Scouting Report: Vanderbilt Commodores

The Kentucky Wildcats have played their way into a pretty good position as the calendar turns to March 1st. Just two weeks ago the ‘Cats were on the wrong side of the NCAA Tournament bubble and morale was at a low point. Now, four straight wins, including three Quad 1 victories, has improved the resume all the way to a six seed. However, we have seen this story play out before. Kentucky won six straight conference games recently only to lose at home to Arkansas and at Georgia. We’ve seen how quickly things can change first hand. The Wildcats cannot undo their hard work by letting up in the final week of the regular season. Taking care of the Vanderbilt Commodores at home on Wednesday night will set up a fun opportunity on Saturday in Fayetteville.

Kentucky is playing some of the best basketball in the country right now, but Vanderbilt is on an impressive run of their own as well. The Commodores have won six of their last seven games to improve to 16-13 overall and 9-7 in the Southeastern Conference. A big reason for their recent surge has been getting Liam Robbins healthy and back in the starting lineup. The fifth year senior center is averaging 22 points and 10.1 rebounds over Vandy’s last seven games. Coach Jerry Stackhouse has his offense trending towards Top 25 status in the country. They have shot 28-69 (40.6%) from three-point range over the last three games as well. This is a dangerous Commodores team that has proven capable of beating just about anyway.

Senior Night isn’t typically a big celebration at Rupp Arena as Coach Calipari has made Lexington a destination for one-and-done talent. However, this season, the Wildcats will have six seniors participating in the festivities for what could be the last home game of their careers. While Oscar Tshiebwe, Jacob Toppin CJ Fredrick, Sahvir Wheeler, Antonio Reeves, and Breenan Canada have all earned their moment, Wednesday night is all about taking care of business. You cannot afford to relax just because you’ve improved your NCAA Tournament resume. This is about proving that you belong in discussions of doing more than just making the tournament. Win your fifth straight, clinch the three seed in the SEC Tournament, and then go take your shot at Arkansas.

Another game, another scouting report. We’ve been hard at work in the KSR Film Room preparing an opponent deep-dive for your pregame reading pleasure. You’ll get a full in-depth look at Vandy’s personnel, a breakdown of both offensive and defensive schemes, and the ever-important keys to the game. Let’s dive on in and get to know more about the Vanderbilt Commodores.

Vanderbilt Commodores Personnel

Starters

#5 Ezra Manjon: 6’0″ 170 lbs, Senior Guard

8.9 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 3.8 apg

Aggressive, quick point guard. Going to be in attack mode with the ball in his hands. He is a NON-SHOOTER!!! 3-26 from 3. BACK UP and stay between him and the basket. Go under the ballscreens and handoffs. Closeout short to him on the perimeter. He is looking to drive it right. NO RIGHT-HAND DRIVES!!! No reason for you to be all the way out on the perimeter guarding him. Likes to use the left-to-right crossover to get downhill. Don’t let him come back right. Make him score contested 2’s going to his left. Don’t over-help when he is driving it left. Get the ball stopped in transition. Help off of him when he doesn’t have it and then close out short. The goal is to keep him out of the paint. Dare him to shoot jumpers. No right-hand drives. No layups!

#12 Trey Thomas: 6’0″ 160 lbs, Junior Guard

7.1 ppg, 1.9 rpg, 1.1 apg

SHOOTER!!! NO 3s!!! 136 of 177 shots have been 3s. Shooting nearly the same percentage from 3 as he is from 2. Have to be tight to him at all times to take away the 3s. Get over the ballscreens and handoffs. Chase off of downscreens and get over the flares. Switch if there is too much space and get OUT to take him away from 3. Not worried about him scoring 2s. We want to make him drive it. Has only made 13 2s on the season. Absolutely no help off of him on the perimeter. Tighten up as the ball comes toward you. You want to be close enough that you force him to drive it. Do not over-help when he drives it. Just get your hands up and make him score over you. Your only job when guarding him is taking away his 3-point attempts. No 3s!!!

#0 Tyrin Lawrence: 6’4″ 200 lbs, Junior Guard

11.4 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 1.8 apg

Lefty. Much more aggressive as a left-hand driver. NO LEFT-HAND DRIVES!!! Closeout short to stay between him and the basket. Bounce back to cut off the left-hand drive. Go under the ballscreens and handoffs. Closeout and guard him in a way to stay between him and the basket. Shouldn’t be able to penetrate driving it left. Will shoot the pull-up some going right. Be ready to contest the pull-up jumpers. Do not over-help when he is driving it right. Not a threat. When he drives it left you can pick your spots to come take it off of him. You are only helping to try and force a turnover. Help off of him when he doesn’t have it and then close out short. Always want to stay between him and the basket. No left-hand drives! No layups!

#1 Colin Smith: 6’8″ 215 lbs, Freshman Forward

4.3 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 0.6 apg

Stretch 4-man. Shooter! No catch-and-shoot 3’s! 64 of 96 shots have been 3’s. Shooting nearly the same percentage from 3 as he is from 2. Need to be tight to him on the perimeter to take away the catch-and-shoot 3’s. Pressure him and force him to drive it. Looking to pick-and-pop on the perimeter. Be very willing to switch when he ballscreens to take away the pick-and-pop 3’s. Right hand, left shoulder around the basket. Will face up and shoot the jumper. Contest all jumpers. Very good offensive rebounder. Box out. Tighten up to him as the ball is driven towards you. Do not help off of him so much that you can’t get back to take away the catch-and-shoot 3. No catch-and-shoot 3s!!!

#21 Liam Robbins: 7’0″ 250 lbs, Fifth Year Senior Center

15.5 ppg, 7.1 rpg, 1.0 apg

Skilled 5-man. Very capable shooter out to 3-point range. 19-52 from 3 (36.5%). Need to be tight enough to give a hard contest if he shoot the 3. Will shoot from the trail spot or on the pick-and-pop some. Take them away. Right hand, left shoulder in the post. Be physical and get him off of the block. His percentages will go down the further off of the block you make him catch it. Need to stay lower than him on the roll to take him away. No dunks on the roll. Aggressively dig the ball out of the post when he gets a catch. Not very comfortable with the ball. 26 assists, 42 turnovers. Come take it off of him and make him uncomfortable. Make him score everything with you between him and the basket. Averages 2.6 offensive rebounds per game. Box out! Contest everything. Make him uncomfortable.

Bench

#4 Jordan Wright: 6’6″ 220 lbs, Senior Guard/Forward

9.3 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 1.9 apg

Big, physical wing. Will play both on the perimeter and around the basket. Capable shooter. 26-86 (30.2%). Need to be there to give a hard contest to the obvious catch-and-shoot 3s. More dangerous as a right-hand driver. No right-hand drives! Need to bounce back after taking away the initial catch-and-shoot to guard against the right hand drive. Will get some catches off of the block with his back to the basket. Right hand, left shoulder in the post. Will shot fake and pivot. Stay down and wall up. If they ballscreen for him in the post you need to switch it. Make him score over you. Be physical at the end of his drives and don’t go for the shot fakes. Want to stay between him and the basket. Box out! No uncontested catch-and-shoot 3’s. No right-hand drives.

#10 Myles Stute: 6’7″ 215 lbs, Junior Forward

9.1 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 0.7 apg

SHOOTER!!! NO 3’s!!! 177 of 234 shots have been 3’s. Shooting a much better percentage from 3 than 2. You have to run him off of the 3-point line and take away his ATTEMPTS. Be tight to him at all times. Absolutely no help off of him. Your only job when guarding him is taking away his 3-point attempts. Pressure him on the perimeter. If he isn’t dribbling you aren’t close enough. Make him drive by you. Not comfortable handling it. 19 assists to 43 turnovers. Make him dribble! Loves to pick-and-pop. Have to switch when he ballscreens to take away the pick-and-pop 3’s. Will slip the ballscreens into a pop as well. If there is no screen there is no switch. Stay attached to him at all times. Tighten up as the ball comes toward you. No 3s!!!

#42 Quentin Millora-Brown: 6’10” 245 lbs, Fifth Year Center

3.3 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 0.7 apg

Physical 5-man. Will ballscreen and roll to the basket. Looking to score almost exclusively at the rim. Will score it with either hand, but is better going to his right hand over his left shoulder. Need to be physical and get him off of the block. His percentages will go down the further off the block you make him catch it. Will shot fake and pivot to try and finish around you at the rim. Stay down on the fakes and wall up. Make him score over you inside. No drop steps. Going to be very physical when the shot goes up. Averaging 2 offensive rebounds a game. Don’t let him play harder than you. Be physical and box him out! Stay lower than him when he ballscreens and rolls to the rim. No dunks on the roll. No right hand, left shoulder baskets inside.

#3 Paul Lewis: 6’2″ 170 lbs, Freshman Guard

2.4 ppg, 1.0 rpg, 0.6 apg

Backup point guard. Shooter! No 3’s! 21 of 36 shots have been 3s. Shooting a the same percentage from 3 than 2. Need to be tight to him to take away the 3s. 8-21 from 3. Get over the ballscreens and handoffs. Get up into him on the perimeter and make him drive it. Chase off of downscreens and get over the flares. When he does drive it he is looking to drive it right. No right-hand drives. Do not over-help when he is driving it left. Would rather make him finish 2’s than let him get going from 3. Will shoot them off of the dribble. Have to break his rhythm. Pressure him. No 3’s!

Vanderbilt Commodores Offense

There isn’t a coach in the Southeastern Conference, or maybe even in the country, who runs more unique offensive actions than Coach Jerry Stackhouse. He and his staff are incredibly creative with different entries, screening actions, and ways to get their best players in space. The Vanderbilt Commodores will ballscreen the post some, run a lot of zoom and staggered zoom action, run staggered Iverson cuts from the corner, and get some set plays from a 1-4 high alignment. They are going to throw a lot at you with their halfcourt offense. 

This season, Coach Stackhouse has been able to mix his excellent scheme with the most talent he has had since taking over the Vanderbilt program. That has proven out on the floor as the Commodores currently have the 26th-rated offense per KenPom’s adjusted efficiency metric. They have leading scorer Liam Robbins back now and their shooters have been putting the ball in the basket from beyond the arc. Let’s take a look at some of what you’ll see on Wednesday night.

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Now that Vanderbilt has their leading scorer back a lot of what they do offensively runs through him. Liam Robbins averages 15.5 points per game and is an excellent inside-outside threat. When he catches the ball inside you have to aggressively dig the ball out. He is not very comfortable bouncing it against pressure. 26 assists, 42 turnovers. If you let him bounce it three times like this without any pressure he is going to score. Too big and strong to just play one-on-one. We have to try and take away his left shoulder baskets.

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The return of Robbins to the Vanderbilt Commodores lineup has quickly turned them into a borderline Top 25 offense nationally. His ability to stretch the floor as a 7-footer who can also score around the rim makes him very unique. From a Horns alignment the Commodores set a staggered double away to the corner for #0 Lawrence who back cuts the screen. That triggers #3 Lewis to come off of the zoom action with #21 Robbins replacing up the wing. These are the type of catch-and-shoot 3’s he will make. You have to be tight enough to him to take these away.

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Starting with the Vanderbilt Commodores’ most basic action, they like to backscreen the roll on their high ballscreens. This is the same “Spain” action that we run with Antonio Reeves setting the backscreen a lot as well. Using #10 Stute as the back screener is especially effective because you can’t help off of him for fear of his ability to pop for a 3-pointer. That fear is essentially what gets #5 Manjon a layup here as Georgia provides little to no help as he turns the corner. This is where being more willing to switch can be effective.

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This is a good look at one of the Vanderbilt Commodores’ more prolonged offensive possessions. When they come down in secondary this little handoff, to flare screen, to ballscreen action on the side is what they get to. We want to switch all of the ballscreens set by #10 Stute to make sure to take him away on the pick-and-pop.Especially late in the shot clock, but really at all times, you have to stay TIGHT to Stute. Do not let him sneak out to the perimeter for a 3 like this. No 3’s!!!

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Anytime Vanderbilt is in a Horns set with #10 Stute at one of the elbows you need to be ready for this sort of action. When you are guarding him your ONLY thought should be taking him away from 3. Stay tight, chase, and take away his 3-point attempts. It is hard to guard, but we have to do the best job possible. If he misses you just got lucky.

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One of the more unique actions the Commodores have consistently run since Coach Stackhouse took over has been ball-screening the post. They usually do it when one of their wings gets a catch off of a diagonal back screen as you in this clip. #4 Wright is the primary guy they will run this for. When they ballscreen the post like this you need to be very willing to switch because it is so close to the basket. Anytime #4 Wright gets a catch with his back to the basket it should trigger in your mind that a ballscreen may be coming.

Vanderbilt Commodores Defense

The Vanderbilt Commodores are a man-to-man defensive team. They will extend a little fullcourt pressure from time to time, but it is mostly token pressure to just slow you down. For as dangerous as the Commodores have been offensive, they have struggled on the defensive end of the floor. They are among the worst in the country at forcing turnovers, aren’t great on the defensive boards, and have allowed nearly 77 points per game in SEC play. Getting 7-footer Liam Robbins back around the basket has really improved their ability to protect the rim. That will be a big difference for us after going 25-39 (64.1%) from 2 back in January. We will likely need to make more jump shots in this one, but attacking the rim should still be a big part of what we do.

Keys to the Game

• No 3’s for #10 Stute or #12 Thomas. Have to be tight to them at all times. Need to limit them to no more than four combined 3s.
• Dominate the glass. Vanderbilt struggles on the boards even after the return of 7-footer Liam Robbins. Must be 77% or better on the defensive glass once again.
• Contain the ballscreen. The Vanderbilt Commodores have a lot of success playing off of ballscreens. #5 Manjon, #0 Lawrence, #12 Thomas, and #4 Wright are the primary ball handlers. Only #12 is a shooting threat so we need to give ground and stay in front of the other three. No 3’s behind the ballscreen for #12 Thomas. No strong hand drives for layups for the other three.
• Shoot 75% or better from the free throw line.