Vanderbilt 86, Georgia State 80: Freshman Damian Jones scored 19 points off the bench in his college debut as the host Commodores survived the Panthers’ upset bid to win their season opener.

Jones hit 7-of-8 shots from the field and his jumper with 1:55 remaining snapped a tie at 73 to give Vanderbilt the lead for good. Rod Odom hit five 3-pointers and finished with a team-high 19 points for the Commodores (1-0) while Tulsa transfer Eric McClellan added 18 points in his Vanderbilt debut.

Ex-Kentucky guard Ryan Harrow scored a career-high 27 points on 10-of-21 shooting for Georgia State (1-1). R.J. Hunter added 21 points for the Panthers, who outrebounded the Commodores 34-30.

Vanderbilt led by six points with eight minutes remaining, but the Panthers rallied to tie the game at 73 on Hunter’s free throw with 2:18 to go. Jones put the Commodores ahead 23 seconds later and his dunk with 24 seconds left extended the Vanderbilt lead to 82-76.

The Panthers pulled within 82-80 on two free throws from Devonta White with 10 seconds left, but Odom and McClellan each made a pair of free throws to seal the victory. McClellan added five rebounds and three assists.

GAME NOTEBOOK: The Commodores finished 16-for-27 from the free-throw line. … Vanderbilt’s bench, sparked by Jones, outscored Georgia State’s reserves 28-3. … The Panthers fell to 4-28 all-time against SEC schools.