Vanderbilt WBB Star Given Another Weekly Award: The Anchor – Sports Illustrated

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Vanderbilt women’s basketball star point guard Mikayla Blakes has done it yet again. Blakes was named the SEC Player of the Week Tuesday after she went for her fourth consecutive game scoring 30 points or more as she scored 35 against No. 16 Kentucky in a 81-79 win.
For Blakes it is her fifth SEC Player of the Week Award this season. This sets a new school record for the most conference player of the week honors in a single season. This week’s award broke the previous tie she had with Wendy Scholtens, who won four SEC Player of the Week Awards for Vanderbilt during the 1989-1990 season.
Blakes has led Vanderbilt all season to a 25-3 record. Blakes’ performances during the 2025-2026 season has given her a very strong case to be the National Player of the Year in women’s college basketball.
Vanderbilt has two games remaining in the regular season against Alabama at home and in-state rival Tennessee on the road before the SEC Tournament. The Commodores clinched at top four spot in the SEC and a double-bye in the conference tournament in their win over Kentucky.
But Vanderbilt is also playing to be a No. 1 seed for the NCAA Tournament. In the latest women’s bracketology, the Commodores are projected to be a No. 2 seed against Navy in the first round. Vanderbilt’s pursuit to be a top seed in one of the four regions continues tonight as Vanderbilt takes on Alabama for its final home game of the season. The Commodores and Crimson Tide tipoff at 6:30 p.m. CT.
191 days
No. 25 Vanderbilt men’s basketball (beat/lost to) Georgia (score).
No. 5 Vanderbilt women’s basketball vs. Alabama, 6:30 p.m. CT on SEC Network+.
Vanderbilt track and field at the SEC Indoor Championships, Day 1 (College Station, Texas).
His favorite color is green monsters@ManciniMike5 pic.twitter.com/4AbACLeAIc
Graham Baakko is a writer for Vanderbilt Commodores On SI, primarily covering football, basketball and baseball. Graham is a recent graduate from the University of Alabama, where he wrote for The Crimson White, WVUA-FM, WVUA 23 as he covered a variety of Crimson Tide sports. He also covered South Carolina athletics as a sportswriting intern for GamecockCentral.
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