Georgia Bulldogs coach Mark Fox was quick to pay homage to the team, saying, “I think they have a team that can contend for the Final Four…They have a great backcourt, great wing play, and terrific shooting…an NBA center…there isn’t much missing.”
Last season, the Nigerian born 6’11” Ezeli scored 13 points per game and hauled in 6.3 board per night in only 23.5 minutes of play per game. Ezeli would have won the most improved player, had there been such an award. He put up only 3 points and 3 rebounds per game in his sophmore season.
Joining Ezeli in the frontcourt is power foward Lance Goulbourne. Goulborne actually played more minutes than Ezeli last year (25.0 to 23.5), and put up a respectable 6.9 points per game and 7.3 rebounds per. Last season, though, he was playing through injury much of the year, and many feel he will be able to post a double double this season, if healthy.
Coming off the bench, they will have Steve Tchiengang, who has three point range and can bang. He is capable of playing both center and power forward but could see more time at power forward this year. Rod Odom also looked good as a freshman and could provide meaningful contributions this season, and the Commodores wouldn’t mind having Odom contribute more offensively.
Jenkins and Taylor combined for 34.2 points per game, while both seeing over 30 minutes a night. Jenkins will be a junior this year and is one of the best scorers in the nation. Nearly 25% of his points came at the free throw line, and he worked heavily on his ball handling and defense this summer, too. Taylor is a great athlete but needs to find consistency this season. In the opening round loss to Richmond, Taylor disappeared, putting up only 4 points in the game, after averaging 20.7 points per game in the SEC tournament.
Senior guard Brad Tinsley will play at point guard. He put up 10.6 points per game and dished out 4.6 assists per game, while shooting an improved 36.9% from down town.
Dai Jon Parker was a top 40 recruit and is a great athlete who will pay dividends immediately defensively and Kendren Johnson is a good point guard who has decent shooting range and a big physical body. Josh Henderson sat out last season as a redshirt freshman and is a big body that could prove to be the answer at backup center for the Commodores.
Last season, they ranked 1st in scoring in the SEC and 2nd in three point field goal percentage. Their 74.3% free throw percentage also ranked 2nd in the SEC. Still, the Commodores lost in the first round last year as a #5 seed and they lost in the first round in 2010 as a #4 seed.
Vandy coach Kevin Stallings had this to say:
“I like how this team is constructed…we have a chance to be pretty good….The hype and projections need to be kept in check a bit because we have to win an NCAA tournament game…”
Indeed, that is the main goal before this team this year, though the bar could be set a lot higher if it were based on just talent alone. For a team with three first round picks potentially, the Commodores know they have to take advantage of this situation. It’s been a long time since Vanderbilt fans were this excited, and Stallings realizes that “if everybody accepts their roles and (they) get solid leadership..then…all the hype will be justified.”
It won’t be hype that gets Vandy out of the first round though, and until they reverse the trend of the last two seasons, you’ll probably see bettors betting against them in the opening round in hopes of another big payout from an upset.
