Lady Toppers Fall in Close Battle at Vanderbilt
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — WKU women’s basketball dropped a close fought battle at Vanderbilt on Wednesday night. The Lady Toppers were down three with the ball in the final seconds of the game, but WKU’s game-tying shot fell short, ending the game in a 77-74 loss.
Alexis Mead led the way for the Red and White, going for a season high 20 points, six assists, and a pair of steals. Mead was 8-of-10 from the field, including 3-of-5 from three. Acacia Hayes put up 19 points, splashing a career high five threes. Aaliyah Pitts led the team on the boards, crashing five, all on the defensive end. She also added seven of the team’s 15 bench points.
WKU made a season high 12 3-pointers in the contest, going 12-of-32 from beyond the arc. The Lady Toppers shot 45.6 percent from the field, the best mark of the season and the best since shooting 47.3 percent against UAB in the Conference USA tournament last season. On the flip side, WKU had season lows in free throw attempts (12), rebounds (29) and steals (8).
Mead and the Lady Toppers took the opening tip, but the Commodores were first to scratch in the scoring column. Mead followed that with a triple giving WKU a 3-2 lead with 8:33 left in the quarter. Vanderbilt took the lead back with a three of their own. WKU didn’t regain the lead until Mead hit a jumper giving WKU an 8-7 lead with 6:06 in the frame. With 3:07 left, Teresa Faustino poked away the Lady Toppers first steal of the night. Aaliyah Pitts denied a Commodore layup and turned defense into offense with a three from Acacia Hayes, cutting the deficit to two, 18-16, with just over a minute left. The Red and White drained four threes in the period, with Hayes leading the way with two, good for six points.
Alexis Mead nailed the first basket of the second quarter with a triple from the left wing giving WKU a 19-18 edge. The Lady Toppers were held scoreless for nearly three minutes, giving Vanderbilt room to take a 6-point lead off a 7-0 run forcing WKU to take timeout with 6:23 until the half. Out of the media break, Caitlin Staley recorded her first points of the night snapping the scoreless drought. After a defensive stand, the Lady Toppers cut the margin to two off a pull-up jumper from Mead with 4:33 left. Josie Gilvin forced Vanderbilt into its 13th turnover of the night with Hayes cashing in on the other end with a pair of free throws, knotting things up at 28. Vanderbilt took a 31-28 lead into the half after hitting a triple at the buzzer.
Staley struck first in the third quarter with a post move, cutting the deficit to one. Faustino’s first points of the night tied the game at 33 with 9:01 left in the period. After Pitts hit a pair from the charity stripe, the Commodores went on an 11-0 run, holding WKU scoreless for over three minutes. A triple from Josie Gilvin, her first of the night, ended the run and brought the Lady Toppers within 10 with 4:30 left in the third. Staley’s second block and a Hayes three in transition cut the margin down to five out of the media stoppage. The tenth Lady Topper three of the night, this time by Mead, cut the Vanderbilt lead down to two, 49-47. With 1:19 to play in the frame, Staley went up strong, drawing the contact, and connecting on the and-one opportunity, tying things at 50. A triple from Hayes from the deep right wing gave the Red and White their first lead of the half, 53-52. Vanderbilt regained the lead before the quarter break off a lay-in.
A Commodore triple kicked off the scoring in the final frame. A layup from Odeth Betancourt cut the margin to two, but Vanderbilt knocked another three down, their sixth of the night, taking a five-point lead with 8:32 left. Off a missed three, Karris Allen found an open lane and nailed one from mid-range cutting the margin down, 52-48. With five minutes left, Karris Allen once again found an open lane, tying the game at 63. The Commodores responded with back-to-back triples, forcing WKU into a timeout with 4:13 left. Hayes poked one away and with 2:34 left, Mead got a layup off the fast break. Allen grabbed a board off a missed shot and found Mead for a contested layup, drawing contact forcing Vanderbilt to call timeout. She connected on the free throw cutting the margin to two, 70-68 with 2:15 left. The Commodores then hit a three on the other end, but the Lady Toppers battled back with a jumper from Allen, making it 73-70 with 1:26 to play. Betancourt went up strong on the block, finding the bottom of the net and cutting the deficit to one with 39 seconds left. Following a tipped ball out of bounds, the Lady Toppers were forced to foul with 13 seconds remaining. Vanderbilt hit both to take a 75-72 lead. With 3.5 left, Mead found an open lane, cutting the margin to one again. WKU used its final timeout, down 77-74 with 2.2 left. Mead found Allen for one last shot, which was off the mark as the Commodores handed the Lady Toppers their first loss of the season.
The Lady Toppers will be back in action Saturday at Miami (Ohio). Tip-off is set for noon (CT).
