The No. 7 Michigan women’s basketball is used to running teams out of the gym. Feeding off other teams’ turnovers, the Wolverines’ transition offense often dictates the pace and tone of the game.
But in a rare January out-of-conference contest, No. 5 Vanderbilt (19-0) blitzed Michigan (15-3) early, beating the Wolverines at their own game en route to a 72-69 victory.
The first half was a game of runs. After a mostly even start, a 10-0 stretch from the Commodores gave them an eight-point lead. Representative of the first half, many of Vanderbilt’s runs garnered more points and had a longer duration.
Although Commodores guard and SEC leading scorer Mikayla Blakes is often the focal point of its offense, the bulk of their production came elsewhere in the first half. Vanderbilt guard Justine Pissott drained three 3-pointers during the first quarter and the rest of the squad finished an efficient 7-for-14 from deep in the first half.
And while the Commodores looked comfortable breaking the press and found the open man for an easy bucket, Michigan sped itself up when faced with on-ball pressure. Despite averaging just 14 turnovers per game, the Wolverines coughed up the ball 11 times in the first half alone. The Commodores racked up 17 points off turnovers to Michigan’s six. Running in transition and banging 3-pointers, Vanderbilt took a 47-30 lead into halftime.
It’s hard to overstate how crushing the turnovers were for the Wolverines. Michigan was forced to play from behind and out of system — and it showed.
To its benefit, Michigan had been in this position before. In a neutral-site game against No. 1 Connecticut, the Wolverines found themselves down big at halftime. But thanks to an 18-to-4 third-quarter run, Michigan crawled back into the game.
The Wolverines looked more settled coming out of the break, but couldn’t match the defensive dominance that they had against the Huskies. Sophomore guard Syla Swords’ three 3-pointers opened the third quarter, but the Commodores largely matched the pace.
Still, the Wolverines punched back in the third quarter. Swords started to heat up and sophomore guard and Michigan’s leading scorer Olivia Olson pitched in eight points. And more importantly, the Wolverines turned the ball over just three times.
Despite carrying a double-digit deficit into the fourth quarter, Michigan got back into its system; it ripped down offensive rebounds and flustered the Commodores to start the fourth. Tearing off a 14-2 run in the fourth, the Wolverines scratched and clawed their way back from a twenty-point deficit.
But down the stretch, Vanderbilt went on a run of its own. Just like the first half, Michigan looked sped up, missed open layups and lost battles on the glass. The Wolverines’ two-point deficit ballooned to eight with just two minutes left.
Still, Michigan battled.
Swords hit a quick midrange and senior guard Brooke Quarles Daniels picked Blakes’ pocket for an open layup. The Wolverines were down just two. And forcing a stop on the Commodores’ last possession, they had the last possession and a chance to win.
They got the look — Olson was wide open at the top of the key. But as her 3-pointer clanged off the rim and harmlessly fell out of bounds, and Vanderbilt was able to outlast Michigan, 72-69.
