Jordyn Cambridge and Iyana Moore's return sparks Vanderbilt
Vanderbilt was led to a 98-51 opening day win behind two players who aren't unfamiliar with the result.
Jordyn Cambridge and Iyanna Moore learned not to take a result like that for granted, though. The hard way. A way that separated the pair's game action by 592 days.
For Cambridge that lesson came in the form of a torn achilles, for Moore it took shape in a torn ACL.
Vanderbilt's guard duo returned on Monday after in a moment that was significant for Cambridge.
“It meant everything," Cambridge said. "Obviously it was a long year trying to recover but again it’s not my first rodeo, I’ve been through it. I’m not gonna say that it was easy, it was definitely a hard mental battle but I had my teammates and my coaches and our great medical staff helping me through it and it just feels great to be back, I feel like my normal self and I’m just really excited for the rest of the season.”
Vanderbilt head coach Shea Ralph attributes that full recovery to the mentality of those two returning guards.
“They’re dawgs, they have a dawg mentality and you’ve gotta have that on a team where you’re trying to accomplish something great, when you want to win you’ve gotta have that. When you have players like that on your team, I don’t have to worry about x’s and o’s because as long as we have that we always have a chance.”
Ralph also sees many of her own struggles in what her players went through last season.
"Those two were playing like pros before they got hurt and I know really well what that feels like to go through, specifically Jordyn," Ralph said. "I had five ACLs and mine knocked me out. I can’t even go up a flight of stairs and she looks like LeBron James on the court."
Moore picked up where she left off in 2021-22 with 11 points in Monday's win, Cambridge added 11 as well as seven assists.
Cambridge's statline isn't entirely different from what she charted in 2021-22, but she seems to be noticeably different. In a good way.
“I learned a lot, I learned a lot about myself off the court and the things that I’m interested in and I also learned a lot about what I can bring to the team and the kind of leader I want to be and I think I’m going to keep implementing that as I play more games and me and my teammates try to get more wins.”
The feeling around Vanderbilt's program is also significantly different than it was last year in Ralph's mind.
“All that I can tell you is that for like two and a half months right around here last year I felt sick to my stomach every day and now I don’t."
Cambridge felt that on Monday, but in an entirely different way.
"Honestly, yes," the Vanderbilt veteran said when asked about whether she was nervous for her return to the floor. "I don’t know what I was feeling but I was like ‘oh my gosh’ I called my mom and I was like ‘I don’t know why but my stomach hurts’ and she was like ‘ok just calm down’ so the first time I’ve ever been nervous was today.”
That difference feels tangible. The feeling has gone from one reminiscent of a pit in Ralph's stomach and has transitioned into nervous excitement.
As Vanderbilt attempts to find itself and to become an NCAA Tournament team, it feels as if this team carries itself differently, specifically its three stars.
"There’s just a level of calm and confidence when Jordyn walks out on the court, when she’s in the huddle, when she’s in the locker room," Ralph said. "Same with Iyanna in some ways, same with Sacha, Sacha brings a personalities in some ways. Just having them gives out team this quiet, calm confidence. I can’t coach that, we either have it or we don’t"
Ralph feels like she has something, why wouldn't she after Monday afternoon's win.