BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Vanderbilt women’s basketball player Mikayla Blakes was named SEC Co-Freshman of the Week, sharing the honors with South Carolina’s Joyce Edwards.
It is a league-high fourth SEC Freshman of the Week selection for Blakes. It is her first SEC weekly award since Dec. 10, when she shared SEC Freshman of the Week with Auburn’s Syriah Daniels. Blakes’ four SEC frosh award selections are second-most in school history, as Khamil Pierre captured the weekly honor program-best five times last season.
The guard averaged 28.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 2.0 steals to help Vanderbilt collect wins over Arkansas (101-61) and No. 19 Alabama (66-64). The guard registered back-to-back games with 20 or more points, extending her scoring streak to seven games.
Blakes opened her week with a 24-point performance in a 101-60 home win against Arkansas this past Thursday. The guard shot 61.5 percent from the field, going an efficient 8-of-13 from the floor. She hit four 3-point field goals and dished out three assists vs. the Razorbacks. Blakes’ performance helped Vanderbilt break the century mark for the sixth time this season to set a program record for most games with 100-plus points. Meanwhile, the 41-point victory was Vanderbilt’s largest margin of victory vs. an SEC team in the Shea Ralph era, and it is the widest margin of victory vs. a conference opponent since a 92-41 win over Mississippi State on Jan. 3, 2013.
The freshman elevated her game last Sunday at No. 19 Alabama, as Blakes scored 33 points in a 66-64 win. The 33-point performance set the program record for most points scored by a freshman in a road contest, while it gave Vanderbilt its first road win over a ranked team since knocking off No. 24 Missouri, 56-52, on Feb. 28, 2016.
The Somerset, New Jersey, native came up clutch in the second half, as Blakes scored 19 points over the final two quarters to help Vanderbilt erase a nine-point deficit in the third quarter. The guard’s old-fashioned 3-point play with 1:44 remaining in the game gave the Commodores a 63-60 lead they would never relinquish. The freshman scored Vanderbilt’s final six points to secure a second win over a ranked team this season. It marks the first time since the 2015-16 campaign that Vandy has collected multiple wins over ranked teams.
Blakes’ 33-point performance at Alabama marked her second game this season with 30-plus points. She previously scored 36 points in her SEC debut vs. Georgia on Jan. 2 to set the school’s freshmen record for most points scored in a game. Blakes is the only freshman to have multiple 33-plus point scoring performances in NCAA Division I this season. It is also her 13th game with 20-plus points this season, which is also tops among NCAA frosh.
Vanderbilt’s performance last week helped the Commodores earn their first ranking inside the Associated Press Women’s College Basketball Top 25 Poll for the first time since the 2013-14 season. Vandy broke in at No. 23 in this week’s AP Top 25. It is the second time that the Dores have been ranked under head coach Shea Ralph, as Vanderbilt came in at No. 24 in the USA Today/WBCA Coaches Poll after last season’s 15-1 start.
The Commodores have a 17-4 overall record this season and are 4-3 in SEC play. Vandy has won three-straight games and travels to Florida on Thursday for another conference road matchup. Tipoff against the Gators is set for 6 p.m. CT and will be streamed live on SEC Network+.
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