NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The UWG women's basketball team fell in the final game before the break on Saturday, falling 103-68 to Vanderbilt on the road in Nashville.
West Georgia (5-5) was outsized by the SEC opponent, but had some bright spots against Vanderbilt (12-1), who is becoming one of the hottest teams in the country at the end of the non-conference schedule.
"I'm really proud of the team's effort. It took us a little bit to settle in at the beginning of the game, but once we got settled in, we were fine," said head coach Joanna Reitz. "We did a good job in the second half, and we had 20 turnovers at halftime. We only had six in the second half, so we got that cleaned up and I'm really proud of our effort on the offensive boards. 18 offensive rebounds against Vanderbilt is a great effort."
The Wolves had a 10 rebound deficit as Vandy had 51, but the 18 offensive boards were a positive number against a much bigger SEC opponent.
UWG placed three in double-figures, led by a career-high 15 from Sydne Tolbert. Amanda Blake and Becca Ledford each had 10 in the loss.
"We scored 68 points against Vanderbilt, and the only two teams that have scored more against them were Michigan State and Miami," Reitz added.
Vandy scored the opening 15 points of the game before Grace O'Gara hit a three-pointer to put UWG on the board. The Wolves hung in there, eventually getting the deficit to 10 by the end of the opening quarter.
The Commodores flexed their muscles in the second, holding the Wolves to under 30 percent from the field while outscoring UWG 35-13 to lead 59-27 at the halftime break.
In the third, UWG's offense heated up, making 10 field goals including three from beyond the arc. Zuriyah Davis and O'Gara each hit two three-pointers in the period, helping UWG outscore Vanderbilt 25-20 in the period and send the game to the final quarter with the Commodores up, 79-52.
Vanderbilt won the final quarter, extending their lead to as much as 42 in the final quarter.
Destiny Jones led the Wolves in rebounding with nine while Amanda Blake had seven. The Wolves had 19 assists on 25 makes, led by five from O'Gara and four from senior Mykah Anderson.
"Honestly, lots of positives to build on," Reitz concluded. "We'll take a break, come back and kind of work on the things that need work and then get ready for Brenau."
West Georgia is idle until December 29 when Brenau makes a visit for a Sunday afternoon affair. Tip-time for that game is set for 2 p.m. and is the final tune-up before conference play begins.
