Dec. 1, 2015
The #16/13-ranked Commodores return to the friendly confines of Memorial Gym after their second-place finish in the Maui Jim Maui Invitational on Wednesday night when they welcome Detroit from the Horizon League for a 7 p.m. CT tip off. The game will air online on SEC Network +, and and all of the action can also be heard on the Vanderbilt IMG Sports Radio Network.
The Commodores went 2-1 in Maui and finished second in the tournament last week, with the Commodores posting a 92-55 win over St. John’s and an 86-64 win over Wake Forest before dropping a 70-63 decision to #4/6 Kansas in the tournament final. Junior Damian Jones posted two consecutive double-doubles against Wake Forest and Kansas and led the team with a 13.0 scoring and 8.3 rebounding average in the three games. Wade Baldwin IV averaged 12.3 points in the tournament, and Luke Kornet added 11.7 points per game in the three games.
After finishing their fifth appearance Maui, the Commodores now have a 10-5 all-time record at the tournament and their second-place finish was Vanderbilt’s best since winning the tournament in 1986 behind future five-time NBA Title winner Will Perdue. The Commodores also appeared in 1988, 1995, and 2009.
Game 7/#16/13 Vanderbilt (5-1) vs. Detroit (2-2)
Nashville, Tenn. – Memorial Gym – 7 p.m. CT
TV: SEC Network +
TV Talent: Kevin Ingram (pxp), Shan Foster (analyst)
Radio: Vanderbilt Radio Network from IMG College, vucommodores.com
Radio Talent: Joe Fisher (pxp), Tim Thompson (analyst)
Live Stats: vucommodores.com
Twitter Updates: @VandyMBB
Series Information
Series Record: First meeting.
Last Meeting: First meeting.
Record at Vanderbilt: NA
Record at Detroit: NA
Record at Neutral Site: NA
Coach Stallings vs. Detroit: Coach Stallings has never faced Detroit.
Quick Hitters
- Vanderbilt did not trail in the Maui tournament until the 18:18 mark in the second half of the final against Kansas. Vanderbilt started the semifinal game on a 21-5 run against the Demon Deacons and the quarterfinal game against St. John’s on a 27-4 run.
- Three Commodores are averaging double figures on the season, with Baldwin leading the way with 13.5 ppg. Jones (12.3) and Luke Kornet (11.2) also average double figures.
- Eight players have scored in double figures in a game this season – Baldwin, Kornet, Jones, Jeff Roberson, Riley LaChance, Matthew Fisher-Davis, Nolan Cressler, and Camron Justice.
- For the season, Vanderbilt is shooting 48.3% from the floor and 38.0% from three, out rebounding opponents by a +4.3 margin, and have a +4.2 turnover margin.
- Vanderbilt has 90 assists against only 55 turnovers for the season. Opponents have 80 turnovers and only 39 assists on the year.
- On the season, the Commodores are averaging 83.0 points per game and limiting opponents to 60.7 points per game.
- From the field, Vanderbilt has six players that are shooting 50% or better on the season – Baldwin (.509), Jones (.547), Roberson (.565), LaChance (.500), Justice (.500), and Joe Toye (.625).
- Head Coach Kevin Stallings, the school’s all-time winningest coach, is in his 17th season with the Commodores and 22nd overall as a head coach, and is now the dean of SEC coaches. Stallings has 318 career wins at Vanderbilt and 441 overall as a head coach. He has eight 20-win seasons in the last 12 seasons, with 11 total postseason appearances, six NCAA tournaments, and two Sweet 16’s (2004 and 2007). He is also one of five SEC coaches to win 300 or more games at one institution, joining Kentucky’s Adolph Rupp, Florida’s Billy Donovan, and LSU’s Dale Brown and Harry Rabenhorst, and is now in 6th place all-time on the SEC wins list.
- This is the fourth consecutive week Vanderbilt has been ranked in the top 25 of the Associated Press and Coaches Polls. The Commodores check in at number 16 in the AP poll, their highest in-season ranking in the poll since March 1, 2010, when Vanderbilt was 13th. Prior to the 2011-12 season, Vanderbilt had a preseason ranking of seventh by the Associated Press.
- In the early goings in the season, Vanderbilt leads the SEC in scoring margin (+22.3), field goal percentage defense (.360), 3-point field goal percentage defense (.243), and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.6), second in scoring defense (60.7), and third in blocked shots (6.0).
- The Commodores have three players at seven feet or higher in their front court – Josh Henderson (7’0), Damian Jones (7’0), and Luke Kornet (7’1).
- The 2015-16 edition of the Vanderbilt Commodores returns 10 letterwinners and four of five starters from a year ago, with 81.6% of the team’s scoring output and 77.4% of rebounding returning. Also added to the mix this year is junior Nolan Cressler, who averaged 16.8 points per game as a sophomore at Cornell in 2013-14, and four incoming freshmen who were ranked as the 20th-best recruiting class in the class of 2015.
- Luke Kornet leads the SEC in blocks with 2.7 per game, and Riley LaChance leads the conference in assist to turnover ratio at 3.8.
- Vanderbilt has made a 3-pointer in 937 consecutive games, a streak which began at the inception of the 3-point line in 1986-87. The Commodores rank second only to UNLV for the longest streak in Division I basketball. Vanderbilt, UNLV and Princeton are the only three schools in college basketball to have made at least one 3-pointer in every game played since the 3-point line was implemented.
About Detroit
- Detroit enters the game with a 2-2 overall record after dropping a 100-95 decision at Oral Roberts on Nov. 28.
- Anton Wilson leads a group of six Titan players in double figures at 15.0 ppg. Carlton Brundidge (14.8), Chris Jenkins (14.3), Josh McFolley (12.3), Jaleel Hogan (12.0), and Aaron Foster-Smith (10.0) also average double digits.
- Wednesday will be the first meeting between the two schools.