NASHVILLE – Kendall Pollard scored a season-high 21 points as the Dayton Flyers rallied from a 16-point first half deficit to defeat the No. 21/16 Vanderbilt Commodores on the road, 72-67.

Scoochie Smith added 13 points, while Steve McElvene tallied 10 points and nine rebounds.

Dayton improved to 7-1 on the season, while the Commodores fell to 6-3 overall.

GAME BREAKDOWN

• Dayton trailed by as many as 16 in the first half. UD then went on a 23-6 to regain the lead midway through the game.
• Vanderbilt cut the Flyer lead to 64-62 with 4:15 left in regulation.
• With Dayton up 66-62, Pollard then hit just the fifth 3-pointer of his career with 44 seconds left to help seal the upset for Dayton, matching the Flyers' biggest lead.
• After a pair of missed free throws, Vanderbilt clawed back to cut the deficit to 69-67 with 25.3 seconds left.
• On the ensuing possession, Cooke missed the front end of a one-and-one. The Commodores came down the other end, but missed a layup and the Flyer corralled the rebound to seal the game.
• Dayton outscored Vanderbilt 40-27 in the 2nd half.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Rebounding was the key. Dayton out-rebounded the Commodores 41-31 and had 15 on the offensive end.
• In addition, Dayton had 17 fast break points compared to Vanderbilt's two.
• The Flyers were red-hot in the second half shooting 16-of-27 from the field.
• Dayton had 40 points in the paint compared to Vanderbilt's 22.

KEY STATS

• Scoochie Smith and Kendall Pollard continue to play well of late. Pollard scored in double figures for the sixth straight game, Smith his fifth.
• The Flyers have now won 12 of the last 15 against SEC opponents.
• Dayton is 29-11 in the last nine years against programs from the ACC, Big 12, Big Ten, SEC and Pac 12 Conferences.
• UD is 3-0 this year against power five conference schools with wins over Alabama, Iowa and Vanderbilt.

UP NEXT

• A four-game homestand begins as UD hosts the Chattanooga Mocs on Saturday, Dec. 12 at 7 p.m. ET.