Former UNC basketball star and current Vanderbilt head coach Jerry Stackhouse received a big honor on Monday.
Stackhouse was named the co-SEC Coach of the Year, receiving the award alongside Texas A&M head coach Buzz Williams.
Vanderbilt had one of the hottest ends of the season across the SEC and the country. The Commodores won eight of their last nine games, including wins over No. 6 Tennessee and No. 23 Kentucky.
With its late-season run, Vanderbilt finished 18-13 overall and 11-7 in SEC play, ending the season tied for fourth in the conference.
The Commodores are the No. 6 seed in the SEC Tournament and will play the No. 11 Georgia/No. 14 LSU winner in the second round. After that, a potential matchup with No. 3 Kentucky looms.
This was a significant moment in Stackhouse’s coaching career. After two straight losing seasons in which his team went 20-37, he has gone 19-17 and 18-13 in back-to-back seasons.
This season was also the first time Vanderbilt had more than 10 wins in conference play since 2015-16.
Despite the lack of success in the previous few seasons, Stackhouse signed a contract extension heading into this year.
“The positive trajectory of our men’s basketball program under coach Stackhouse is clear,” Vanderbilt athletic director Candice Lee said in October. “Committing to and investing in him as the leader is an important part of building the championship caliber program that we all want and expect here at Vanderbilt. I value the contributions Jerry and his program have made to our community and campus, and I am excited about our future.”
[mm-video type=playlist id=01fvdcv0v20j1dne5g player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=]
Follow us @TarHeelsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of North Carolina Tar Heels news, notes and opinions.