Vanderbilt Women’s Basketball returned home for the first time in over a week to take on the Auburn Tigers inside Memorial Gymnasium. The Commodores successfully took down the Tigers, 81-53, improving to 20-0 on the season to earn the best start in program history.  

Both teams were coming off signature wins — the Commodores took down No. 7 Michigan on a neutral floor while Auburn took down No. 21 Alabama at home — setting the stage for a showdown of red-hot teams. 

The Commodores raced out to a sizable lead in the first quarter, but a sluggish second quarter effort kept the game close at half. In the end, Vanderbilt had the legs in the final 30 minutes to pull away from a pesky Tigers squad, getting to 6-0 in conference play. Mikayla Blakes led the way in terms of scoring, putting up 20 points with 5 assists to pave the way for Vanderbilt.  

“I am reminding myself that this [gets] us to 20 [wins], and that’s a great thing,” head coach Shea Ralph said postgame. “I’m reminding myself that I like being in a place where I know that we didn’t play well today. That was clear, especially in the first half. I like being pissed off after a win. I like it because I know that means that I know how big this team can be.”

Aubrey Galvan, Justine Pissott, Ndjakalenga Mwenentanda, Sacha Washington and Blakes made the start in this contest, the same lineup head coach Shea Ralph has used for most of the season. 

First quarter 

The Commodores won the opening tip, and Pissott immediately went to work, hitting a baseline jumper to get the ‘Dores on the board. Despite this early bucket, it was a defensive battle through the first several minutes as there were five turnovers through three minutes of play. Still, the Commodores managed to take an early 8-4 lead, with buckets from Mwenentanda, Galvan and Washington, as the first media timeout arrived at 4:48.  

Pissott and Galvan opened the scoring out of the break, cashing in back-to-back deep balls to bring Vanderbilt’s lead to 14-4. Auburn’s Sania Richardson hit one on the other end, but Galvan responded with a steal and a bucket. Tigers guard A’riel Jackson hit a bucket before the first quarter buzzer sounded, but Vanderbilt was up 23-12 as the quarter ended.  

Surprisingly, star guard Blakes was left with no points through 10 minutes, going 0-for-4 from the field. Other players on this deep Vanderbilt squad were quick to pick up the slack, as Galvan led the way with seven points of her own. 

Second quarter 

Auburn’s Arek Angui hit a layup to start the second period, as Galvan abruptly turned the ball over on an attempted pass. Another Galvan turnover gave way for an easy bucket from Kaitlyn Duhon, shrinking Vanderbilt’s lead to 23-16 at the 6:28 mark.  

The offensive struggles continued for the Commodores, as they were a combined 0-for-6 through four minutes in the second. Two made free throws by Aiyana Mitchell broke the scoring drought, as Vanderbilt was up 25-18 at the first media timeout with 5:57 to go.  

Blakes hit a layup out of the break before Jackson and Richardson hit shots on the opposite end, bringing the score to 27-22. Blakes began to hit her stride, cashing in another layup, before Auburn’s Mya Petticord hit a killer deep ball. 

As Vanderbilt tried to run down the clock to near zero on the clock, Galvan threw another errant pass which was intercepted and taken to the hoop by Duhon, ending the half with the Commodores’ lead at 33-29.  

The Commodores went relatively cold in the second quarter, being outscored 17-10 in the final 10 minutes of the half. Still, seven of Ralph’s players scored in the first half, spreading the ball evenly around.  

Third quarter 

It was a tough start to the quarter for the Commodores, as Jackson drove to the lane and drew a foul with the bucket. Vanderbilt responded with back-to-back triples from Mwenentanda and Blakes, pushing the lead to 39-31 just a minute into the half.  

Vanderbilt’s offense continued to fire on all cylinders, as Blakes and Galvan both went to the line twice and cashed in all four free throws. The Commodores went on a 16-2 run through four minutes to bring the lead to 49-33, getting production from all players on the court. Blakes forced a turnover and hit on a fastbreak the other way, bringing Vanderbilt’s lead to 51-33 at the 4:38 mark.  

Duhon made two free throws out of the media timeout, but Blakes answered with four points from two made jumpers. The ‘Dores continued to pour it on until the buzzer sounded, mounting a 60-41 lead through three quarters. An offensive explosion in the third, primarily from Blakes, put the ‘Dores comfortably in the lead as they looked to close out another conference victory.  

Fourth quarter 

Washington kicked off the fourth quarter, knocking in an easy layup. The graduate student then hit two more layups, one off a fastbreak, to bring her total to 12 on the day. Harissoum Coulibaly hit a bucket off a Vanderbilt turnover, shrinking the Commodores’ lead to 64-45 at the 7:09 mark.  

Blakes and Washington continued to pour in buckets while holding the Tigers at bay. Auburn did not score between the 7:00-4:00 marks on the clock, while Vanderbilt brought their lead to 70-47 as a media timeout arrived at 4:04.  

Ralph opted to put in a variety of backups in the final minutes, giving key contributors like Blakes a rest. The Commodores cruised the rest of the way to victory, as Mwenentanda rolled in a final bucket to give Vanderbilt the 81-53 victory. 

Four Commodores finished the day in double figures, led by Blakes with 20. Galvan also had 10 assists, showing her versatility as both a scorer and facilitator.

Vanderbilt returns to action against No. 2 South Carolina on Sunday, Jan. 25 at 2 p.m. CST.