Vanderbilt 2025 | Page 5 | The Boneyard

Vanderbilt 2025

HuskyFan1125 said:
Johnson or Jones would be guess.
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That’s actually two anchor down announcements. My guess is that you’re right…and you’re right. The first gif is from October 18, and the “another great day” is from yesterday.
 
If you're looking for some basketball, Vandy will be in Memphis tonight for an exhibition game against the Memphis Tigers.

I don’t know what to expect, so let’s start with what I do know: The Hoops for St. Judes Tipoff will be played at 6:30 p.m. EDT at the FedEx Forum and will be televised nationally on ESPNU. That’s a lot of attention on an exhibition game where the result and stats do not officially count.

Can’t say I expect a pretty, free-flowing game. You have one team (Memphis) with virtually a brand new roster that is trying to set its culture for the upcoming season and another team with only one starter returning, a freshman point guard and, for the most part, an untested bench.

Sounds like a recipe for a ragged game, but I’m OK with that. I’m just happy to finally have some basketball and am prepared to offer grace if my team doesn’t look quite as good as I had hoped.

My biggest curiosities? How Aubrey Galvan, Justine Pissott and Ndjakalenga Mwenentanda look, and can we rebound? I expect some difficulty on offense while everyone learns their roles.

I'm assuming the Commodores went down by bus early this morning. Nothing like a four-hour bus ride to get you ready for a basketball game. (That's my preemptive excuse in case it's needed).

vucommodores.com

Hooping for a Cause

No. 19/21-ranked Vanderbilt takes on Memphis in an exhibition contest for the 2025
vucommodores.com vucommodores.com
 
YoDore said:
If you're looking for some basketball, Vandy will be in Memphis tonight for an exhibition game against the Memphis Tigers.

I don’t know what to expect, so let’s start with what I do know: The Hoops for St. Judes Tipoff will be played at 6:30 p.m. EDT at the FedEx Forum and will be televised nationally on ESPNU. That’s a lot of attention on an exhibition game where the result and stats do not officially count.

Can’t say I expect a pretty, free-flowing game. You have one team (Memphis) with virtually a brand new roster that is trying to set its culture for the upcoming season and another team with only one starter returning, a freshman point guard and, for the most part, an untested bench.

Sounds like a recipe for a ragged game, but I’m OK with that. I’m just happy to finally have some basketball and am prepared to offer grace if my team doesn’t look quite as good as I had hoped.

My biggest curiosities? How Aubrey Galvan, Justine Pissott and Ndjakalenga Mwenentanda look, and can we rebound? I expect some difficulty on offense while everyone learns their roles.

I'm assuming the Commodores went down by bus early this morning. Nothing like a four-hour bus ride to get you ready for a basketball game. (That's my preemptive excuse in case it's needed).

vucommodores.com

Hooping for a Cause

No. 19/21-ranked Vanderbilt takes on Memphis in an exhibition contest for the 2025
vucommodores.com vucommodores.com
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I'm watching and loving it. About an hour behind so I'm still in the first quarter. This is who I thought Justine Pissot was coming out of hs like 3 l years ago. I know she's transfered and been through some hardships but it's good to see her hooping. I like how they lost their best big but somehow are still huge and aren't starting a traditional center. The sec is loaded but I still like the team. And I like how they start a bunch of experienced players up front, underclassmen in the backcourt.
Update: Pissot kinda came back to earth. Missed some bunnies and open looks but I still like her game overall. I thought similarly Mwenentanda was a bit up and down. I really like her as well. But she had some ill advised shots and freshman fouls. Honestly, I thought there second best player was Aubrey Galvan, the freshman point guard. She had a lot of great passes, she handled the athleticism and pressure of Memphis pretty well. That being said Memphis was kinda impressive. I thought Vandy was going to blow them out by 30 but after the first quarter it felt like an even game. Blakes is awesome. Plays both sides. Would've had more assist if her teammates made shots.
Update: Blake's ends with 40. I think Pissot had 10 assist which was great. They dominated the 4th quarter. There was a del Rosario sighting which was cool. And Sacha Washington may have just needed a half, she was definitely there second best player and looked like the player fans probably remember. Anyways I think they'll be a top 25 team. Blakes gets it. And she's just really good and I think they have enough pieces around her.
 
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jdote33 said:
I'm watching and loving it. About an hour behind so I'm still in the first quarter. This is who I thought Justine Pissot was coming out of hs like 3 l years ago. I know she's transfered and been through some hardships but it's good to see her hooping. I like how they lost their best big but somehow are still huge and aren't starting a traditional center. The sec is loaded but I still like the team. And I like how they start a bunch of experienced players up front, underclassmen in the backcourt
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I agree, jdote33. I watched the entire game - very impressed with the team Shea has put together. Blakes is the real deal - not just a great shooter, but very aware of everything going on the court. Plays with a calm demeanor and with a speed and quickness that allows her to stay a second ahead of the play - consistently. Sacha Washington is back, and played like she was waiting for over a year to get back on the court - intense and relentless.

Vandy fans should have a lot of fun following this team!
 
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YKCornelius said:
I agree, jdote33. I watched the entire game - very impressed with the team Shea has put together. Blakes is the real deal - not just a great shooter, but very aware of everything going on the court. Plays with a calm demeanor and with a speed and quickness that allows her to stay a second ahead of the play - consistently. Sacha Washington is back, and played like she was waiting for over a year to get back on the court - intense and relentless.

Vandy fans should have a lot of fun following this team!
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I got the ragged ball I predicted in the second and third quarters, but Shea was wisely doing a lot of mix and match with the lineup. It wasn't that any particular reserve was playing badly, there just was no rhythm, and they wound up with 14 first-half turnovers.

Then, Aubrey Galvan went out for the rest of the game with a twisted ankle late in the first half, and Ndjakalenga Mwenentanda took a hard fall and left the game late in the third, and Justine Pissott was sidelined with four fouls. Still, they managed to hang on and had a 10-point lead with eight minutes left in the game.

Then, they exploded and went on a 37-11 run in the final eight minutes led by Blakes. The Commodores outscored the Tigers 42-15 in the fourth quarter.

Blakes had 40 on 12 of 20 shooting, 5 of 10 from three and 11-13 at the free throw line. Sacha Washington and Justine Pissott had double-doubles as Sacha scored 22 and grabbed 11 rebounds. Justine, who got off to a hot start with eight points early, wound up with 11 points and 10 assists. Most impressively, she played 38 minutes and did not seem to tire. Believe me, that's new. Last season, she would give you a good three or four minutes then be bent over grabbing her shorts. Shea said she worked extremely hard on her conditioning and nutrition this off season, and it showed.

My biggest worry coming out of the game is injuries. Galvan's ankle turn looked nasty, the classic "come down on an opponents foot" and completely turn it sideways. Hopefully, she'll be luck and it's not as bad as it looks. If it is, it's hard to imagine her being effective a week from today. I thought she was very dynamic at the point and already seems to have great chemistry with Blakes.

Blakes was superb. I don't know what else to say about her.

 
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Coach Ralph and Mikayla Blakes speak to media after Memphis exhibition

 
YoDore said:
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Mikayla playing off the ball this year is going to special. Her speed, precision of cuts, and being able to stop on a dime and elevate is extremely impressive. I imagine she would be very difficult to face guard.

Hopefully the little freshman playmaker recovers quickly and fully from her sprained ankle, because the two of them together are going to be very difficult to contain. Both appear to be superb passers, and demonstrate constant energy and motion.
 
Just watched the Vandy/Memphis game on replay.

Blakes is so good. Looking for a great sophomore campaign from her.

But man…that PG Galvan?!?? She was a real treat to watch. Hope she recovers from that ankle injury.

My only concern for Vandy is the post play. Washington is so undersized. Need some help there.

Pissott looks majorly improved!!!
 
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Vandy had a recent official visit from Sther Ubaska, a 6'2 class of '26 player from Brazil. She's a 4-star propsect who plays at DME in Florida. The Dores are also in on 6'4 Jhai Johnson, the #35 Hoopgurlz player from California. There is room on the roster for both if it works out that way.

 
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Not a great first half for the ‘Dores… losing 33-31 while shooting a not so great 12-34 but 5-13 (keeping them in the game). Cal is not any better with 12-37 and 3-10 but with a big edge on rebounding 28-20. I know it’s the first games of the season but 4 teams at 30% from the floor? That’s…not…good
 
DefenseBB said:
Not a great first half for the ‘Dores… losing 33-31 while shooting a not so great 12-34 but 5-13 (keeping them in the game). Cal is not any better with 12-37 and 3-10 but with a big edge on rebounding 28-20. I know it’s the first games of the season but 4 teams at 30% from the floor? That’s…not…good
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How about now? Not sure how, but they must have gotten word about this feedback overseas. I'm sure our friend @YoDore is appreciative of it.😉
 
Vandy on a 23-7 run and leads 58-44. This freshman point guard Aubrey Galvan is good, really good.

And for the UConn fans, Aga Makurat is on Vandy and playing, a 6’3” guard…
 
Vandy won 74-65 and looked much better in the 2nd half. Blakes had 27 though a rather inefficient 9/27 and 2/9 and the PG freshman Aubrey Galvan was similar inefficient earning her 7 pts on 3/14 and 1/4 though she did have 9 rebounds and 7 assists (3 turnovers). Blakes efficiency score was 13.0 and Galvan was 12.0.

Cal actually looked ok considering they were picked 12th in the ACC this year. They should finish much better than that.
 
A far from flawless performance to start the season, but Vandy’s 74-65 win over Cal in the Oui Play event in Paris, France did have its high points. First and foremost, it’s a win over a decent P4 team away from home. Most teams are opening their seasons against various versions of The Little Sisters of the Poor, which is what Vandy usually does, so it’s good to pass the test against a better level of opponent.

A few highlights:
* The shocker of the day was a double-double (12 pts, 10 reb) from 6'4 reserve post Aiyana Mitchell. Add to that 3 assists, 3 steals and 3 blocks. She’s starting her junior season and has never had a performance like that. She runs like a deer, can jump and has shown at least some skill in the paint. But, she never seemed to assert herself or even seem interested in doing so. Hopefully, this a a sign of things to come. I suspect voodoo.

* Freshman point guard Aubrey Galvan arrived with a bang, even though she, normally a very good shooter, shot it poorly Monday (3 of 14, 1 of 4). To go along with 7 points, she had 9 rebounds, 7 assists and 3 steals and controlled the pace of the game. She’s fun to watch.

* Sacha Washington looked good in her first game back after missing all of last season. She had 10 points and 8 rebounds to go along with 4 steals and 2 assists.

* A 17-0 run covering roughly 4:30 of the third quarter pretty much settled matters. When the run ended, it was 54-37.

I’m hoping to turn over a new leaf this year. Instead of sweating the details, I’d like to adopt a “just win baby” attitude. We’ll see how that goes. Even if I manage to rehab my attitude, it’s still fair to point to some negatives to help understamnd the game. A couple from the season opener:

1) An all-round poor shooting performance (39%--27% beyond the arc). It’s possible Mikayla Blakes has had games where she shot as badly as she did Monday, but I don’t remember them. She was 9 of 27 and 2 of 9. Her shot never looked comfortable. Still, 27 points on a bad-shooting day is not bad.

2) A sluggish start that included giving up eight offensive rebounds in the first quarter. Even so, it was a tie game after one quarter, and Vandy was only down two at the half. The explosive third quarter smoothed over a lot of rough edges.
 
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YoDore said:
A far from flawless performance to start the season, but Vandy’s 74-65 win over Cal in the Oui Play event in Paris, France did have its high points. First and foremost, it’s a win over a decent P4 team away from home. Most teams are opening their seasons against various versions of The Little Sisters of the Poor, which is what Vandy usually does, so it’s good to pass the test against a better level of opponent.

A few highlights:
* The shocker of the day was a double-double (12 pts, 10 reb) from 6'4 reserve post Aiyana Mitchell. Add to that 3 assists, 3 steals and 3 blocks. She’s starting her junior season and has never had a performance like that. She runs like a deer, can jump and has shown at least some skill in the paint. But, she never seemed to assert herself or even seem interested in doing so. Hopefully, this a a sign of things to come. I suspect voodoo.

* Freshman point guard Aubrey Galvan arrived with a bang, even though she, normally a very good shooter, shot it poorly Monday (3 of 14, 1 of 4). To go along with 7 points, she had 9 rebounds, 7 assists and 3 steals and controlled the pace of the game. She’s fun to watch.

* Sacha Washington looked good in her first game back after missing all of last season. She had 10 points and 8 rebounds to go along with 4 steals and 2 assists.

* A 17-0 run covering roughly 4:30 of the third quarter pretty much settled matters. When the run ended, it was 54-37.

I’m hoping to turn over a new leaf this year. Instead of sweating the details, I’d like to adopt a “just win baby” attitude. We’ll see how that goes. Even if I manage to rehab my attitude, it’s still fair to point to some negatives to help understamnd the game. A couple from the season opener:

1) An all-round poor shooting performance (39%--27% beyond the arc). It’s possible Mikayla Blakes has had games where she shot as badly as she did Monday, but I don’t remember them. She was 9 of 27 and 2 of 9. Her shot never looked comfortable. Still, 27 points on a bad-shooting day is not bad.

2) A sluggish start that included giving up eight offensive rebounds in the first quarter. Even so, it was a tie game after one quarter, and Vandy was only down two at the half. The explosive third quarter smoothed over a lot of rough edges.
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Mitchell also caught my eye yesterday. Wasn't aware that she hadn't had much impact on the team until now.

With respect to voodoo, if this is the result.........to paraphrase Cole Porter, "Coach Ralph, do do that voodoo that you do so well". 😉
 
YoDore said:
It's early, but this is my favorite photo of the season so far.

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I dabble in photography and shots like these always catch my eye. Love what sports photography can capture in a split second.
 
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