It's hard to find a better young backcourt in women's college basketball than Vanderbilt's Mikayla Blakes and Aubrey Galvan.
In her podium session at SEC Basketball Tipoff '27 at the Hotel Wildemont Birmingham, Alabama, Ralph called the duo "the best backcourt in the country."
But there are still ways they can get even better.
Blakes was last season's SEC Player of the Year and the 2026-27 SEC Preseason Player of the Year. She led the country in scoring at 27 points per game last season while adding on 4.1 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 2.9 steals per game.
Galvan, the 2026 SEC Freshman of the Year, averaged 13.5 points, 2.7 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 2.6 steals per game and was Vanderbilt's starting point guard from the first game.
"Aubrey and Mikayla
have the ball in their hands a lot," Ralph said. "As a point guard, (Galvan) needs to be a leader. She needs to be me on the board. Our connection has to be unshakeable. So everything that we need her to accomplish, she needs to be able to do without direction from me during games. And her and Mikayla are a great team in that way."
Galvan wants to win, and she has had a confident presence from Day 1. Now, it's just about finding her voice.
Ralph said that has come naturally to Galvan. Her hope is that this team has strong player leadership to propel the Commodores to the next level after making the Sweet 16 last season.
"I would love for our team this year to be player-led," Ralph said. "I think player-led teams are teams that win championships. I also believe that the best roster doesn't win the championship, isn't always the best team. I think the best team is defined by the chemistry that you have."
Vanderbilt has had a number of team-bonding activities over the years, from making TikToks to coloring books in the locker room. Blakes and Galvan said on an SEC Now appearance that they went to a seafood boil together.
Even with the accolades the duo have received, they're still working hard on elevating their games to new levels.
"I feel like for me, it's focusing on the things I can do without the ball," Blakes said. "I feel like that's the main thing, whether it's setting screens for my teammates, my defense, taking charges. And when I do have the ball, just being able to make smart decisions with it."
Aria Gerson covers Vanderbilt athletics for The Tennessean. Contact her at agerson@gannett.com or on X @aria_gerson.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: How Mikayla Blakes and Aubrey Galvan can improve for Vanderbilt basketball
