Vanderbilt WBB Gets Second Consecutive Top 10 Victory: The Anchor
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Vanderbilt women’s basketball continues to respond in big ways. The Commodores hosted No. 4 Texas Thursday night and came away with an emphatic 86-70 victory over the Longhorns.
It was a similar story to Vanderbilt’s last game when it took down No. 10 Oklahoma. Vanderbilt came ready to play and did not hold back the entire game. Once again, the Commodores came out guns ablazing shooting from the floor, opening up a 12-point lead by the end of the first quarter.
The second quarter was a little closer, but Vanderbilt’s defense continued to stand tall as it extended its lead to 47-30 going into halftime.
But what ultimately helped Vanderbilt bury Texas was how it started the second half. Vanderbilt got the third quarter started off with a 14-5 run that helped grow its lead to what turned out to be an insurmountable 26-point lead.
Texas did, however, throw some punches back at Vanderbilt, but it was too late. The Longhorns were only able to get Vanderbilt’s lead down to 12 points late in the game, and the Commodores hit free throws to close the game out. To what feels like nobody’s surprise, Vanderbilt guard Mikayla Blakes led the scoring with 34 points on 9-for-19 shooting and 3-for-6 from three-point land.
Aubrey Galvan, Sacha Washington and Ndjakalenga Mwenentanda all scored in double figures as well with 18, 10 and 11 points respectively. Vanderbilt shot 51 percent from the field and 47 percent from beyond the arc.
Despite losing the turnover battle, Vanderbilt’s hot shooting and strong defense made up for it. The Commodores held Texas to 38 percent from the floor and just 3-for-15 on threes. For Vanderbilt, Thursday night was a statement win. There were perhaps some doubters starting to speak up after the Commodores lost two in a row following a 20-0 start, but they have responded well to say the least.
With two home tests passed this week, Vanderbilt goes on the road to Georgia this weekend where it will look to make it five wins in a row. Vanderbilt and Georgia tipoff Sunday at 11 a.m. CT on SEC Network+.
Countdown to Vanderbilt’s 2026 Baseball Season Opener
0 days. College baseball returns today.
The Anchor: Friday, Feb. 13, 2026
- About 20 percent of Perfect Game’s Top 40 players for the 2026 high school class are committed to Vanderbilt. Some could bypass college and go to the draft, but the Commodores incoming recruiting class should be great.
- Vanderbilt baseball head coach Tim Corbin announced that the starters for Vanderbilt’s first three games this weekend are Connor Fennell, Austine Nye and Nate Taylor.
- Vanderbilt athletics had 87 athletes across all sports achieve SEC Academic Honor Roll for their performances in the classroom in the fall semester.
Thursday’s Commodores Results
Vanderbilt lacrosse beat Mercer 14-11.
Vanderbilt men’s tennis beat Belmont 7-0.
No. 5 Vanderbilt women’s basketball beat No. 4 Texas 86-70.
Friday’s Commodores Schedule
No. 23 Vanderbilt baseball vs. No. 10 TCU at the Shriner’s Children’s College Showdown (Arlington, Texas), 3 p.m. CT.
Vanderbilt women’s tennis vs. Austin Peay, 4 p.m. CT.
Vanderbilt track and field at the Music City Challenge, Day 1.
Commodores Quote of The Day
[On a loss to Vanderbilt off a missed free throw] "That's a terrible way to lose a game.”C.M. Newton
We’ll Leave You With This…
Third-straight 20 ball 😮💨
— Vanderbilt Men's Basketball (@VandyMBB) February 11, 2026
Tyler Tanner: good at basketball #AnchorDown⚓️⬇️ pic.twitter.com/PtHcC24Fge
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Graham Baakko is a writer for Vanderbilt Commodores On SI, primarily covering football, basketball and baseball. Graham is a recent graduate from the University of Alabama, where he wrote for The Crimson White, WVUA-FM, WVUA 23 as he covered a variety of Crimson Tide sports. He also covered South Carolina athletics as a sportswriting intern for GamecockCentral.