The night was November 7th, 2023, and Vanderbilt basketball was coming off a very hot last stretch of the 2022-2023 season where they had just missed the tournament. For the first time in years, we started to see people fill Memorial Gym. Hopes were high and momentum was building. Then the game happened, a 68-62 loss to Presbyterian that gutted the Vanderbilt fan base and marked what would be the beginning of the end of the Jerry Stackhouse era at Vanderbilt. The program had never been lower; fan support had bottomed out, and Vandy put out a season low of wins (except for the COVID season where we did not win a single conference game). While there were a few high points it was a dismal season of Vanderbilt basketball and there was no magic in Memorial.
Then on March 25, 2024; just a mere ten days before the transfer portal closed, the Vanderbilt Athletic Department announced the hiring of Mark Byington as the new head basketball coach at Vandy. Coming off a spectacular season at James Madison that saw them knock off more than one top-tier team, Byington was tasked with the impossible, bringing back winning Vanderbilt basketball and Memorial Magic. With only one scholarship player remaining (JQ Roberts), new Coach Byington had to assemble a roster with precious little time to do so. He hit the ground running, going on recruiting trips and hosting transfers before even locking down a place to live in Nashville.
From day one, Byington made it a point to get in front of Vanderbilt fans, thank them for their support, and let them know “Good things are coming.” Even went as far as making it to last season’s TDR Baseball tailgate where he was hosting transfer AJ Hoggard, introducing him to his soon-to-be new fans. Byington wanted to quickly change the perception of Vanderbilt Basketball and sell the “New Vandy”! If you asked the newly hired coaches and the newly recruited players what they thought about the upcoming season you would be hit with the same response. “THIS WILL BE A FUN SEASON - JUST WAIT!”. But could he walk the walk? We all waited with bated breath.
The season started on Monday, November 4th, in the midst of the best Vanderbilt football season we had experienced in a decade or more.? Diego Pavia had won over the hearts of Vanderbilt fans which took a little pressure off the debut of Mark Byington. But even though football season lasted through the end of December, Vandy fans were anxious to see what was going to be premiered in Memorial Gym. We were promised a new and fresh style of basketball, and we got it the first game. Vandy scored 102 points in the first game of the Mark Byington era. What a way to start and offer a peek into what this offense could be!
Vanderbilt coasted through non-conference play, with the only hiccup coming in the finals of the Charleston Classic against a bigger Drake team, the first time this season they were matched up by a taller team. Not all this success was at home either as we saw this team knock off Virginia Tech on the road and TCU in a “neutral sight” (Ft Worth). Throughout this non-conference stretch we witnessed some issues shooting the ball, which came back to haunt Vanderbilt later in the season. A brutal SEC schedule loomed in a conference that was taking down every other conference no matter the opponent, and ended being taunted as the best conference in any season of NCAA basketball. Which not only sent 14 of its' 16 teams to “the big dance”, but now has 7 teams in the Sweet Sixteen
Once SEC play started the ‘Dores immediately picked up a road conference win at LSU, and road wins would be ‘golden’ this season. Fans started to see the emergence of sophomore transfer (from James Madison) Jaylen Carey, who had 14 points and 8 rebounds. Jaylen’s physical play in the paint was what this Commodore team needed, as it was playing in the second most athletic basketball league in the world behind the NBA with no real height. If there was any hope of making an NCAA Tournament in Byington’s first season Carey would have to step to the plate and evolve into an SEC center, which he did, and Commodore Nation is forever thankful for his part in the revolution.
After a couple of losses and a way-too-close game against South Carolina that saw Devin McGlockton hit a put-back buzzer-beater to beat the Gamecocks, Vanderbilt was staring at a stretch as hard as any team in the country played this year. Ten of the next eleven games were against ranked opponents. Any media member you asked would tell you that what Byington had done so far at Vandy was a wonderful story, but a harsh reality check was coming.
Everything changed on two Saturday afternoons in January at Memorial Gym against two very familiar opponents. The first team the Commodores had to face during this stretch was the dreaded in-state rival Volunteers, who came to Memorial boasting a top 10 ranking and a large contingency of orange. After playing their best game of the season, Byington’s crew found themselves up sixteen points deep into the second half. This was before we saw the beginning of what we would see become a trend, a second-half comeback by the opponents. The Vols stormed back to end up with two free-throws to tie the game with just two seconds remaining. Memorial Magic had awoken from its' slumber against South Carolina to win that game, but on this magical Saturday afternoon it busted back through the door. Chaz Lanier missed the second free throw to lose the game and Commodore students and fans alike spilled onto the Memorial Gym floor. In the press conference after the game, Jason Edwards talked about being on the field earlier that year for Vandy Football’s historic upset of Alabama, and that he wanted to experience that same excitement for himself on the basketball court. I believe this basketball team took some of the football team's swagger out on the floor at Memorial that game and continued it through several more games.
The following Saturday, the Kentucky Wildcats came to town with another entourage of fans to invade Memorial Gym. This game was not like the previous Saturday as this time it was the Commodores who came through at the end to knock off another top 10 opponent in Kentucky. Once again, the floor of Memorial Gym was filled with Vandy students and fans alike, celebrating the official return of Vanderbilt Basketball.
The stretch of games we talked about earlier was still a very, very tough stretch, but Byington and crew had found a way to win two games that almost everyone had considered “auto-losses” and were finding themselves in the midst of NCAA Tournament chatter for the first time since 2017. This ‘tournament talk’ would continue to build, but mostly as a bubble team. But the ‘bubble prediction’ changed in a three-game stretch that will be remembered as the one that sent this team dancing.
Three-straight ranked games, two and home and one on the road, was what stood between Vandy and an NCAA Tournament. Find a way to win one of those games without an epic collapse down the final couple games was the path to the “big dance’. This phenomenal bunch didn’t just win one of those games, they found a way to win all three. Memorial Magic played ‘sixth man’ when Tyler Nickel hit a three to send the Missouri game to overtime, leading to a victory over yet another highly ranked opponent. Commodore Nation finally realized that the dream had come to fruition, Mark Byington was taking Vanderbilt to the NCAA Tournament in his first season at the helm.
Unfortunately, the season didn’t end the way fans had hoped, with four straight losses to end the season, culminating in another blown lead in the first round of the tournament against Saint Mary’s. While this wasn’t the hope for fans once Vandy’s name was called, you cannot look back on this season without smiling, remembering some of the most fun memories some Vandy hoops fans have ever had.
I want to thank some people for this special season:
First, I want to thank our phenomenal Coach - Mark Byington. What you have done in one year here will never go unnoticed. You came to Nashville boasting “We’re gonna get it going” and did you ever! You are a great representative of Vanderbilt, and I hope you are the coach here for a long time.
To Jason Edwards: when Ezra graduated, I thought I had not only lost a friend, but my connection to the program. You filled those shoes and even more, being one of the most genuine college athletes I’ve ever been around. Thank you for your friendship and what you have done for Vanderbilt Basketball. I look forward to seeing you on the Court in November, but regardless of what your future holds, you will be a Commodore legend in my eyes.
To Karris, Graham, Jaylen, MJ, Jason, Alex, AJ, Grant, Miles, Chris, Devin, Coleson, Tyler, JQ, Hollman, Tyler, Jordan, and Kijani: Thank all of you for taking a chance on Vandy, y'all are the start of the new era and I hope every one of you will be remembered for it.
To Will & Trevor, thank you for giving me a chance to write about what I love. You took a risk with me and I’ll always appreciate it. Love you boys - let’s keep growing and spreading Vandy love all around.
Last but certainly not least to all of you reading this, I love you guys! I have gotten to meet many of you throughout these couple months in many different venues. I appreciate your views and every one of you that come up to say “Hi” and “Anchor Down” whether it’s at Memorial, Topgolf, or Cleveland. Anchor Down Forever!
And for the last time this basketball season, Chef Miller is out. I will be posting transfer and recruiting news throughout the offseason on the boards so make sure you are subscribed!
