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The Vanderbilt Commodores saw their 2014-15 season derailed by a seven-game losing streak in late January. By the time the streak ended, Vandy was 11-10 overall and 1-7 in the SEC.
Vandy won eight of their last 11 regular season games and snuck into the NIT, where they beat St. Mary’s and South Dakota State before falling to the eventual tournament runners-up, the Stanford Cardinal.
For all of the things that went wrong in the middle of the season, head coach Kevin Stallings definitely saw things that he could build on for 2016. Center Damian Jones improved all season long and became a serious inside threat for the Commodores as the season progressed.
While Jones controlled the inside, Vandy got perimeter scoring from Wade Baldwin IV, Matthew Fisher-Davis and Riley LaChance, who all served as good outside shooters. Luke Kornet also progressed as the season went on and should be improved as a junior. Stallings also saw drastic improvement from freshman small forward Jeff Roberson.
That core of players will be joined by Top 100 recruit Joseph Toye from Chicago Whitney Young, who will provide athleticism to the roster.
Vanderbilt struggled last season not due to lack of talent, but because of a lack of experience. As the season went on and the players learned more, the team continued to improve. Stallings is counting on that improvement continuing heading into the 2016 season.
The Commodores are not likely to compete for an SEC title next season, but they should be improved. An NCAA Tournament bid is not out of the question for this team.
Tim Letcher is a Featured Writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @TimLetcher , on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.
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