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ATLANTA – The Atlanta Tipoff Club and Naismith Awards announced on Tuesday that Vanderbilt women’s basketball standouts Mikayla Blakes and Khamil Pierre were selected to the 2025 Jersey Mike’s Naismith Trophy Women’s College Player of the Year Midseason Team.

It is the first Jersey Mike’s Naismith Trophy Women’s College Player of the Year Midseason Team selection for both players. It is the second national player of the year watch list that features the Nation’s Best Duo, as Blakes and Pierre were each named to the 2025 USBWA Ann Meyers Drysdale National Player of the Year Award on Feb. 3.

Additionally, Blakes was named to the John R. Wooden Late Midseason Top 20 watch list on Tuesday, while Pierre was selected to the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year watch list on Feb. 5.

Blakes and Pierre are two of 30 players named to the Jersey Mike’s Naismith Trophy Women’s College Player of the Year Midseason Team, while they are two of 11 SEC players on the team. Blakes is one of two freshmen and Pierre is one of six sophomores represented. Click the link here to view the entire team.

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, and Pierre’s 21.2 points per contest rank 11th in the country.

Pierre has taken one of the biggest leaps forward of any player nationwide this season, improving her scoring average by 12.3 points from her freshman campaign. The sophomore is putting up 21.2 points and 10.0 rebounds per game this season, making her the only player in the country to average over 20.0 points and 10.0 rebounds. She currently ranks fourth in all of NCAA Division I in field goals made with 203 and 11th in double-doubles with 12. The 6-2 forward ranks in the top 15 nationally in seven categories. Pierre is the only NCAA Division I player ranked in the top 15 in scoring (11th; 21.2 ppg) and steals per game (13th; 3.09).

The Phoenix, Arizona, native has scored 20-plus points in 14 contests 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 at Vandy since 1999-00, two shy of Ashley Earley’s 14 double-doubles during the 2004-05 campaign. Her 71 steals are second in the SEC and ranks 12th in the country.

Pierre had one of the most memorable performances in Vanderbilt women’s basketball history on Dec. 14 in the 106-40 win over Evansville. She posted 42 points, 18 rebounds, and eight steals in the win over the Purple Aces. She is the only Commodore to collect a combined 60 points and rebounds in a game. At the time, Pierre’s 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. Pierre has twice been named SEC Player of the Week this season, and she was named to the USBWA National Players of the Week team on Dec. 17.

Blakes is making a strong case for national freshman of the year consideration, as she leads all NCAA Division I freshmen in scoring (22.1 ppg), points scored (531), and field goals made (180). The guard ranks in the top five among freshmen nationally in free throw percentage (3rd; 86.2%), steals (t-3rd; 58), made 3-point field goals (4th; 53), and steals per game (4th, 2.42). Blakes has scored 20-plus points in 15 games this season, which leads all NCAA frosh, and she is the only freshman nationally to score 33-plus points in multiple games this season.

The Somerset, New Jersey, native set the SEC single-game and NCAA true freshman single-game scoring records on Jan. 30 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.

The guard has been selected as the USBWA Tamika Catchings National Freshman of the Week three times, while she has been named the SEC Freshman of the Week a league-high six times. Blakes’ six SEC weekly frosh awards are the most won by a Dore in school history.

The Jersey Mike’s Naismith Trophy Women’s College Player of the Year Midseason Team is compiled by the Atlanta Tipoff Club’s board of selectors, which based its criteria on player performances from the 2024-25 college basketball season. The Naismith Trophy will be awarded later this season at the 2025 NCAA Women’s Final Four in Tampa, Fla.

The Commodores return to Memorial Gymnasium Thursday, as Vanderbilt welcomes Mississippi State to the Music City. Tipoff against the Bulldogs is set for 8 p.m. and airs live on SEC Network. Fans can click here to purchase tickets to Thursday’s contest.

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