Kevin Stallings has been involved in college basketball for 25 years, either as a player, assistant or head coach. Not until last year, however, had the former Purdue point guard suffered through a losing season.

"It was a sick, empty feeling to be in that situation," said Stallings, who watched his team stumble through an 11-18 season. "It was difficult to watch players be disappointed, watch coaches be disappointed and watch fans be disappointed. We want to try really hard not to have that same type of feeling again."

Stallings will send out virtually the same lineup this year -- with the exception of starting center Brian Thornton, who transferred to Xavier -- so what gives him hope the Commodores can turn things around?

"The thing you hope for is some senior leadership," said Stallings, who coached a team without a scholarship senior last season. "And we will make some adjustments. But we just hope that by guys getting a little older, a little wiser and a little tougher, and by improving our attitude and chemistry, that things will go better."

FRONTCOURT

Matt Freije emerged as one of the elite scorers in the SEC last year, and his numbers (18.6 ppg in league play) are even more impressive given Vanderbilt's offensive struggles last year. "There were nights when you just felt the whole defense was designed to stop him," Stallings said. "And they still couldn't stop him."

With Thornton no longer on campus, redshirt freshman Ted Skuchas, a 6-foot-11 center ranked among the Top 100 recruits in the nation last year, will have an opportunity to play major minutes. Either Skuchas or athletic sophomore Julian Terrell must evolve into an offensive threat on the low block to take some pressure off Freije. Terrell ranked fourth in the SEC (among players who averaged at least 10 minutes) with 10.6 rebounds per 40 minutes.

David Przybyszewski, a sharpshooting 7-1 junior, improved his low-post game last year, but he has been far too inconsistent in his two years at Vanderbilt.

Swingman Corey Smith, the Commodores' resident tough guy, is capable of scoring in bunches -- he scored 13 or more points seven times in '02-03 -- but he disappears on the offensive end too often. Scott Hundley is a valuable reserve who will be asked to provide some much-needed senior leadership.

BACKCOURT

Stallings was expecting a big season from point guard Russell Lakey last year. It didn't happen. Lakey provided little offense, committed far too many turnovers (84 against 99 assists) and eventually lost his starting position to freshman Mario Moore.

Lakey will see significant minutes, but Moore, a hometown product and a fan favorite, likely will be the starter throughout the season. Moore played his best basketball late in the year, pouring in 25 points in an SEC tournament win over Alabama and 18 in a loss to Kentucky the next day.

"He has a good level of ability," Stallings said. "It was all about understanding the college game, and at the end of the season, it seemed like he was beginning to understand it better."

Junior shooting guard Jason Holwerda could be a key to the season. Vanderbilt beat out Florida and Tennessee for the Chattanooga native, but the Commodores have yet to taste the fruits of the recruiting victory. Holwerda is a solid defensive player and the team's best finisher on the fast break, but he has failed to emerge as a scoring threat in the halfcourt. He busted out with 17 points at Florida, on 7-of-9 shooting, but he scored in double figures in league play just one more time. Few teams can thrive with a starting shooting guard who averages just 5.3 points and shoots just over 30 percent from 3-point range.

Incoming freshman Dan Cage and sophomore Adam Payton will battle for minutes at the two-guard. Cage is an accurate 3-point shooter who lacks athleticism; Payton is a terrific athlete who provides little offense.

FINAL ANALYSIS

It would be easy to dismiss Vanderbilt and pencil the Commodores in for another last-place finish in the SEC East. But take a look at the rest of the league. Virtually every team suffered major losses, and with the exception of Florida and Kentucky, every team has major concerns.

The Commodores lack a proven scorer in the paint and the outside shooting is a bit streaky, but this isn't a club without talent. If Terrell and Moore continue to develop and either Smith or Holwerda emerges as a consistent scoring threat, Vanderbilt could flirt with a .500 record in league play.

If not, Stallings is likely to have that "sick, empty feeling" once again next spring.

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