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about 1 month ago: Vanderbilt fans react after Vanderbilt defeated Tennessee 90-71 in an NCAA college basketball game in Nashville, Tenn., Tuesday, Feb. 9, 2010. (AP Photo/Frederick Breedon)

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LAST NIGHT

In a contest with big implications come SEC tournament time, Vanderbilt smoked Tennessee to the tune of 90-71. Not only was it a startling turnaround for the Commodores, who lost to Georgia by 14 over the weekend, but it also gave Vandy the season sweep. With these two Tennessee-based teams fighting it out for second in the East, the Gold and Black have the upper hand for getting a first round bye in the conference tourney.

It was a story of two halves, with the 'Dores running up a 44-27 halftime lead and the teams playing about even the rest of the way. The real difference wasn't really in the shooting, as Tennessee made two more field goals than Vanderbilt did while also knocking down more treys. Rather, Vandy did a lot of its damage on the line. VU held a 43-21 edge in free throws attempted, and the Commodores hit them at a higher percentage than the Vols did.

Meanwhile in Lexington, Kentucky had a sloppy but comfortable win over Alabama, 66-55. Both John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins had double-doubles, and for Cousins, it's his seventh in a row. That's the longest double-double streak for a Wildcat in 37 years. It still qualified as an ugly win though, as Wall turned it over six times and the tough Tide defense held the conference's highest scoring attack to 15 points below its average.