After getting blown out 87-59 in their first matchup three weeks ago, No. 23 Vanderbilt (18-5) fell once again to Ole Miss (15-6) — this time by a score of 76-61.
“I’m disappointed,” head coach Shea Ralph said. “I don’t think we played our best.”
The Commodores were unable to get anything going offensively in the first half, as they entered halftime with a mere 21 points. To put that in context, Vanderbilt scored fewer points in the first half of this game than Mikayla Blakes did on her own in the first half last game against Florida. Blakes and Iyana Moore struggled mightily from the field, with Blakes scoring only three points and sitting for large portions of the half while Moore shot a measly 1-10.
In the second half, it would be the defense that doomed the Commodores. A moment in the third quarter illustrated this perfectly when Iyana Moore, with two defenders draped all over her, buried a deep three as the shot clock expired. Memorial Gymnasium erupted as it hadn’t all afternoon, and the Commodores looked like they might have life again. Then, only a dozen or so seconds later, Tameiya Sadler hit a corner three, and Memorial went quiet again. Defensive rotations would plague the Commodores all day, and it was a plague from which they wouldn’t recover.
First half
After a few rough possessions, Ole Miss’ Starr Jacobs opened the scoring with a layup that was immediately responded to by Khamil Pierre. Uncharacteristically, the Commodores had three turnovers in their opening four possessions, with Blakes, in particular, looking a bit rusty after her record-setting 53-point performance.
The rust extended to the defensive end as well, as the Rebels were allowed to hit four of their first six shots on quality looks. Despite the defensive lapses, turnovers and a streak of five straight missed shots, the Commodores still found themselves only down 8-6 entering the first media timeout with 4:57 left in the first quarter.
Vanderbilt would take its first lead of the game at the 1:23 mark in the first quarter after a pair of Pierre free throws put the team up 11-10. Another Jacobs layup, however, would put the Rebels back up soon after, and the quarter would end with a score of 12-11. Despite shooting 3-13, going 0-4 from beyond the arc and turning the ball over six times, the Commodores were still in the game as the first quarter came to a close.
Vanderbilt attempted to lock in on defense at the start of the second quarter as Jordyn Oliver and then Pierre forced jump balls on the same possession. The pressure, however, was not enough to keep Ole Miss from scoring four times in the span of two minutes and ballooning the lead to 22-13.
Pierre ended the four-minute scoring drought for the Commodores with a layup at the 4:09 mark. After a defensive stop, Madison Greene hit a top-of-the-key three-pointer to cut the deficit down to 22-18. However, it would be for naught as the Rebels outmuscled and outrebounded the Commodores to bring the lead back up to 28-18. Greene would hit a pull-up mid-range jumper as the first half expired, and Vanderbilt would head to the locker room down 32-21.
“We’ve got to do a better job preparing,” Ralph said. “We’ve got to match physicality and be willing to make extra third, fourth [and] fifth plays. Willing to do whatever it takes to keep them off the backboard. Willing to do whatever it takes to keep them out of the paint for multiple shot opportunities.”
Second half
Opened up by Oliver making a layup to start the second half, the Commodores came out of Ralph’s halftime pep talk with new energy on offense. That energy, however, would not translate into making timely defensive rotations, and the Commodores, in the opening half of the third quarter, would give up more than they would get. At the first media timeout of the half, Vanderbilt trailed 45-29.
Giving up more than they got would be Vanderbilt’s theme for the entirety of the third quarter as, despite big shotmaking from Blakes and Moore, the Commodores found themselves down 57-41 at the end of thirty. Defensive rotations and rebounding would plague the Commodores, as the Rebels got good looks and second chances galore. Blakes at least would find her rhythm, scoring 11 points in the period.
The fourth quarter would be more of the third: give and take. Both teams would trade punches down to the end of the game, never allowing Vanderbilt to reassert itself into real contention. Pierre would finish with 24 and Blakes with 16, but the team as a whole would fall short 76-61. After two shots at taking down the Rebels, the Commodores simply couldn’t get the job done.
“Today, I thought there were moments and flashes, especially towards the end, where we played more like ourselves,” Ralph said. “We were more aggressive. We were moving more. We were meeting and matching their physicality. Before that, I thought we were just unwilling.”
Vanderbilt will be back in action on Thursday, Feb. 6, when the team travels to Austin, Texas, to face the Longhorns. The game will tip off at 8:00 p.m. CST.
