FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The Vanderbilt women’s basketball team collected a clutch 62-53 road win at Arkansas on Sunday to give the Commodores their 20th victory of the 2023-24 season.
The Commodores had to overcome a slow start that saw them shoot 18.8 percent through the first two quarters of play. The Dores shot a blistering 51.9 percent in the second half to seal the nine-point victory. Vanderbilt converted at the free throw line, as the Dores shot 86 percent from the free throw line in the win, hitting 18-of-21 from the charity stripe.
Graduate student Jordyn Oliver led a trio of double-digit scorers for the Commodores, as she registered 12 points. Juniors Sacha Washington and Iyana Moore followed. Washington scored 11 points to go along with eight rebounds, while Moore tallied 10 points. Vanderbilt had six players score seven or more points against Arkansas.
The victory over Arkansas gave the Commodores their 20th win of the season, as Vanderbilt is now 20-8 overall this season. It is the first time since the 2012-13 season that Vandy has won 20 games in a season. Meanwhile, the Dores get back to .500 in SEC play, as Vanderbilt now holds a 7-7 mark in league games.
Vandy was plus-15 on the glass against the Razorbacks, as the Dores held a 46-31 edge over Arkansas in rebounds. Washington and graduate student Jordyn Cambridge pulled down eight rebounds a piece.
Cambridge dished out a game-high four assists, as she moved into the top 10 of Vanderbilt’s career assists lists. Cambridge now sits in 10th place on the list, as she now has 413 career assists.
How It Happened
Vanderbilt used a 6-0 run in the early stages of the opening quarter to take a 6-3 lead. Arkansas took a brief 8-6 advantage at the 3:14 mark, but the Commodores responded with another 6-0 spurt to take a 12-8 lead. The Razorbacks got a jump shot to end the frame, as Vandy held onto a 12-10 lead after 10 minutes of play.
Freshman Aiyana Mitchell nailed a jumper to get the second stanza started, but Arkansas would go on to score seven-straight points after that to take a 17-14 lead that forced Vanderbilt to call a timeout at the 5:25 mark. Sophomore Ryanne Allen drilled a 3-pointer from the wing to knot the game back up 17-all. Sophomore Jada Brown, who grew up in nearby Bentonville, Arkansas, hit a trifecta from the corner that gave the Dores a 20-17 lead. Vanderbilt extended its advantage out to 24-20 thanks to a quartet of free throws. Arkansas hit a 55-foot shot right…