A year ago this election week, two days before Barack Obama began his own era of "change" in Washington, the Vanderbilt men’s basketball program aimed to author its storybook prelude in the cradle of its sport’s civilization, roughly 300 miles to the south of D.C.
Kevin Stallings kicked off his 10th year as Vanderbilt head coach by taking the most impressionable squad of his tenure, complete with his most impressive incoming recruiting class, to the Smith Center in Chapel Hill, N.C.
The purpose? A secret scrimmage in the heart of the lion’s (i.e., Tar Heels’) den against arguably the most dominant program in college hoops.
For those keeping score at home, college basketball teams are now allowed one closed-door exhibition at the outset of each season versus a team of their choosing, and Kansas coaching alums Roy Williams and Stallings chose this informal setting for their first coaching match-up and their programs’ first rendezvous since North Carolina beat Vanderbilt 71-63 at the Maui Invitational to open the 1995-96 season.
But this wasn’t just any North Carolina team; they were the first unanimous preseason No. 1 since the Associated Press poll began in 1981-82.
UNC returned its starting lineup, including reigning National Player of the Year and emotional leader Tyler Hansbrough, eight seniors, and seven of its top nine statistical leaders from a platoon that went 36-3 and lost to eventual national champion Kansas in the Final Four in March ‘08.
Simply put, it was one of the best teams ever on paper for the school that introduced Michael Jordan and is on pace to overtake Kentucky as the winningest program in the next five years.
Meanwhile, Vanderbilt’s recent success relative to this most relevant hardwood goliath is modest, although it does mark the Commodores’ first sustained run of NCAA berths since the last time they toppled the Tar Heels, who were also ranked No. 1 when they lost 78-76 at Memorial Gym on Dec. 5, 1987.
On the backs of back-to-back SEC Player(s) of the Year Derrick Byars and Shan Foster, Vandy came out of nowhere three years ago to record their first winning SEC season under Stallings, finish second in the SEC East, and earn one of the most hard-fought victories in the 2007 NCAA Tournament in a 78-74 double-overtime shocker over No. 3-seed Washington State to reach the Sweet Sixteen for the second time in four seasons.
Two years ago, despite meager preseason expectations, Vanderbilt churned out a 26-8 record, going undefeated in non-conference play and at home, copying their previous 10-6 SEC record, and defeating No. 1-ranked rival Tennessee in Memorial Gymnasium en route to the program’s most successful regular season ever.
Unfortunately, VU’s electric attack, led by Foster, started malfunctioning towards the end of the season due to senior inconsistency and roster inexperience, resulting in a quick exit from the SEC tourney and a one-and-done in the Big Dance, despite a No. 4 overall national seed.
With the 2004 recruiting class gone, which formed the bulk of the Commodores’ core during the previous two campaigns, Stallings once again started from scratch.
In addition to losing three of its top four scorers, the returning experience on the 2008-09 squad amounted to two juniors and six sophomores, three of which were walk-ons.
But hope came to Nashville in the form of seven freshmen, including four top-100 recruits (a first for Stallings), two redshirts and a preferred walk-on with several D-1 offers who eventually redshirted last season.
Stallings, who is accustomed to rebuilding campaigns following successful years with senior-laden teams, and who historically hasn’t been one to lavish praise on his squads, was cautiously enthusiastic about his youngest and rawest team to date.
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