Blakes and Pierre Named to National Player of the Year Watch List

Vanderbilt women's basketball players Mikayla Blakes and Khamil Pierre were each selected to the USBWA Ann Meyers Drysdale National Player of the Year Midseason Top 50 watch list

INDIANAPOLIS – A pair of Vanderbilt women’s basketball standouts were named to the United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) Ann Meyers Drysdale Award Midseason Top 50 watch list on Monday, as sophomore Khamil Pierre and freshman Mikayla Blakes were each selected.

It is the first selection to an Ann Meyers Drysdale Award watch list for Pierre and Blakes. The Commodore duo are the only pair of teammates in NCAA Division I to average over 20 points per game this season. Blakes is seventh in the NCAA in scoring at 22.1 points per game, an average that also leads all freshmen nationally. Pierre’s 21.0 points per contest rank 14th in the country, while her 193 made field goals are fourth-most in NCAA Division I this season.

The Ann Meyers Drysdale Award is presented annually to the women’s national player of the year by the USBWA. Named for the legendary UCLA guard, the award was first presented in the 1987-88 season and formally named in Meyers Drysdale’s honor in the 2011-12 season. Ann Meyers Drysdale played at UCLA from 1974-78, which pre-dates the USBWA All-America selections. She was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1993 and the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in 1999.

Pierre has taken one of the biggest leaps forward in the country this season from last season, as she has improved her scoring average by 12.1 points from her freshman campaign. Pierre is putting up 21.0 points and 10.3 rebounds per game this season, making her the only player in the country to average over 20.0 points and 10.0 rebounds. The sophomore currently ranks fourth in all of NCAA Division I in field goals made with 193 and eighth in double-doubles with 12. The 6-2 forward ranks in the top 15 nationally in eight categories, and she is the only NCAA Division I player placed in the top 15 in scoring (14th; 21.0 ppg) and steals per game (10th; 3.18).

The Phoenix, Arizona, native has scored 20-plus points in 13 games this season after coming into 2024-25 having logged just one career game with 20 or more points. Pierre’s 12 double-doubles are the second-most in school history, as she is two shy of Ashley Earley’s record of 14 set during the 2004-05 campaign. Her 70 steals pace the SEC and ranks eighth in the country.

Pierre put on one of the most memorable performances in Vanderbilt women’s basketball history in the 106-40 win over Evansville on Dec. 14. She posted 42 points, 18 rebounds, and eight steals in the win over the Purple Aces. At the time, her 42-point performance set the school record for most points scored in a single game, having since been passed by Mikayla Blakes’ 53 points at Florida on Jan. 30.

Blakes is making a strong case for national freshman of the year consideration. The 5-8 guard leads all NCAA Division I freshmen in scoring (22.1 ppg), points scored (509), and field goals made (172).

The Somerset, New Jersey, native recently set the NCAA true freshman single-game scoring record with 53 points at Florida in a 99-86 win on Jan. 30. It was the first time this season – on either the men’s or women’s side – that an NCAA basketball player has scored 50-plus points this season. Her 53 points were also an SEC single-game record, regardless of class, and set Vanderbilt’s single-season record. Blakes is one of two NCAA freshmen this season to have multiple games with 30-plus points.

The guard ranks in the top five among freshmen nationally in made 3-point field goals (t-3rd, 53), steals (3rd; 55), steals per game (4th, 2.47), and free throw percentage (4th, 86.2%). She has scored 20-plus points in 14 games this season, which leads all NCAA freshmen, and she is the only frosh nationally to score 33-plus points in multiple games this season.

The Ann Meyers Drysdale Award winner is to be announced at the NCAA Women’s Final Four in Tampa, from April 4-6. The formal presentation of the trophy will follow at the annual USBWA Awards Luncheon hosted by the Missouri Athletic Club in St. Louis.

The Vanderbilt women’s basketball team came in at No. 24 in this week’s Associated Press Women’s College Basketball Top 25 Poll. It marks the second-straight week that the Dores have earned a top 25 ranking, as they were No. 23 in both the AP Top 25 and the USA Today/WBCA Coaches Poll.

Vandy is 18-5 overall this season and 5-4 in SEC play. The Commodores return to action Thursday when they travel to No. 4/7 Texas. Tipoff against the Longhorns is set for 8 p.m. CT and airs live on SEC Network.

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