish Alex Hemenway was out there, because he’s a good 3-point shooter.”

The Commodores (14-3, 2-2 SEC) host No. 6 Tennessee (16-1, 3-1) at 3:30 pm ET Saturday from Memorial Gymnasium in Nashville, with the game televised on the SEC Network.

AJ Hoggard blunt about upcoming Tennessee rivalry game: ‘We don’t like them, they don’t like us’

On Saturday, first-year Vanderbilt head coach Mark Byington will lead the Commodores into battle against Tennessee. After Vanderbilt’s win over South Carolina on Wednesday, Michigan State transfer AJ Hoggard weighed in on the impending rivalry game.

“I’m just treating it how I used to treat Michigan State versus Michigan,” Hoggard said. “We don’t like them, they don’t like us.”

While it’s technically a rivalry between Vanderbilt and Tennessee, the history of the matchup is lopsided. The Volunteers boast an all-time record of 131-76 against the Commodores.

Tennessee has been especially dominant in recent years, winning 13 of the two teams’ last 14 meetings. The Volunteers are entering the game on Saturday on a two-game win streak against Vanderbilt. The Commodores last downed Tennessee on Feb. 8, 2023, when Tyrin Lawrence knocked down a game-winning 3-pointer at the buzzer.

Now, Vanderbilt will look to add another tally to its win column against the Volunteers. Hoggard may not be privy to the history of the rivalry but he’ll certainly be pivotal in the showdown.

Hoggard is averaging 11.1 points, 2.6 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game while shooting 40.5% from the field and 30.8% from beyond the arc. Hoggard has only heated up during conference play, scoring 14 or more points in three of the Commodores’ four games against SEC opponents.

Grant Grubbs contributed to this report.