Vanderbilt men's basketball coach Bryce Drew will not return next season, the school announced Friday.
Drew, 44, was hired in 2016 to replace Kevin Stallings. He led Vandy to the NCAA tournament and a 19-16 record in his first season, but the Commodores have gone just 21-43 in the past two seasons -- including an 0-18 record in SEC play this season.
Drew on Friday had his first sit-down meeting with new athletic director Malcolm Turner, sources told ESPN. In what would be an unusual move, Turner is looking to reassign Drew to another position in the school to avoid paying his buyout, according to sources.
In a statement posted on Twitter, Drew and his wife, Tara, thanked fans for "the enormous support and outpouring of love" and said it was "an honor" to coach at Vandy.
"While these days are never easy, it is important to have faith and maintain the highest level of integrity," Drew said in the statement. "We trust that the Lord has a wonderful plan for our next chapter. ... We wish the Commodores nothing but success in the future."
Vanderbilt hired Turner in December, and he officially started on Feb. 1. He joined the Commodores after just over four years as president of the NBA G League.
"Vanderbilt is committed to competing at the highest levels on and off the court," Turner said in a statement. "After careful consideration, we've decided to make a change to the leadership of our men's basketball program. Bryce has represented Vanderbilt in exceptional fashion in his time here. I appreciate all of the contributions Bryce has made over the past three seasons to Vanderbilt, and we wish him all the best."
Drew is the younger brother of Baylor head coach Scott Drew, whose Bears defeated Syracuse on Thursday night to advance to the second round of the NCAA tournament.
Scott Drew said he awoke to texts Friday after it was announced that his younger brother was out at Vanderbilt.
"When things happen to you, it's one thing," Scott Drew said prior to his team's practice from Salt Lake City, Utah, in the afternoon. "When it happens to your loved ones -- your mom, your dad, your brother, your sister -- it probably affects you more than them. At the same time, he's blessed to have great friends, great family support, and he's got a great faith and he knows God has a different plan for him. And as big brother, obviously, whatever I can do to help him, I'm going to do."
Bryce Drew landed an elite recruiting class in 2018, led by five-stars Darius Garland and Simi Shittu, but Garland -- a likely top-10 pick in June's NBA draft -- suffered a season-ending meniscus injury in November. Vanderbilt was 4-0 with Garland fully healthy and 5-23 without him.
Prior to taking over at Vanderbilt, Drew coached Valparaiso for five seasons, winning four regular-season Horizon League championships and making two NCAA tournament appearances. He was also an assistant coach at Valpo for six seasons after playing professionally in the NBA and overseas.
He's perhaps best known for "The Shot" that helped Valparaiso beat Ole Miss at the buzzer in the 1998 NCAA tournament.
ESPN's Alden Gonzalez contributed to this report.