Vanderbilt demolished Texas 86-70 Thursday night at Memorial Gymnasium, and the aftershocks are still reverberating through the NCAA Tournament seeding picture. For the first time this season, the top line of the bracket is in flux.
The Commodores’ 16-point rout represented the Longhorns’ largest loss since last season’s Final Four. It was also the first top-five matchup on West End since 1995, and Shea Ralph’s program looked every bit worthy of the stage.
Mikayla Blakes Writing Her Own Legend in Nashville
Mikayla Blakes dropped 34 points on the nation’s top-ranked defense. That’s her fourth consecutive game with at least 30 points, making her one of only two players in the last 15 years to string together such a run against ranked opponents.
The sophomore guard, who leads the nation in scoring at 26.2 points per game, attacked Texas relentlessly. She shot 9-for-19 from the floor as part of Vanderbilt’s team effort that saw the Commodores connect at a 50.9% clip, went 50% from three, and got to the line 15 times, making 13.
Aubrey Galvan added 18 points and eight rebounds, giving Vanderbilt’s backcourt 52 combined points against a Longhorns team that had one of the most dominant defenses in SEC play.
Texas coach Vic Schaefer didn’t mince words afterward.
“We have no heart,” Schaefer told reporters. “We’re not tough. It’s probably the softest team I’ve had in years.”
The Commodores (24-2, 10-2 SEC) have now beaten three consecutive top-25 opponents. Their wins over LSU, Michigan, Kentucky, Oklahoma, and now Texas have erased any doubts about whether this program belongs among the elite. ESPN’s bracketology now projects Vanderbilt as a No. 1 seed, unseating Texas after the Thursday night beatdown.
The Longhorns (23-3, 8-3 SEC) face an immediate gut-check. They travel to Tennessee Sunday afternoon, where a young Lady Vols squad will be eager to salvage a brutal stretch after what South Carolina did to them last weekend.
About that.
South Carolina Remains the Team to Beat
While Vanderbilt was dismantling Texas in Nashville, South Carolina spent the week reinforcing why the Gamecocks remain the SEC’s best. Dawn Staley’s team crushed Tennessee 93-50 last Sunday in Columbia, the worst loss in Lady Vols program history. South Carolina shot 69.2% from the field and put all five starters in double figures. It was their largest margin of victory ever against a ranked opponent.
The Gamecocks (24-2, 10-1 SEC) sit alone atop the conference standings. Their only regulation losses this season came by two points to Texas in a non-conference game in Las Vegas in November and in overtime to Oklahoma in January. They’ve won nine straight against Tennessee.
Tonight, Staley takes her team to Baton Rouge for a Valentine’s Day showdown with LSU. The Tigers (22-3, 8-3 SEC) have dropped to No. 6 in the AP Poll after losing at Texas earlier this month. Kim Mulkey’s squad features former Gamecock MiLaysia Fulwiley, adding another layer to what has become one of the sport’s fiercest rivalries.
South Carolina has won 17 consecutive meetings against LSU. A loss tonight would change the entire seeding conversation in Baton Rouge’s favor. A Gamecock win would all but cement their grip on the SEC regular-season title with three weeks remaining.
NCAA Tournament Seeding Picture Grows Complicated
The bracket math is getting complicated. UConn remains undefeated and holds the top overall seed. UCLA has compiled an impressive resume with multiple Quad-1 wins. South Carolina has the resume and the eye test working in its favor.
But Vanderbilt just announced itself as a legitimate threat to crash the party. With five games remaining, including road trips to Georgia and Alabama, the Commodores control their own destiny. Win out, and no selection committee can deny them.
Texas, meanwhile, has work to do just to stay on the top line. The Longhorns still possess one of the conference’s best defenses and a likely National Player of the Year candidate in Madison Booker, who scored 20 in the loss. But Schaefer knows the issues run deeper than one bad night.
“It translates from practices,” he said. “My fault. I’ll wear it. It stops now.”
Selection Sunday is March 15. The SEC Tournament begins March 4 in Greenville. And as of this weekend, nothing about seeding in the deepest women’s basketball conference in America is settled.