The No. 5 Vanderbilt Commodores defended their home court with a decisive 81-53 win over the Auburn Tigers.
After a rough start to SEC play, Auburn found its footing and entered this game with back-to-back conference wins. The Tigers were put to the test against the undefeated Commodores.
Auburn forced three turnovers early to stay in the game, but it couldn’t slow down the Commodores who had four different players score within the first five minutes.
The first quarter foul count was not in favor of the Tigers, as they had five to Vanderbilt’s one. Khady Leye found herself in foul trouble and accounted for two of Auburn’s fouls.
New to the SEC, Arek Angui’s layup would be the catalyst for the Tigers’ 6-0 run to start the second quarter.
As Auburn head coach Larry Vickers experimented with his lineup, the Tigers grabbed ten points off the bench this quarter.
Kaitlyn Duhon’s steal in the final seconds of the half led to a layup that brought Auburn within four. Auburn’s defense held the Commodores to 10 points in comparison to 23 points in the first quarter.
Despite A’riel Jackson scoring first out of the locker room, Vanderbilt quickly pulled away. In her fifth year at Vanderbilt, Shea Ralph hit coaching gold with both Mikayla Blakes and Aubrey Galvan.
The duo led Vanderbilt to an 18-2 run in the third quarter. Blakes contributed 7 points and Galvan was on her coattails with 6 points.
This run created a deficit that the Tigers struggled to overcome. Auburn was outrebounded and lost the battle of turnovers in the third quarter, putting them down 19.
In the fourth quarter, Mya Petticord would hit her third 3-pointer and remain the only Auburn Tiger to find success behind the arc.
Vanderbilt didn’t let its lead slip for the remainder of the game. The Commodores’ win kept their 20-game win streak alive and left Auburn still searching for its first conference road victory.
Auburn returns to Neville Arena for a matchup against Oklahoma on Sunday, Jan. 25. Tipoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.
