Blakes, Commodores Look to Make it Three Straight Against Chavez and Oklahoma
Oklahoma Visits Vanderbilt for a Top 10 Meeting
Tonight brings a top 10 matchup to Memorial Gymnasium as the No. 5 Vanderbilt Commodores host the No. 10 Oklahoma Sooners. This game will be nationally televised on ESPN2, with tip set for 9 PM ET/8 PM CT with Courtney Lyle and Stephanie White on the call.
The Commodores are coming off back to back wins over the Florida Gators and Kentucky Wildcats and have shown the toughness to push through to finish games in those contests. The Florida game was a tale of two halves, but you wouldn’t know it from the final score. Vanderbilt has run into those games a few times this season, but as basketball is a game of runs, they have been able to succeed in most of those situations as they sit at 22-2 on the year.
Oklahoma is coming off a bye week. The Sooners last saw action on February 1, losing to the Texas Longhorns 78-70 in Austin. That loss snapped a three game winning streak for Oklahoma, who now sits at 17-5 overall and 5-4 in SEC play. The extended break gives them time to regroup, but it can also disrupt rhythm coming into a road environment.
Thursday night at Kentucky in an 84-83 win, the Dores were able to record their second lowest turnover amount of the season with six for the game. That was a huge difference maker in such a close contest and something they have worked to correct after the last few outings. The Commodores are second in the SEC behind Texas with an 8.46 turnover margin. They do a great job on the defensive end of forcing turnovers and are third in conference with 11.92 steals per game as well.
Mikayla Blakes is that special player, and the sophomore continues to put the team on her shoulders when the moment calls. Blakes is not only an elite scorer at 25.6 points per game, but her 75 steals on the season, 3.1 per game, places her in elite two way company.
When it comes to solid play, freshman Aubrey Galvan continues to be that all around threat as well. While she is at 11.8 points per game, she has an eye for facilitation, averaging 6.1 assists per game. Galvan has good vision, and while she still has some things to sharpen up, the freshman has rarely seemed rattled with the exception of the South Carolina game.
At Kentucky, she showed how unbothered she was and knocked down four crucial free throws late to help seal the win. Without those high pressure freebies, the Dores may have lost that one.
For Oklahoma, freshman Aaliyah Chavez leads the charge at 18.5 points per game. The 5’10” guard came in as the No. 1 player in the country out of high school and swept every major national player of the year award, including Gatorade, Naismith, MaxPreps, and Sports Illustrated honors, plus McDonald’s All American status. Chavez has lived up to the hype and brings elite scoring ability.
Chavez has scored in double-digits every game but one this season, and after the tough game against Texas, where she only shot 23.1 percent from the floor with 16.7 percent from three, she will be looking to heat back up tonight. That matchup with Galvan should be fun to watch.
Raegan Beers is the anchor inside with a double double of 16.1 points and 10.7 rebounds per game. She leads the SEC in rebounding and gives Oklahoma a dominant presence in the paint. Sahara Williams adds 12.3 points and 7.9 rebounds per game, while Payton Verhulst and Zya Vann add 11.6 points per game and 10.6 points per game respectively, giving the Sooners plenty of scoring balance.
How quick can Vanderbilt assert their plan in the paint? Getting the touches will play a big role in opening up the outside game. The Commodores have shown to be dangerous from beyond the arc. Some nights are better than others, but when they have that inside and out mode rolling, things work better. The battle between Sacha Washington and Beers will be one to watch. Who can gain that edge in the paint?
The boards will be a major factor. The Sooners have an edge with a rebounding margin of 11.5 per game to Vanderbilt’s 2.5. The Commodores were able to cancel that out and win on Thursday at Kentucky after winning the turnover margin, but limiting Beers on the glass, especially on the defensive end, will be critical. On the flip side, Oklahoma needs to protect the ball better than they did in Austin, where turnovers kept Texas in control. Both teams need to execute in their areas of strength to pull this one out.
Rankings reflect the latest Associated Press Top 25 Poll
