NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Vanderbilt women’s basketball team closed out the 2023-24 nonconference portion of its schedule on Sunday with an 80-53 victory over Radford at Memorial Gymnasium.
Vanderbilt got another balanced effort from the entire roster in the win over the Highlanders. A total of four Dores scored double-digit points in the victory, while every Vanderbilt player who played on Sunday scored in the victory.
Graduate student Jordyn Cambridge was electric on both sides of the floor. The Nashville, Tennessee, native scored a team-high 18 points, collected a season-high eight steals, and dished out a team-best five assists. It is the first time this season that Cambridge has had 15-plus points, 5-plus assists, and 5-plus steals in a game, while it is the third time in her career she has accomplished the feat.
The win over the Highlanders improves Vanderbilt’s overall record to 13-1 this season, tying the Commodores with the 2006-07 squad for the most wins prior to SEC play in school history.
Junior Sacha Washington nearly had a double-double against the Highlanders with a 12-point, 9-rebound effort. Fellow junior Iyana Moore and sophomore Justine Pissott, each scored 10 points in Sunday’s victory over Radford. Freshman Khamil Pierre tallied nine points and pulled down five rebounds in her first collegiate start, while sophomore Ryanne Allen provided eight points off the bench for the Dores.
The Commodores forced an opponent into 20-plus turnovers for the second-straight game, as Radford turned the ball over 24 times, which led to 30 points off turnovers for the Dores.
The two teams traded blows to open the game before Vanderbilt used a 16-0 run to take a 15-point lead at 22-7 after back-to-back layups from Cambridge. A 3-pointer by sophomore Ryanne Allen gave the Commodores a 17-point lead at 28-11, though Radford matched Allen’s trifecta with a 3-pointer to make it a 28-14 game at the end of the first quarter.
Vanderbilt maintained a double-digit lead throughout the second quarter, leading by as many as 18 points. The Highlanders converted an old-fashioned 3-point play right before the halftime buzzer sounded, as Vanderbilt took a 45-32 lead into the locker room.
The Commodores opened the third stanza on a 15-2 run to take a commanding 26-point lead at 60-34. Vanderbilt took a game-high 32-point lead after a Washington layup made it a 77-45 game with 5:46 left in the game. The Commodores maintained a 20-plus lead for the remainder of the game, as Vanderbilt collected a 27-point victory to close out nonconference play.
Head Coach Shea Ralph on the Win
“I’m very happy for my team and with my team that we are continuing to work on getting better. As we move into conference play, you want to be challenged but also have a good level of confidence. During the nonconference, we were challenged a lot, and we were able to do some things that gives us a lot of confidence moving forward. I’m really excited to turn the page on this calendar year and go into next year and see what this team can accomplish in 2024.”
Up Next
The Commodores open SEC play next week, as Vanderbilt will travel to Starkville, Mississippi, to take on Mississippi State. Tipoff against the Bulldogs is set for 6:30 p.m. and will stream live on SEC Network+.
Dore Notes
- Vanderbilt improves to 13-1 after today’s win, tying the school record of 13 nonconference wins before opening conference play. The only other time in program history was during the 2006-07 season.
- The Commodores move to 3-0 all-time vs. Radford.
- Vanderbilt is now 9-0 at home this season and the Commodores have now won 11-straight games against nonconference teams.
- The Commodores are now 33-12 against nonconference teams under head coach Shea Ralph.
- Jordyn Cambridge finished 18 points, five assists and a career-best eight steals marking just the third time in her career with 15+points/5+assists/5+ rebounds, first of the season.
- Graduate student Jordyn Cambridge’s 18-point effort marks her 44th career game with double-digit points.
- Cambridge’s eight steals ties her with Sacha Washington for the most steals in a game this season (8 on 12.3.23 vs. Louisiana Tech)
- Cambridge now has 298 career steals and is 40 steals away from setting the program’s all-time steals record by passing Deborah Denton (338, 1986-89)
- Khamil Pierre registered her first career start, finishing with nine points, five rebounds, three assists, and one block.
- Vanderbilt’s largest lead came at the 5:46 mark in the fourth quarter, 77-45.
- For the fifth time this season, the Commodores had four players score at least 10 points.
- Vanderbilt only allowed seven Radford points in the third quarter, marking the third consecutive game the Commodores held their opponent to under 10 points in the third frame.
- The Commodores finished with 17 steals, marking a team-high this season. Cambridge led the way with eight steals while Washington and Bella LaChance each added three.
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