Sept. 30, 2016
As the Bryce Drew era begins at Vanderbilt on Friday, vucommodores.com weighs in with three things to watch as practice begins for the 2016-17 season.
How do the Commodores replace Damian Jones and Wade Baldwin IV?
Yes the Commodores lost two first-round NBA draft picks a year ago – one of only three schools in the nation with two first rounders – but a plethora of players with a multitude of experience return to anchor the 2016-17 squad. Baldwin (14.1 ppg) and Jones (13.9) points per game were the two leading scorers a year ago, but four players, junior Matthew Fisher-Davis (9.7 ppg), junior Jeff Roberson (9.3), senior Luke Kornet (8.3), and junior Riley LaChance (6.9) each contributed last year and played a ton of games. Combined, the four played a total of 125 games and 3,322 minutes for a team that had 11 SEC wins last season (11-7), the most since the Commodores registered 12 in 2009-10, and it was the 15th time in program history a Vanderbilt team has recorded 11 or more league victories.
Fisher-Davis led the SEC in three-point field goal percentage in 2015-16, converting on 44.6% of his attempts from beyond-the-arc, while Kornet led the conference in blocks with 3.0 per game.
“We cannot make up the loss for Wade and Damian with even exchange,” said Drew. “As a team, we need collectively to do more to make up for them.”
Coach Drew and Defense
Drew’s team at Valpo a year ago ranked in the top 11 in four defensive metrics, according to KenPom.com – adjusted defensive efficiency (9th), effective field goal percentage (8th), opponents’ offensive rebounding percentage (11th) and opponents’ two-point field goal percentage (3rd).
A year ago, Vanderbilt was not too shabby on defense either, according to KenPom, coming in at 34th in adjusted defensive efficiency, second in effective field goal percentage, third in opponents three-point field goal percentage, and 10th in opponents’ two-point field goal percentage.
With Drew’s background and some success at the defensive end of the floor in 2015-16, it is safe to say that the Commodores have the pieces to have another great defensive season.
“Defensively, we want to be able to defend at a very high level and be one of the best defensive teams in the conference and in the country,” Drew told vucommodores.com Writer and Digital Media Editor Zac Ellis in his inaugural Commodore Insider Podcast last week. “Obviously, that takes a process, and we’ll see how that goes when it comes to recruiting, because you have to recruit a certain type of player with that type of mentality and ability to defend. This year, we have some very good defenders and offensively, we have some really skilled players who can really shoot the ball, so we want to put them in positions to have some very big nights for us.”
Three newcomers + Djery
Commodore fans will get their first look at freshmen Clevon Brown and Payton Willis this season, and redshirt freshman Djery Baptiste will hit the Memorial Gym floor for games for the first time this year after practicing with the team a year ago. Redshirt sophomore Larry Austin, Jr., has also joined the fold after transferring from Xavier, but must sit out the 2016-17 playing season. However, he will be permitted to practice with the team throughout the year.
Brown, a 6’8, 219-pound forward, should provide some depth behind Roberson at the four spot, while Willis, who is a lanky 6’4, should get plenty of minutes at the guard position. Baptiste will back up Kornet at the five position and has the physical tools to be an impending presence in the paint and around the basket.
“Djery has had an excellent summer and will play right away,” said Drew. “He does not have any college minutes yet so in a way he will be learning while out there. Clevon and Payton have worked very hard and adjusted well to freshman life at Vanderbilt. They will be needed to be a big part of our team because we will only be dressing 10 scholarship players.”