NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Caroline Williams scored 18 points, Carla Thomas added 16 and No. 14 Vanderbilt held California scoreless for almost 11 minutes in a 67-55 victory in the championship game of the Vanderbilt Thanksgiving Tournament on Saturday.
The Commodores (6-0) raced out to a 14-5 lead at the 13:44 mark of the first half on a Thomas basket, but Cal closed the deficit to 22-20 when Ashley Walker hit a lay-up with 5:50 left.That would be Cal's last bucket until Walker, playing with four fouls, hit a baseline jumper at the 14:56 mark of the second half.Meanwhile, the Commodores ran off 19 points during that span, most coming in the paint with Cal center and second-leading scorer Devanei Hampton on the bench.Hampton suffered an ankle sprain midway through the first half and did not return.The Commodores maintained a double-digit lead throughout most of the second half, but Cal cut what had been an 18-point Vandy lead to 49-40 on a Walker layup with just under seven minutes to play.However, Vandy answered with Williams' 3-pointer and layups from Thomas and Dee Davis on its next three possessions to extend the lead to 16, and the Bears were never again able to cut the lead under nine.Christina Wirth and Liz Sherwood each added 10 points for the Commodores. Walker led Cal with 19, while Alexis Gray-Lawson added 11 and Rame N'Diaye scored 10.
