NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Vanderbilt had four score in double figures and got a double-double from Sacha Washington, but Alabama prevailed 77-71 in overtime in an absolute slugfest Sunday at Memorial Gymnasium.
There were 24 lead changes and 12 ties before the Crimson Tide took control in overtime by outscoring Vandy 13-7 during the added five minutes.
Brinae Alexander scored 19 to pace Vanderbilt while Washington collected a career-high 16 rebounds and scored a career-high 15 points. Iyana Moore added 16 points to go along with six assists while Jordyn Cambridge had 14 points and three steals.
The Commodores (12-12, 3-7 SEC) missed 10 free throws, had 15 turnovers and went just 4 of 21 from long range in the loss.
Vandy heads back out on the road this week to face at Texas A&M (13-9, 3-7 SEC) at 7 p.m. Thursday.
In a 48-48 game entering the fourth quarter Sunday, Vanderbilt scored the first five of the period to get some momentary breathing room. But Alabama countered with six in a row to take a 54-53 edge.
Moore, Cambridge and Alexander, respectively, answered on the other end and put the Commodores ahead 60-57 with 5:07 left on the clock.
Exactly three minutes later Hannah Barner drilled a high-arching 3 from the left wing tying the game at 62-62. Jamya Mingo-Young’s fall-away, baseline jumper with 78 seconds to go knotted the score at 64-64 and proved to be the final points of regulation.
Brittany Davis broke the ice for Alabama with a 3 from the left corner and a layup through the teeth of the Vandy defense to give the visitors an early advantage in overtime. Megan Abrams’ steal and layup with 1:51 to go made it a 71-66 game and virtually iced the contest.
Davis led Alabama (11-10, 2-8 SEC) with 25 points.
Vanderbilt missed its first four shots of the afternoon before Moore rattled in a 3-pointer at the 7:19 mark. Almost four minutes later Cambridge gave the Dores their first lead at 9-8.
Alabama went 4:12 without scoring at one point during the period, yet trailed just 13-12 going into the second period.
A Bella LaChance put-back bucket early in the second quarter put Vandy up 15-14 and represented the seventh lead change of the contest at that point. Davis finally gave the Crimson Tide some separation with a 3 from the right wing that made it 20-17.
Vanderbilt responded with a 7-2 run, capped by a Moore three-point play, to go up 24-22. Alabama was able to sneak back ahead with a Davis 3 that made it 31-29, but Washington tied the game at 31-all with a baseline jumper from the right side.
That would be how the score would read at the break after 11 lead changes. The Commodores forced nine Alabama turnovers but only made one of the 11 triples they attempted.
Washington scored four straight early in the third period to put the Commodores ahead 35-33 and then an Alexander 3 from the right corner made it a 38-37 lead for the home team. Alabama came right back with a 5-0 run before LaChance’s pull-up jumper and Cambridge’s layup knotted the score at 42-all.
Each team would score six points apiece the rest of the way to set the scoreboard at 48-48 going into the final 10 minutes.
- Sunday’s game was the first overtime affair for the Commodores since a 76-74 win at Washington on Dec. 21, 2019.
- Cambridge now needs eight steals to reach 200 for her career. The senior is also 19 steals from moving inside the top 10 for steals in a Vanderbilt career.
- Vanderbilt now leads the all-time series with Alabama 34-19 and is 19-4 in home games.
- The Crimson Tide have now won seven in a row against the Commodores. Vandy’s last win in the series was 87-80 on Jan. 26, 2017.
- Attendance on Sunday was announced as 1,992.
