Vandy B-ball -- consistently underrated!! Even by us at SEC Sports Fan. But, maybe not by the NCAA selection committee. The Dores got a real nice #4 seed in the Midwest regional. They open up Friday against Sienna in Tampa, Florida.
Now that would be a nice spring break locale. If you are looking for tickets to the game, or the next one, also in Tampa, check out 2008 March Madness Tickets and Rebate.
Prior Discussion:
Over the years, Vandy basketball has gained lots of respect in the college basketball world. And, that respect is well deserved. Men's Basketball is probably Vandy's signature sport (although baseball and football have recently dramatically improved).
The Dores surprised everyone with a great 2006 – 2007 basketball season, ending up with a 22-12 record and finishing second to Florida in SEC East regular season play. Vandy went to lose to Arkansas 72-71 in the first round of the SEC tournament.
But, then, VU had an impressive run in the NCAA tournament, where they beat George Washington and Washington State before losing to Georgetown 66-65 in the third round "Sweet 16".
The Dores are in their eighth season under head coach Kevin Stallings. They lost two starters, including all-star Derrick Byars from last years team. Vanderbilt basketball simply does not have the recruiting machine that other, bigger, schools have. So, undoubtedly, they will not be able to replace Byars.
However, Shan Foster returns for his senior season and Andrew Ogilvy has arrived from Australia. Ogilvy has attracted lots of attention as he was a star "down-under". However, SEC B-ball is a lot different than Australia and the freshman will likely spend much of this year transitioning to his new surroundings both on and off the court.
Thus far, in 2007-2008, the Vanderbilt men's basketball has surprised to the upside, once again.
Foster keept busy in the off-season, playing for the USA in the 2007 Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Ogilvy has also been on the road this summer playing in the Under 19 FIBA World Championships in Serbia.
Coach Stallings also signed several other recruits to the team for this season, the most notably being Festus Ezelli who will bring his enormous 6’11” frame to the team.
The bottom line is this will be a rebuilding year for Vanderbilt basketball. But, the Commodores will still have a winning season. We predict 3rd in the SEC east and an NIT bid.
November 5 Tusculum (Exhibition) Home
November 10 Austin Peay Home
November 13 Toledo Away
November 20 Valparaiso Home
November 23 Utah State Home
November 24 Iowa or Bradley Home
November 29 South Alabama Home
December 1 Georgia Tech Home
December 5 Wake Forest Home
December 5 Lipscomb Home
December 12 DePaul Away
December 22 Tennessee State Home
December 29 Tennessee-Martin Home
December 31 Iona Home
January 3 Rice Home
January 5 Massachusetts Home
January 9 South Carolina Home
January 12 Kentucky Away
January 17 Tennessee Away
January 19 LSU Home
January 27 Florida Away
January 30 Mississippi Away
February 3 Auburn Home
February 6 Georgia Away
February 9 South Carolina Away
February 12 Kentucky Home
February 16 Florida Home
February 23 Georgia Home
February 26 Tennessee Home
March 1 Arkansas Away
March 5 Mississippi State Home
March 8 Alabama Away
0 Jermaine Beal G Sophomore DeSoto, Texas
1 Festus Ezeli C Freshman Benin City, Nigeria
2 Charles Hinkle G/F Freshman Los Alamitos, California
3 Alex Gordon G Senior Pensacola, Florida
4 Andrew Ogilvy C Freshman Canberra, Australia
11 Alan Metcalfe F Senior St. Helens, England
13 Keegan Bell G Freshman Hazel Green, Alabama
15 Elliot Cole G Freshman Memphis, Tennessee
21 Darshawn McClellan F Freshman Fresno, California
24 Andre Walker F Freshman Flossmoor, Illinois
31 JeJuan Brown F Sophomore Biloxi, Mississippi
32 Shan Foster G Senior Kenner, Louisiana
34 George Drake G Sophomore (R) Calera, Alabama
41 Ross Neltner F Senior Fort Thomas, Kentucky
50 Joe Duffy F Freshman Charlotte, North Carolina
Davis Nwankwo F Senior College Park, Maryland
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Vanderbilt to the NIT
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"The bottom line is this will be a rebuilding year for Vanderbilt basketball. But, the Commodores will still have a winning season. We predict 3rd in the ...
