In early February, The Tennessean’s Aria Gerson warned that fifth-year Vanderbilt head coach Jerry Stackhouse was on “the hottest of seats.” The mid-1990s UNC basketball sensation and former 18-year NBA bucket-getter needed to orchestrate a late push similar to last season’s by stringing together some notable victories in SEC play.
That 2022-23 Vanderbilt team went 6-1 in February and finished with a 22-15 overall record, impressive in light of the 10-12 start, leading to Stackhouse’s recognition as SEC Coach of the Year.
But this go-round, his Commodores (8-20, 3-12 SEC) posted a 3-5 record in February and sit above of only 0-15 Missouri in the conference standings.
Postseason hopes are long gone. So, barring a miracle at the SEC Tournament in a couple of weeks, the high-flying Tar Heel great will fall to 0-5 in terms of earning an NCAA Tournament invite.
However, as Burner Ball national hoops insider “Trilly Donovan” noted in his “March Coaching Carousel Breakdown” on Friday, there’s still some chance that the two-time NBA All-Star from Kinston, N.C., will keep his job since it might prove too expensive for Vanderbilt to part ways with him:
“Stackhouse reportedly signed an extension after last season and his buyout may be prohibitive. If Vandy is willing to put up the money, they’ll make a change.”
The 49-year-old Jerry Stackhouse and his Vanderbilt squad look to at least build on Tuesday night’s 85-82 road win over unranked Arkansas when they host unranked LSU at 3:30 p.m. ET Saturday.
