Q & A with Festus Ezeli

Vanderbilt's Festus Ezeli admits that he is still getting used to the spotlight. The 6-11, 245-pound center began playing basketball just three years ago and redshirted in 2007-08. Ezeli caught the attention of college recruiters last summer while playing AAU basketball for the Sacramento Pharaohs, and chose the Commodores over several teams, including Florida, Connecticut and West Virginia.

While Ezeli said he still needs to learn a lot about the game, the Nigerian native nonetheless made great strides this season, earning Vanderbilt's Most Improved Player award at the team banquet.

In between class and workouts, Ezeli recently took some time to answer some questions from The Sports VU about a number of topics, including what it's like to guard A.J. Ogilvy, a funny story about Kevin Stallings and his strengths and weaknesses as a player.

Sports VU: How are excited are you get on the court and contribute next year?
Festus Ezeli: I am excited to be able to help out the team and help push them past previous achievements. It's still just surreal to me. I don't think it has hit me yet that I'm going to be playing. I'm just really excited.

SV: I'm sure it must have been frustrating to sit out an entire season. What was it like?
FE: Yes, it really was. To put in all that work in practice, you want to go out and show what you've learned and pretty much just help out, especially during the post season.

SV: How would you describe your game? What would you say are your strengths and weaknesses as a player?
FE: Well, I think I'm an explosive big man. I try to be a big presence inside on both sides of the floor. Getting stronger has helped improve my game. I can rebound, block shots, and I'm starting to get a hang of the post game. Problem is I am still new to the game so my knowledge of it is still not as refined as most college athletes.

SV: What are you up to this summer?
FE: June and July we're back in school for summer classes. We have to workout also. This is the best time for that because now we can build our individual talents.

SV: What was it like going up against A.J. in practice every day? I feel like if you can guard him, you can pretty much guard any big man in the league.
FE: I mean you guys have seen play. I don't have to tell you that he is a really good player. In order for my team not to lose everyday in practice, I had to do a better job of guarding A.J. and it really improved my defensive game. I'm looking forward to guarding the other big men.

SV: What impresses you the most about A.J.'s game? What makes him hard to defend?
FE: He has great hands, quick feet and those things I'm still working on. He is such a smart player also. This combination makes him tough to guard.

SV: How honored were you to receive the team's most improved player award this season?
FE: That was my first athletic award so I was very honored. My mom arrived the day of the ceremony and she was very proud. This just fueled me to want to win it again next year.

SV: When did you start playing basketball?
FE: I first started playing about three summers ago. Played AAU in Las Vegas. Stopped playing for a while and then started again two summers ago when I realized that I loved the game.

SV: Talk about the differences between Nigeria and the U.S.
FE: There's a lot of differences. but the main thing for me is that life out here is more organized and I feel like there are more opportunities available.

SV: What made you pick Vanderbilt?
FE: Great coach, really cool teammates, crazy nice and energetic fans, awesome school. What more can you ask for?

SV: What's it like to play for Coach Stallings? Any funny stories you can share about him?
FE: Coach stallings is the best. He challenges you to make the best of your potentials and he's really smart that I just feel privileged to play for him.
Haha umm... there was the one time he told everyone to get in the key while we were playing one practice and I stood at the free-throw line. He got really hot and cursed me out haha. I got made fun of by the guys about that.

SV: Who's the funniest player on the team?
FE: We got a lotta funny guys but i think George Drake's the funniest. Just the mix of jokes and the country accent haha.

SV: Have you gotten a chance to play with any of the recruits before? If so, what are their games like?
FE: We play pickup right now with Lance (Goulbourne) and Steve (Tchiengang). Steve is a shooting and rebounding big man that can play good defense. Lance is a really athletic and big body wing. They're good players. Played with Brad (Tinsley) on his visit and he is a really good passer and a good shooting point guard. Haven't seen Jeff play.

SV: How would you rate your first-year at Vanderbilt -- the classes, the city, the fans, parties, etc.?
SV: It's been great. Much different than I thought. It's been really fun.

SV: What's something most fans wouldn't know about you?
FE: That I'm kind of shy, still getting used to the spotlight.

Why Vandy Lost to Siena...

While most of us here at Sports VU said we would be shocked if Siena beat Vandy, I think all of us were shocked on how bad Vanderbilt played on Friday night. In keeping with the Tampa tradition Friday, Siena joined Western Kentucky and San Diego upsetting the higher seed. With that said, Siena won the game because they did exactly what they needed to...run, force turnovers, and make shots. As well as Siena played, Vanderbilt certainly helped. Here are my reasons that Vandy lost this one:

1) No Defense- the Commodores have struggled to contain teams with good guards who can create off the dribble and today was no different. Fisher killed Vandy making 6-6 of his three point attempts, and Hansbrouck drove by whomever was guarding him all night ending the game with 30 points. I give props to Jamie Graham though. He played his heart out tonight and was our best perimeter defender tonight and the last few games.

2) Shan didn't show up and there was no third scorer - through most of this season, the Commodores have gone as far as Shan Foster was willing to take them and today Shan just didn't show up for some reason. He struggled all night and a lot of that has to be credited to Siena's defense. I know Shan was not satisfied by his performance, but he needs to remember that without him this team may not even be in the NCAA tourney. Also, as all of Commodore nation has known of late, Ogilvy and Foster can't do it all themselves. Vandy needs another guy to step up on the offensive end especially when Shan is struggling and tonight no one did.

3) Ogilvy wasn't utilized enough- With a huge size advantage with A.J. down low, Stallings and the guys needed to find ways to get A.J. the ball, and they didn't do it enough. A.J. is also to blame slightly as he did not play strong down low and looked to get fouled more than score. Sure A.J. had 18 but I think he could have had 30 if he would have played stronger and got some better looks. One must remember that he is just a freshman after all, and hopefully he will learn from this.

4) Vandy didn't shoot well- on a team with no real slashing presence, the Commodores must shoot the ball well to win games since their defense leaves something to be desired. Friday night the Commodores lacked the shooting touch shooting just 19% from three point range on 21 attempts and shooting 40% overall compared to Siena's 54% overall. If I could request one thing for next season, it would be for Vandy to recruit a guy who can create his own shot. We have shooters, we have a big, we need a guy who can carry us by getting to the basket when the bigs and shooters aren't on.

While this loss is very disappointing for all of Commodore nation, I would just like to salute the seniors for bringing this program to where it is today. They are the ones responsible for the success of the program and will be missed. As for the younger guys, it is time to step up. At times it looked like they were scared to take shots this year and with the loss of Shan, someone will have to step up and give A.J. some support.

With all this negativity, there is a light at the end of the tunnel in the form of the above mentioned younger guys. Everyone assumes that A.J. Ogilvy will come back next year instead of declare for the draft and will probably be even better after experiencing a year of college basketball. The Commodores will bring in two outstanding recruits next year in Steve Tchiengang and Lance Goulbourne who should be able to step in and help right away, and the Commodores are still recruiting Brad Tinsley a point guard from Oregon, who has offers from schools such as Arizona and Kentucky, and Jeff Taylor a shooting guard/small forward, who has offers from Arizona and Texas. Here is some video of Tinsley:



Also, the Dores will have Festus Ezeli, an athletic center who red-shirted this year and had offers from UCLA and Ohio State last year, and Charles Hinkle, another red-shirt freshmen who is a deadly shooter. Hopefully, the coaching staff will be able to get Tinsley and Taylor to add to this great young core and provide a great young team for the future for us all to watch.

Thanks to the seniors once again, and I look forward to the bright future of Commodore basketball with a team next year that may not have a go-to-guy like Foster, but may be better overall and deeper.

Feel free to leave your comments about my article or the game below. I would like to hear what everyone else thought of the game.

Waiting in the Wings

Naturally, when a team starts 16-0 for the first time in school history one isn't exactly inclined to look into the future.

And while there will be no Shan Foster, Alex Gordon, Ross Neltner, or Alan Metcalfe suiting up for the Commodores next year, there are a few worthy recruits who could provide an immediate impact. To begin with, Steve Tchiengang (see right, and sorry, no pronunciation guide available) chose Vanderbilt over solid programs like Georgia Tech, Oklahoma, and Notre Dame. Rivals tabs him as the No. 79 player in the class of 2008. He has a unique skill-set with a 6'8" frame that can bang inside coupled with the ability to knock down the 18-foot jumper.

Next on the list is Lance Goulbourne, a 6'7" forward for the Hun School in New Jersey. Goulbourne received offers from Marquette, Virginia, West Virginia, and Notre Dame. He's got a great stroke past the three point line, but his well-roundness enables him to score in quite a few ways.

Goulbourne is a particularly attractive recruit for the Dores because he will provide scoring from the bench, which has been an achilles heel for the 2007 Dores. The third and final member of the 2008 class is the 6'6" Jordan Smart, who will be walking on. Smart is appropriately named, as he turned down the top three academic institutions in the country--Harvard, Yale, and Princeton. Smart is a proven shooter in nailing over 40% of his threes and 90% of his free throws. It remains to be seen whether he has the first step to get an open shot or the footwork to play defense.

Joining Tchiengang, Goulbourne, and Smart are Festus Ezeli and Charles Hinkle, who are both coming off red-shirt seasons. Hinkle is said to possess excellent three point shooting ability, but probably will see limited playing time. Even among the three new recruits for next year, Festus Ezeli is easily the most intriguing.

His gargantuan stature gives Vanderbilt a legitimate shot-blocking presence and a good partner for A.J. Ogilvy on the offensive glass. How Stallings divvies up playing time for a team that already has forwards Andre Walker and Darshawn McClellan will be interesting. It might be the first Vandy team in years to not only reverse the trend of guard laden Vanderbilt teams, but also to be oriented towards the front-court.

Check back later for the Class of 2009...