Jan. 29, 2016
Vanderbilt Gamenotes 
| Texas Gamenotes
The Commodores venture outside of SEC play this Saturday when they travel to Austin to take on the University of Texas in the Big 12/SEC Challenge. The game will tip off at 11 a.m. CT and will be televised on ESPN2, with all of the action also available on the Vanderbilt IMG Sports Radio Network.
Vanderbilt will participate in the challenge for the third consecutive season, and for the second time in three seasons, will visit the Frank Erwin Center for the event. The Commodores dropped a 70-64 decision to Texas on December 2, 2013, in the program’s only other visit to Austin.
Vanderbilt won for the fourth time in five games on Tuesday night when they defeated Florida, 60-59, in a hard-fought battle against the Gators at Memorial Gym. Wade Baldwin IV led the Commodores with 24 points, while Damian Jones added his 11th career double-double with 20 points and 12 rebounds.
The Commodores limited Florida to 32.9% from the field and 31.8% from behind the arc in the game, both season-lows for the Gators. Vanderbilt ranks third nationally in three-point field goal percentage defense (27.6%) and is ninth nationally in field goal percentage (37.9%).
Vanderbilt shot 40.9% from the floor and 33.3% from three against the Gators.
The Gators also made more threes (7) than the Commodores (3) on the night. Vanderbilt is now 1-2 in games in which their opponent makes more threes.
Game 21/ Texas (12-8, 4-4 SEC) vs. Texas (13-7, 5-3 Big 12)
Austin, Texas – Frank Erwin Jr. Special Events Center – 11 a.m. CT
TV: ESPN2
TV Talent: Jon Sciambi (pxp), Fran Fraschilla (analyst)
Radio: Vanderbilt Radio Network from IMG College, vucommodores.com
Radio Talent: Joe Fisher (pxp), Tim Thompson (analyst)
Satellite Radio: Sirius 136, XM 199
Live Stats: vucommodores.com
Twitter Updates: @VandyMBB
Series Information
Series Record: Vanderbilt leads series, 4-3.
Last Meeting: Texas win, 70-64, at Texas, 12/2/13.
Record at Vanderbilt: VU leads, 3-0.
Record at Texas: Texas leads, 1-0.
Record at Neutral Site: Texas leads, 2-1.
Coach Stallings vs. Texas: Coach Stallings is 0-1 against Texas.
Quick Hitters
- The Commodores were 21-33 (21-33) from the free-throw line, compared to 6-10 (60%) for the Gators. In Vanderbilt’s last nine games, the Commodores are averaging 29.7 free throw attempts and have attempted 30 or more free throw attempts in three of their last four games. Opponents are averaging 22.2 free throw attempts in the last nine games.
- This will be the eighth game between the two schools, with the last meeting coming in the Big 12/SEC Challenge on December 2, 2013, in Austin (Texas win, 70-64). The first meeting between the two schools came on December 27, 1950, at the All-College Tournament in Oklahoma City.
- Vanderbilt is 0-2 all-time in the Big 12/SEC Challenge, with losses coming to Texas in 2013 and Baylor in 2014 at Memorial Gym (12/4).
- Vanderbilt ranks first in all games in the SEC in FG% defense (.379), and 3FG% defense (.276), and is second in 3FG% (.403) and in threes made (8.3).
- Nationally, VU also ranks 14th in 3-point field goal percentage (40.3) and 15th in blocks (5.6 per game).
- Luke Kornet’s 10 blocks against Auburn set a new program record for blocks in a game – he surpassed three games with seven blocks by Will Perdue (vs. East Carolina, 12/28/87), Festus Ezeli (at Georgia, 2/16/11) and Damian Jones (at South Carolina, 2/13/14). The 10 blocks is also the most in the nation this season, and he currenty leads the nation in blocks (3.27 per game).
- Ten players have scored in double figures in a game this season – Wade Baldwin, Luke Kornet, Damian Jones, Jeff Roberson, Riley LaChance, Matthew Fisher-Davis, Nolan Cressler, Camron Justice, Josh Henderson, and Joe Toye.
- Fisher-Davis leads the SEC in 3-Point Field Goal Percentage (.489).
- Vanderbilt is 10-1 on the season when Kornet attempts more two point baskets than three’s.
- Head Coach Kevin Stallings, the school’s all-time winningest coach, is in his 17th season with the Commodores and 23rd overall as a head coach, and is now the dean of SEC coaches. Stallings has 325 career wins at Vanderbilt and 448 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 in 6th place all-time on the SEC wins list.
- 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). LSU has two seven footers, and the rest of the league has one or fewer.
951
Vanderbilt has made a 3-pointer in 951 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.
Academic Success
Eight members of this year’s team were named to the SEC Academic Honor Roll or the SEC First-Year Academic Honor Roll for 2014-15.
Texas Dores?
Saturday’s matchup in Austin is one of three trips to the state of Texas for the Commodores this season, with other trips being earlier this year at Baylor (Dec. 6) and then a regular-season ending trip to College Station (at Texas A&M, 3/5). Additionally, five players on the Vanderbilt roster played high school basketball in the state of Texas – Luke Kornet (Lantana, Liberty Christian), Jeff Roberson (Houston, The Kinkaid School), Djery Baptiste (Plano, Prestonwood Christian Academy), Carter Josephs (San Antonio, Tom C. Clark), and Samir Sehic (Cypress, Cy Woods).
Non-Conference Tough
According to KenPom.com, Vanderbilt has had a difficult non-conference slate. The Commodores’ non-conference schedule is ranked 78th in the nation, but seventh among all Power Five schools. Only Florida (42), UCLA (48), Texas (55), Stanford (59), Alabama (70), and Wake Forest (71) have had a tougher schedule according to KenPom.
About Texas
- Texas enters the Big 12/SEC Challenge with a 13-7 mark and a 5-3 record in Big 12 play.
- Isaiah Taylor leads the Longhorns in scoring with 15.8 points per game. Javan Felix is next on the team with 11.0 points per contest.
- Cameron Ridley, who averaged 12.7 points per game through 11 games, will miss the game this weekend after fracturing his left foot in December.
- Texas assistant David Cason was an assistant on Vanderbilt’s staff from 2011-2014, and played for Coach Stallings at Illinois State from 1993-95.