# 2017–18 Vanderbilt Commodores men's basketball team

The 2017–18 Vanderbilt Commodores men's basketball team represented Vanderbilt University in the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They were coached by Bryce Drew, who was in his second season at Vanderbilt. The Commodores played their home games at Memorial Gymnasium in Nashville, Tennessee as members of the Southeastern Conference. They finished the season 12–20, 6–12 in SEC play to finish in 13th place. They lost in the first round of the SEC tournament to Georgia.

## Previous season

The Commodores finished the 2016–17 season 19–16, 10–8 in SEC play to finish in a three-way tie for fifth place. They defeated Texas A&M and Florida in the SEC tournament before losing in the semifinals to Arkansas. They received an at-large invitation to the NCAA tournament as a #9 seed in the Midwest Region, despite having the most losses, 15, of any at-large recipient, where they lost in the first round to #8 Northwestern.

## Offseason
### Departures

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Reason for departure |
| Luke Kornet | 3 | F | 7'1" | 250 | Senior | Lantana, TX | Graduated |
| Nolan Cressler | 24 | G | 6'4" | 210 | RS Senior | Pittsburgh, PA | Graduated |

### Incoming transfers

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous School |
| Yanni Wetzell | 4 | F | 6'10" | 235 | Junior | Auckland, New Zealand | Transferred from St. Mary's (TX). Under NCAA transfer rules, Wetzell will have to sit out for the 2017–18 season. Will have two years of remaining eligibility. |
| Matt Ryan | 32 | F | 6'7" | 228 | Junior | Cortlandt Manor, NY | Transferred from Notre Dame. Under NCAA transfer rules, Ryan will have to sit out for the 2017–18 season. Will have two years of remaining eligibility. |

### 2017 recruiting class

College recruiting information :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Saben Lee #39 PG | Tempe, AZ | Corona Del Sol High School | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 175 lb (79 kg) | Jun 13, 2016 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ||||||
| Maxwell Evans #41 PG | Bellaire, TX | Bellaire High School | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 165 lb (75 kg) | Aug 7, 2016 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ||||||
| Ejike Obinna #19 C | Ashburn, VA | Virginia Academy | 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) | 220 lb (100 kg) | Sep 25, 2016 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: 23 Rivals: 30 ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Vanderbilt 2017 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved July 24, 2016. "2017 Vanderbilt Basketball Commits". Scout.com. Retrieved July 24, 2016. "ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 24, 2016. "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved July 24, 2016. "2017 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved July 24, 2016. ||||||

### 2018 Recruiting class

College recruiting information :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Aaron Nesmith SF | Charleston, SC | Porter-Gaud School | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | Sep 19, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ||||||
| Darius Garland PG | Nashville, TN | Brentwood Academy | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | Nov 13, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ||||||
| Simisola Shittu PF | Burlington, ON | Vermont Academy | 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) | 220 lb (100 kg) | Nov 22, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Vanderbilt 2018 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. "2017 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. ||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Regular season |||||||||
| Nov 10, 2017* 8:30 pm, SECN | | Austin Peay NIT Season Tip-Off campus game | W 73–54 | 1–0 | 13 – Roberson | 10 – Roberson | 7 – Lee | Memorial Gymnasium (8,609) Nashville, TN |
| Nov 13, 2017* 6:30 pm | | at Belmont | L 60–69 | 1–1 | 19 – Lee | 12 – Roberson | 2 – Tied | Curb Event Center (5,266) Nashville, TN |
| Nov 17, 2017* 7:00 pm, SECN+ | | UNC Asheville NIT Season Tip-Off campus game | W 79–76 | 2–1 | 17 – 3 tied | 12 – Roberson | 5 – Lee | Memorial Gymnasium (8,048) Nashville, TN |
| Nov 19, 2017* 8:00 pm, SECN | | No. 10 USC | L 89–93 $^{OT}$ | 2–2 | 31 – Fisher-Davis | 11 – Fisher-Davis | 6 – Austin Jr. | Memorial Gymnasium (8,284) Nashville, TN |
| Nov 23, 2017* 4:00 pm, ESPNU | | vs. Virginia NIT Season Tip-Off semifinals | L 42–68 | 2–3 | 11 – Fisher-Davis | 7 – Obinna | 2 – Evans | Barclays Center (1,874) Brooklyn, NY |
| Nov 24, 2017* 8:45 pm, ESPNews | | vs. No. 20 Seton Hall NIT Season Tip-Off 3rd place game | L 59–72 | 2–4 | 20 – Roberson | 13 – Roberson | 4 – Lee | Barclays Center (3,952) Brooklyn, NY |
| Nov 28, 2017* 8:00 pm, SECN | | Radford | W 74–62 | 3–4 | 27 – LaChance | 9 – Roberson | 4 – Willis | Memorial Gymnasium (8,027) Nashville, TN |
| Dec 3, 2017* 1:30 pm, SECN+ | | Kansas State | L 79–84 | 3–5 | 22 – Roberson | 10 – Roberson | 5 – Lee | Memorial Gymnasium (8,570) Nashville, TN |
| Dec 6, 2017* 7:00 pm, SECN+ | | Middle Tennessee | L 63–66 | 3–6 | 17 – Fisher-Davis | 7 – Fisher-Davis | 5 – LaChance | Memorial Gymnasium (8,739) Nashville, TN |
| Dec 17, 2017* 1:00 pm, P12N | | at No. 5 Arizona State | L 64–76 | 3–7 | 24 – Lee | 8 – Fisher-Davis | 6 – Lee | Wells Fargo Arena (10,797) Tempe, AZ |
| Dec 20, 2017* 6:00 pm, SECN+ | | Houston Baptist | W 81–48 | 4–7 | 19 – Fisher-Davis | 10 – Roberson | 5 – Tied | Memorial Gymnasium (4,623) Nashville, TN |
| Dec 22, 2017* 6:00 pm, SECN+ | | Alcorn State | W 92–51 | 5–7 | 21 – Roberson | 5 – Tied | 4 – 4 tied | Memorial Gymnasium (8,125) Nashville, TN |
| Dec 30, 2017 3:00 pm, ESPN2 | | at Florida | L 74–81 | 5–8 (0–1) | 18 – Roberson | 6 – Roberson | 4 – Willis | O'Connell Center (10,274) Gainesville, FL |
| Jan 2, 2018 6:00 pm, SECN | | Alabama | W 76–75 | 6–8 (1–1) | 23 – Lee | 7 – Baptiste | 5 – LaChance | Memorial Gymnasium (9,519) Nashville, TN |
| Jan 6, 2018 5:45 pm, SECN | | at South Carolina | L 60–79 | 6–9 (1–2) | 17 – Lee | 9 – Roberson | 3 – Roberson | Colonial Life Arena (11,391) Columbia, SC |
| Jan 9, 2018 8:00 pm, SECN | | No. 24 Tennessee | L 84–92 | 6–10 (1–3) | 21 – Lee | 4 – Roberson | 4 – LaChance | Memorial Gymnasium (11,510) Nashville, TN |
| Jan 13, 2018 3:00 pm, ESPN | | No. 21 Kentucky | L 67–74 | 6–11 (1–4) | 20 – Roberson | 7 – Roberson | 4 – LaChance | Memorial Gymnasium (13,389) Nashville, TN |
| Jan 16, 2018 6:00 pm, SECN | | at Mississippi State | L 62–80 | 6–12 (1–5) | 14 – Obinna | 7 – LaChance | 4 – Lee | Humphrey Coliseum (6,633) Starkville, MS |
| Jan 20, 2018 12:00 pm, SECN | | LSU | W 77–71 | 7–12 (2–5) | 26 – LaChance | 6 – 3 Tied | 5 – Lee | Memorial Gymnasium (8,760) Nashville, TN |
| Jan 23, 2018 6:00 pm, ESPNU | | at No. 22 Tennessee | L 62–67 | 7–13 (2–6) | 25 – LaChance | 6 – Roberson | 3 – Tied | Thompson–Boling Arena (14,127) Knoxville, TN |
| Jan 27, 2018* 3:00 pm, ESPN2 | | TCU Big 12/SEC Challenge | W 81–78 | 8–13 | 24 – LaChance | 5 – Tied | 4 – Tied | Memorial Gymnasium (9,755) Nashville, TN |
| Jan 30, 2018 8:00 pm, ESPN | | at No. 21 Kentucky | L 81–83 $^{OT}$ | 8–14 (2–7) | 23 – Roberson | 8 – Roberson | 6 – LaChance | Rupp Arena (21,143) Lexington, KY |
| Feb 3, 2018 7:30 pm, SECN | | at No. 11 Auburn | L 81–93 | 8–15 (2–8) | 30 – Roberson | 10 – Roberson | 6 – LaChance | Auburn Arena (9,121) Auburn, AL |
| Feb 7, 2018 7:30 pm, SECN | | Georgia | W 81–66 | 9–15 (3–8) | 19 – Tied | 7 – Roberson | 4 – Tied | Memorial Gymnasium (8,761) Nashville, TN |
| Feb 10, 2018 7:30 pm, SECN | | at Arkansas | L 54–72 | 9–16 (3–9) | 8 – Tied | 9 – Evans | 1 – Tied | Bud Walton Arena (17,083) Fayetteville, AR |
| Feb 14, 2018 6:00 pm, SECN | | Mississippi State | W 81–80 | 10–16 (4–9) | 22 – Roberson | 11 – Roberson | 8 – LaChance | Memorial Gymnasium (8,592) Nashville, TN |
| Feb 17, 2018 3:00 pm, ESPN2 | | Florida | W 71–68 | 11–16 (5–9) | 26 – Roberson | 7 – Roberson | 5 – LaChance | Memorial Gymnasium (10,346) Nashville, TN |
| Feb 20, 2018 8:00 pm, SECN | | at LSU | L 78–88 | 11–17 (5–10) | 26 – LaChance | 6 – Roberson | 3 – Tied | Maravich Center (7,517) Baton Rouge, LA |
| Feb 24, 2018 3:00 pm, ESPN2 | | Texas A&M | L 81–89 | 11–18 (5–11) | 21 – Roberson | 9 – Roberson | 9 – Lee | Memorial Gymnasium (9,376) Nashville, TN |
| Feb 27, 2018 6:00 pm, ESPN2 | | Missouri | L 66–74 | 11–19 (5–12) | 19 – Roberson | 7 – Roberson | 4 – Lee | Memorial Gymnasium (8,812) Nashville, TN |
| Mar 3, 2018 7:30 pm, SECN | | at Ole Miss | W 82–69 | 12–19 (6–12) | 19 – Roberson | 7 – Roberson | 5 – LaChance | The Pavilion at Ole Miss (6,447) Oxford, MS |
| SEC tournament |||||||||
| Mar 7, 2018 6:00 pm, SECN | (13) | vs. (12) Georgia First round | L 62–78 | 12–20 | 17 – LaChance | 7 – Lee | 3 – Tied | Scottrade Center (8,190) St. Louis, MO |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. W=West Region. All times are in Central Time. |||||||||