Vanderbilt Women’s Basketball (2-0) won its second consecutive game when it defeated the Austin Peay Governors (0-2) on Nov. 8. The Commodores were riding hot off a dominating 102-50 win over Lipscomb earlier in the week and continued their in-state dominance when they cruised to a 93-37 win over the Governor’s.
“There’s a lot that I am proud of today [and] our effort sticks out,” Vanderbilt head coach Shea Ralph said. “This early in the season, [it is] the one thing for me, and it’s a non-negotiable.”
Ralph elected to go with the same starting five as the Commodores’ first game: Mikayla Blakes, Jordyn Oliver, Iyana Moore, Jane Nwba and Khamil Pierre. Graduate transfer Leilani Kapinus got her first minutes as a Commodore after sitting out the team’s last game with an injury. The ‘Dores were also without senior Sacha Washington and junior Justine Pissott, both of whom were on the sideline wearing street clothes for the second game in a row.
The game started with Austin Peay putting its foot on the gas pedal; two Vanderbilt turnovers allowed the Governors to get four quick points. Vanderbilt settled in, however, with Pierre doing what she does best under the basket, drawing an and-one foul to make it a one-point game. Quickly after, Blakes carried the ball up the court and dished a bounce pass to Pierre on the move to get her up to five points quickly. Nwaba went to work defensively for the Commodores, grabbing a turnover in Vanderbilt’s offensive half, which she took herself for a layup. Despite struggling to get shots to land through the first four minutes of play, Blakes got her first basket — a three-pointer from the top of the arc — with just under six minutes remaining in the quarter.
After the game’s first media timeout, Aga Makurat, Kapinus and Aiyana Mitchell entered the game for the Commodores. Blakes went to work early, earning a tough two after a layup. Austin Peay kept itself in the game, however, by working the ball around the outside of the arc and waiting for Vanderbilt to make a mistake on its defensive rotations. With just over two minutes remaining in the first quarter, Vanderbilt led 17-13, with all of Austin Peay’s points coming on field goals.
Pierre went down for a moment in the first quarter after stepping on a foot under the basket, but she stayed in the game and made one of her two foul shots. Kapinus got her first bucket as a Commodore late in the first quarter when she called for a wide-open layup down under the basket; to make it even sweeter, she also drew the foul and made it a 3-point play. The ‘Dores led the Governors 24-16 at the end of the first quarter.
“[Kapinus] didn’t spend a lot of the summer with us [because] she had to graduate and then immediately had to go through [a] procedure that sidelined her for a bit,” Ralph said. “So, for what she has been through to get to this point, I was really impressed with how she showed up today.”
A Moore 3-pointer and Nwaba behind-the-back layup would extend Vanderbilt’s lead to 13 early in the second quarter. Vanderbilt went on a 9-0 run at the midway point of the second frame, but it was snapped by a layup from Austin Peay’s Anovia Sheals. The Commodores settled in and continued to pull away, though, with Moore, Nwaba, Blakes and Greene combining for 24 points. The Commodores headed to the locker room up 52-26 off the back of an 11-0 run to close out the first half of play.
Vanderbilt would keep the heat on to start the third quarter with a 17-2 run. At the first media timeout, Blakes led the team with 16 points on the game, while Pierre and Moore followed her in a tie for second with 13 points apiece. The Commodores extended their lead to 40 off a free throw from Moore. Shortly after, Makurat ignited the gymnasium when she hit a wide-open 3-pointer from the top of the arc on a fast break, marking the sophomore’s first points of the night. Makurat would follow her first points of the night with another triple just a few plays later from virtually the same spot on the court. Vanderbilt ended the third quarter of play by outscoring the Governors 26-4 en route to a 78-30 lead.
Vanderbilt would remain in control to start the fourth quarter, going on a 6-0 run. When 6’3” first-year Trinity Wilson entered the game with five minutes remaining, the Commodores had officially utilized their whole bench. Ralph also seemed to be using the fourth quarter to work some potential lineups, with Makurat playing more down low and less on the perimeter. Wilson would score the last Commodore bucket of the night on a putback to close the 93-37 win for the ‘Dores.
“Right now, I’d like for us to be a little bit more patient and disciplined on offense,” Ralph said. “I think we can move the ball a little bit better, and that’s different for this team because, for the past couple of years, we’ve had a lot of people that need[ed] to take a lot of shots.”
Vanderbilt Women’s Basketball will be back in action on Nov. 14 when it plays South Florida at the Yuenling Center in Tampa, Florida.
