AUSTIN, Texas – Heading into a two game road swing starting with a top-five matchup between No. 5 Vanderbilt (24-2, 9-2 Southeastern Conference) and No. 4 Texas (23-3, 8-3 Southeastern Conference) it was known the Longhorns’ primary focus would be slowing Commodores’ sophomore guard Mikayla Blakes, who leads the nation in scoring.
For the duration of Thursday night’s 86-70 loss, Texas head coach Vic Schaefer had no answers for Blakes – or Commodores true freshman guard Aubrey Galvan – whose 52 points combined helped run the Longhorns out of Memorial Gymnasium.
Texas entered the contest ranked seventh in the nation in fewest points per game allowed (54.8). However, they allowed Vanderbilt’s high-flying scoring attack, which entered ranked eighth in the country in scoring (85.4) to shoot 75% from the field in the first quarter, as the Commodores established a 27-15 lead by connecting on 9-of-12 shots including four threes – paving the way for Vandy to lead for the final 37:53 of the contest.
Blakes entered the contest averaging 25.9 points per contest and the All-American poured in a game-high 34 points on 9-of-19 shooting (13-of-15 free throws) in the win, finishing four points off her season-best of 38.
Longhorns’ star forward Madison Booker paced Texas with 20 points on 9-of-19 shooting and added eight rebounds, playing all 40 minutes in the loss.
Vanderbilt ended the night shooting 51% (28-of-55) from the field, including 9-of-19 (47%) from beyond the arc, while Texas connected on 38% (30-of-78) from the field and just three made three-pointers as the Longhorns trailed by as many as 26 in the second half. At the free-throw line, Vandy went 21-of-25 (84%) while Texas had only nine attempts at the charity stripe, hitting seven.
After a 29-point loss in their last meeting against a top-five opponent, Shea Ralph’s Commodores retain sole possession of second place in the SEC regular season standings with the victory, while Texas has work to do in order to have a chance at earning a second-consecutive league crown for the regular season.
Here are three takeaways from Texas’ third loss of the season, as the Longhorns will stay in the Volunteer State, heading to Knoxville to square off with No. 22-ranked Tennessee (15-6, 7-2 SEC) on Sunday.
Tipoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. CT and the game will air nationally on ABC.
Vandy’s guard play
The combination of Blakes and Galvan spearheaded Vanderbilt to a 20-0 start to the regular season, before dropping consecutive contests against South Carolina and Ole Miss.
In Thursday’s win, Texas had no answer for the duo.
Galvan, who entered the night averaging 12.8 points per game along with six assists, ended with 18 points, eight rebounds and five assists in 40 minutes.
After Texas managed to cut Vanderbilt’s lead to 12 with 7:35 remaining in the final quarter, Galvan promptly buried a three out of a timeout – extending the advantage to 15 and thwarting any chances of a late Texas comeback.
Texas’ struggle to get settled in offensively
After hitting their first two shots, Texas suffered through a pair of prolonged stretches without a made field goal – droughts which allowed Vandy to build leads which ended up being insurmountable.
The Longhorns missed seven consecutive attempts over a 3:42 stretch in the first quarter, a stretch which saw Vanderbilt build an 11-point lead by the time Madison Booker’s layup with 3:09 left gave Texas its next made field goal.
In the second quarter, Texas went on a 2:38 drought without a made bucket, where Vanderbilt’s lead went from six to 13 points.
Justice Carlton and Rori Harmon
In the defeat, Schaefer sat star point guard Rori Harmon for the final 14:56 of the contest, after Harmon turned the ball over in the third quarter. On the night, Harmon finished with five points, two assists and two turnovers in 18 minutes of action.
Sophomore forward Justice Carlton, who scored 17 points in Texas’ win over Kentucky on Monday night, was rendered ineffective. Carlton was substituted for at the 4:29 mark of the second quarter and didn’t appear the rest of the night, ending the contest scoreless with one rebound and one assist in seven minutes.
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