In Vanderbilt’s SEC home opener, the Commodores (15-1) faced the Florida Gators (9-5) in a back and forth affair, edging past their opposition 63-57. Jordyn Cambridge led the way for Vanderbilt, scoring 24 points and snagging eight rebounds. Iyana Moore aided Cambridge in her efforts, adding in 20 points of her own alongside three rebounds and three steals. The victory marked Vanderbilt’s eighth straight win, boosting their record to 15-1 on the season and 2-0 in conference play.
Head coach Shea Ralph went with a familiar group, electing for Cambridge, Moore, Jordyn Oliver, Justine Pissott and Sacha Washington to headline Vanderbilt’s starting lineup. The Gators kicked off with a relatively strong string of play as they struck first with a post layup from Ra Shaya Kyle, simultaneously forcing five Vanderbilt turnovers in nearly four minutes. However, the Commodores began to slowly find their defensive footing, ramping up pressure in the post and on halfcourt traps to generate stops, including two turnovers by Florida’s Alberte Rimdal. The second of the pair led to an emphatic fastbreak layup by Cambridge who scored seven of Vanderbilt’s nine points going into the first media timeout.
Yet, sloppy play continued to plague both sides. The two teams exchanged turnovers and missed shots as they both sought to garner some offensive rhythm. This battle of attrition was broken by a swift 9-0 Florida run, which was topped off by a buzzer beating three point heave by Leilani Correa from the corner. Vanderbilt was held scoreless for the final 4:28 of the first quarter, shooting 28% from the field and committing nine turnovers in the first period.
Coming into the second quarter trailing 19-11, Vanderbilt would put up positive plays but then make crucial mistakes, allowing for the margin to be maintained. A Cambridge layup would be followed up by a bad cross-court pass that led to a fastbreak layup for Correa. An aggressive Washington offensive rebound and drawn foul that led to two free throws would then be upstaged by another fastbreak layup from Correa as Zippy Brouhgton blitzed a pass through the Commodores’ full court press.
A now inspired Vanderbilt began a major push, pumping out a 7-0 run that brought life to Memorial Gymnasium. A three pointer from Moore was supplemented by two more baskets from Cambridge as she carried on with her dazzling first half in which she put up 13 points. Eventually, the Commodores would catch up, tying the game with 2:53 to go in the half after Florida’s 11th turnover opened the door for a fastbreak Cambridge miss that was put back immediately by Oliver. Regardless of a rough first half in which Vanderbilt shot 9-27 and had 14 turnovers, the late surge would pay dividends as they turned a once eight-point lead into a tied game going into halftime at 26 apiece.
Almost identical to the beginning of the game, the Commodores and the Gators were deadlocked, with neither team scoring until a mid-range shot from Cambridge gave Vanderbilt its first lead since midway through the first quarter. This newfound energy would be amplified by the increasing intensity of the Commodores as they frantically attacked the paint and coerced the Gators into senseless errors. Vanderbilt found themselves in the bonus because of their assault on the painted area, hitting ten free throws in the third quarter. But, the Commodores drew themselves into foul trouble of their own, keeping the Gators close as they consistently gave them opportunities at the charity stripe. Eventually, Florida crept back into the lead through a three pointer by Aaliyah Matharu, a fourth steal and layup by Correa, then another layup from Matharu. A pair of Moore free throws for Vanderbilt slimmed it to a three point game as the third quarter ended at 45-42 in Florida’s favor.
The fourth quarter displayed a continual change in who possessed the lead. Vanderbilt struck first with two layups by Moore, only for Broughton to retaliate with a floater of her own to give Florida the lead back. Then, Moore scored her ninth straight point from behind the arc only for Eriny Kindred to tie the game at 49 on the very next possession. An onslaught of scoring ensued, with both teams trading two layups each within 35 seconds to increase the tie to 53 with 5:15 to go.
The massive amount of fouls committed by either team would be costly, as Faith Dut would foul out for Florida with Washington fouling out on the next possession. Washington’s fifth foul put the Gators back at the line, where Correa converted both shots to give her side the slim edge over the Commodores. That was until Cambridge answered, putting in a shot from behind the arc first and then making two free throws after drawing a foul on an intense drive to the rack.
With only 1:15 remaining, Vanderbilt led by a sole point, aiming to find the dagger to earn the victory. Cambridge would come up clutch once again, stealing a loose ball from the SEC’s third-leading scorer Matharu and draw a foul that put the Commodores back in the bonus. After another two made free throws, the Vanderbilt lead was pushed to three. A few more lockdown possessions from the Commodores and more made free throws from Moore and Khamil Pierce ensured the win was in the books.
“Really proud of our resiliency today; we’re all very happy to see growth,” Ralph said. “I’m so proud to represent Vanderbilt and I hope we can keep this rolling.”
With another statement triumph under their belt, the red-hot Commodores are sure to earn more votes to be placed in the AP poll. Next up, Vanderbilt will travel to Lexington to take on Kentucky (8-8) at 6 p.m. CST on Jan. 11th.
