Chain Gang

Vanderbilt secured its first basketball commitment of the year today in power forward Steve Tchiengang. ESPN's Scouts Inc. rates him the 55th best player in the country, Rivals has him at #81. If there's been one criticism of Stallings' recruiting in the past, it was that he couldn't land the top tier big guys (see Emeka Okafor, Branden Wright, David Harrison). However, within the past year, he's secured the best player at the Under 19 World Championships and a projected first round draft pick (Andrew Ogilvy); another center with offers from UCLA, Florida, an Ohio State (Festus Ezeli); and Tchiengang. Stallings' top target now has to be Lance Goulbourne, who has been one of the fastest risers of the summer and has been considered a Vanderbilt lean for a long time.