Vanderbilt Commodores
Last season: 7-24 (1-15, T-11th)
Predicted finish this season: 13th
Key returners (last season’s stats)
G- Chelsie Hall, 5’7, SO- 11.9 PPG, 3.5 RPG, 3.1 APG, 46.1% FG, 32.6% 3pt, 29.6 MPG, All-Freshman selection
F- Autumn Newby, 6’2, SO- 5.1 PPG, 6.6 RPG, 45.6% FG, 22.7 MPG
Biggest losses (last season’s stats)
G- Rachel Bell, 5’10- 10.9 PPG, 36% 3pt, 21.5 MPG (graduated)
G- Christa Reed, 5’11- 10.5 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 42% 3pt, 28.6 MPG (graduated)
F- Kayla Overbeck, 6’1- 9.9 PPG, 5 RPG, 60.1% FG, 25.1 MPG (transferred- Southern Cal)
G/F- Erin Whalen, 6’1- 7.4 PPG, 35.2% 3pt, 16.4 MPG (transferred- Dayton)
Newcomers
G- Jordyn Cambridge, 5’9, (Nashville, TN), FR- Ranked #22 in 2018 class, #4 point guard
F- Brinae Alexander, 5’10, (Murfreesboro, TN), FR- Ranked #48 in 2018 class, #13 shooting guard
G- Isabella Paldrmic, 5’11, (Lincolnshire, IL), FR
C- Mariella Fasoula, 6’5, (Boston College/Athens, Greece), R-JR- Averaged 16 PPG, 7.5 RPG for Boston College in 2016-17
#19 ranked class in the country
Head Coach- Stephanie White, 3rd season
It would be easy to simply look at the first two seasons of the Stephanie White era and deem them a complete failure. Vandy finished 12th and 13th in the SEC and have a 7-25 conference record in those two years and a number of players transferred out following last season. While the wins on the court haven’t happened yet, it’s hard to ignore the job White has done recruiting. Getting a former All-ACC center for a team that desperately needed size, plus signing the #19 class in the country is significant progress. White, who has won an NCAA title as a player and a WNBA title as an assistant coach, knows how to win. If the Commodore community is patient, they may find that she has something special brewing.
Key non-conference games
Nov. 9- at Middle Tennessee State
Nov. 15– at NC State
Nov. 17- at UConn
Dec. 15- v. Central Michigan
Outlook
Talk about trial by fire. Look at those non-conference games again. That doesn’t even mention a game at Ball State, or back-to-back games v. Miami (FL) and Creighton in Florida prior to Christmas. The loss of the seniors, plus the transfers of Overbeck, Whalen, Blessing Ejiofor (Chipola College) and Paige Warren (undecided) leave a huge hole. The Commodores finished 5th in the SEC in made 3pts last season with 215, but 127 of those departed with the outgoing players.
The addition of Mariella Fasoula can’t be understated though as she will step right in and likely lead the team on offense but, more importantly, gives Vandy someone who can bang with the other elite bigs in the conference. Freshman Jordyn Cambridge is rehabbing a knee injury she suffered in high school and won’t be ready opening night, but once healthy, she adds a dynamic that the team didn’t have last season. The roster only sits at 10 and with Cambridge’s injury, it shows that Vandy has a very small margin of errors when it comes to health. That is something to keep an eye on moving down the road. While I don’t know if the results will be there this season, there is talent on this roster.
Best Case Scenario- Fasoula makes her mark as one of the league’s best bigs, Cambridge comes back from the injury to compete for Freshman of the Year. Vandy pulls off some upsets and comes in a respectable 10th place.
Worst Case Scenario- With a short roster already, the grind of the SEC leaves Vandy banged up and an even smaller bench. The team can’t hit enough outside shots to give Fasoula room to operate, flounder to a last-place finish.