Over the summer the SEC added even more depth to an already deep league. Eight SEC teams have made the NCAA Tournament in each of the past two seasons, and with the addition of Texas and Oklahoma, the SEC has added two more teams capable of making the NCAA Tournament each year. The top teams in the conference are some of the best in the country, but every school in the SEC will be hard to beat this year no matter the opponent.
Here’s how the SEC ranks entering the 2024-25 season.
16. Vanderbilt Commodores
The Commodores have struggled to find sustained success in recent years, and after five seasons of Jerry Stackhouse and a 70-92 record, the Vanderbilt brass decided to make a coaching change. Vanderbilt hired Mark Byington away from James Madison. Last season Byington led the Dukes to a 32-4 record and a first-round upset of Wisconsin in the NCAA Tournament before falling to Duke in the second round.
Most of last year's roster decided to enter the transfer portal this offseason, leaving Byington to search the transfer portal for players talented enough to compete in the SEC. Byington added plenty of scoring to this year's roster. From the portal, Vanderbilt landed Jason Edwards (19.1 ppg) from North Texas, A.J .Hoggard (10.7 ppg) from Michigan State, Chris Manon (12.5 ppg) from Cornell, Devin McGlockton (10.2 ppg) from Boston College, and Grant Huffman (12.8 ppg) from Davison to get the offense running.
Mark Byington's offenses are usually pretty good, and his transfer portal haul should set his first Vanderbilt team up for success on that end of the court. During his four years at James Madison, his teams never averaged less than 75 points per game. It’s been nearly a decade since a Vanderbilt team averaged more than 75 points per game.
The defense looks to be a point of concern this year. Some of the additions this offseason are capable defenders, but the team should be led by Chris Manon (2.2 spg) on that end of the court. Both Devin McGlockton and Grant Huffman averaged more than five rebounds last season, but rebounding might still be a weak point this season.
The biggest unknown for Vanderbilt entering the season is what will the rotation look like. Byington signed ten players from the portal this offseason, many of which are looking to take on a bigger role for a new team. And the success of the team will be determined by how well all of the transfer pieces mesh this year. It wouldn’t be a huge surprise if the Commodores dropped a few games to start the season as the team works out some kinks, but with how deep the SEC will be this season, it is hard to imagine Vanderbilt finding a ton of success in Byington’s first season.