No. 12/11 Vanderbilt rolls to an 88-71 win at Arkansas to open SEC play
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The No. 12/11-ranked Vanderbilt women’s basketball team remained unbeaten to open SEC play, as the Commodores posted an 88-71 victory at Arkansas on Thursday in Bud Walton Arena.
Sophomore Mikayla Blakes continued her strong start to the 2024-25 season into conference play, as the guard equaled her season-high in scoring with 35 points. Blakes extends her double-digit scoring streak to 33 games, as she is now tied with assistant coach Ashley Earley for the second-longest double-digit scoring streak by a Commodore since the 1999-00 season. Blakes added a game-best eight assists and three steals to her stat line and shot 50 percent from the field on Thursday.
With the win, Vanderbilt improves to 14-0 on the year, matching the 1994-95 team for the second-best start in program history. The Dores have now posted a victory in the SEC season opener in four of the last five seasons.
Blakes was one of three Dores to record double-figure points against the Razorbacks. Freshman Aubrey Galvan registered 14 points and six assists in her first SEC contest. Graduate Sacha Washington posted her third double-double of the season with a 13-point, 13-rebound effort.
The Razorbacks opened the game holding a brief 11-5 lead, but a 15-1 run by the Commodores gave Vanderbilt an eight-point advantage at 20-12 late in the first quarter. The Dores expanded its lead in the second stanza, as Vandy scored the first six points in the frame to take a double-digit advantage at 28-17. Arkansas shaved the Vanderbilt lead to five points, but the Commodores closed the quarter on an 18-5 run to take a 16-point advantage into the locker room at 46-30.
Vanderbilt pushed its lead as high as 26 points in the third quarter. The Commodores maintained a double-digit advantage for the entirety of the fourth quarter to claim the 2026 SEC season-opening contest.
The Dores shot 45.8 percent from the floor in the win. Vandy held a 32-14 edge in points off turnovers, as the Commodores had 11 steals as a team and forced Arkansas into 22 turnovers.
Head Coach Shea Ralph on the Win
“I think any win on the road in the SEC is a great win, and I was really proud of how we started the game. I thought we had some dips in the second half. You can see by the stats that I wasn’t happy with that, but for the most part, I thought we had some really strong contributions. I thought Mikayla Blakes was Mikayla Blake. You can see her excitement to start this SEC season, to play an opponent in our conference, and you know, we have a tough slate coming up. I mean, every game is a tough game, so I think there are lots of things we can clean up. I thought there were moments in the second half where I kept pushing my team to step up, but that happened. So there are obviously things that we were going to take away and learn from it, but I like learning when you win. I’m so proud of my team.
Up Next
The No. 12/11-ranked Commodores return to Memorial Gymnasium on Sunday, as Vanderbilt hosts No. 5/5 LSU. Tipoff against the Tigers is set for 4 p.m. CT and airs live on ESPN.
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