Mikayla Blakes Sets NCAA Freshman Record As Vanderbilt Wins Fourth Straight Game

Mikayla Blakes set a new scoring record as the Vanderbilt Commodores earned their fourth straight win.
Vanderbilt guard Mikayla Blakes (1)
Vanderbilt guard Mikayla Blakes (1) / Andrew Nelles / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
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Both Vanderbilt basketball programs are enjoying successful seasons on the hardwood, and the women kept things rolling for themselves on Thursday.

Vanderbilt (18-4, 5-3 SEC) won their fourth straight contest by beating Florida (11-1, 2-6) in a high-scoring, 99-86, contest.

That would be burying the lead, though.

Mikayla Blakes, Vanderbilt's superstar freshman, broke the NCAA's freshman scoring record in this game by scoring 53 points, going 16-for-24 from the field, 5-for-9 from 3-point range and 16-for-18 from the free-throw line.

That eclipsed the 51-point mark that USC phenom JuJu Watkins set in February 2024.

This also was the most points ever scored for the Vanderbilt women's basketball program, breaking the mark set by her teammate Khamil Pierre when she scored 42 points against Evansville on Dec. 14 earlier this campaign.

As far as the game is concerned, things began in a back-and-forth affair, with both teams trading baskets which created multiple ties and lead changes. No team was able to grab a real advantage until the Gators got a bit of separation when they took a 14-10 lead with under three minutes remaining.

Vanderbilt was able to close strong, though, finishing the period on a 9-2 run that gave them a 19-16 lead at the first break.

That was all the Commodores needed to earn a victory in this one.

They completely dominated the second quarter, scoring 27 points while holding the Gators to 10, which allowed them to enter the locker room with a 20-point advantage.

Vanderbilt never relinquished the lead, and while Florida caught fire in the second half to the tune of 60 total points across the third and fourth quarters, it wasn't enough to knock off the ranked Commodores.

It did get a little interesting in the fourth quarter, though.

The Gators opened on a 7-0 run to cut the lead to 12 points. They kept chipping away and got their deficit to 10 with 5:53 left in the contest, and even got it to eight a minute later.

But, Vanderbilt was never really in danger, and they kept scoring the ball at a high rate on their own to secure this victory.

Much of that was powered by Blakes' record-setting performance, but she had some help from Iyana Moore who finished with 22 points.

Outside of those two, there wasn't much scoring done with no one else reaching double figures.

Still, games are won as a team, and the Commodores were able to turn in a good all-around performance.

They shot 53.1% from the field (34-64) and 52.4% from deep (11-21), forcing 18 turnovers and scoring 31 points off those mistakes.

Vanderbilt will return home after back-to-back road games to face Ole Miss (14-6, 5-3) on Feb. 2 in an important contest since both teams are near the top of conference standings.

Tip is scheduled for 3 p.m. ET with the game broadcasted on SEC Network+.


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