The Memphis women's basketball team fell to Vanderbilt 104-68 at FedExForum Monday night, in the first of two exhibition games at the Hoops for St. Jude Tip-Off Classic.
Memphis and third-year coach Alex Simmons returned just two players from last year's team in forwards Bailey Gilmore and Tamya Smith. That lack of continuity showed in the first quarter, as the Commodores jumped out to a 12-2 lead in the first four minutes of the contest. Vandy looked the part of the preseason No. 19 team in the country, extending their lead to 28-10 at the end of the first period.
"I think nerves set in in the first quarter," Simmons said. "But, as everybody saw on the stat sheet, we won the second and third quarter, and I think we played our style of game."
Memphis battled back though. After the rough start, the Tigers adjusted to the game, outscoring the Commodores 22-17 in the second quarter to make the halftime score a manageable 45-32.
In the second quarter, Memphis forced 10 Vanderbilt turnovers, which helped to shift the momentum the Tigers' way.
The Tigers continued to claw their way back into the game in the third quarter, whittling the deficit down to 5 points with 1:48 to go in the period. Vanderbilt's star sophomore, preseason All-SEC first teamer Mikayla Blakes stemmed the tide for her team, hitting a pair of buckets in the closing minutes to stretch the lead back out to 62-53 at the end of three.
"Alex is a great coach," said Vanderbilt head coach Shea Ralph. "Her team really competed."
The Memphis comeback bid ran out of gas in the fourth quarter, as the Commodores were able to break the Tigers pressure.
The Dores took full control back in the fourth, pushing their lead back to 20 points in the first five minutes of the period. When the final horn sounded, Memphis was outscored 42-15 in the final 10 minutes.
Vandy finished strong, pushing towards 100 points late and ultimately settling for a 104-68 victory.
Tanya Smith led the way for the Tigers finishing with 12 points, and Brooklyn Alexander pitched in with 9 points and 9 rebounds.
Mikayla Blakes led all scorers with a whopping 40 points to go along with 8 rebounds and 4 assists.
The Tigers will start regular season play on Monday, Nov. 3 at 11 a.m. at Elma Roane Fieldhouse against Arkansas Pine-Bluff. The game will be streamed on ESPN+.
"We're looking forward to moving forward and getting to the regular season," coach Simmons said. "That's the great thing about exhibition games."
I'm a senior journalism major with a sports media concentration. I have been at the Daily Helmsman for three years now, including two years as the sports editor.
