| Tennessee (5-3) at Louisville (7-1)
Busy Week Continues: Vols Visit Louisville
 | | Senior forward Vincent Yarbrough needs just five more steals to break the school record of 177 | Tennessee started the month out by playing just one game in 15 days but, when the Vols travel to Louisville, Ky., to play the University of Louisville Cardinals, it will the UT's third game in five days. The Vols and Cardinals tipoff at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 20, at Freedom Hall in Louisville. ESPN2 will broadcast the game to a national television audience.
The Louisville game comes during the second half of one of the busiest periods this season for the Vols. This is the third of four games in eight days for the UT. During this eight-day period the Vols play at Memphis (a 69-71 loss on Dec. 15), vs. Radford (a 72-66 win on Dec. 17) and at Louisville (Dec. 20) before returning home to play West Virginia (Dec. 22).
The Vols rallied from an 11-point second half deficit for a 72-66 win over Radford on Monday night. Vincent Yarbrough led the Vols with a game-high 20 points. On the season the 6-foot-7 senior all-America candidate is averaging 20.1 points to lead the Vols and the Southeastern Conference.
This will be the 15th all-time meeting between Tennessee and Louisville with the series knotted at seven wins each. Tennessee leads the series 5-3 when it is played in Louisville.
| Team Statistical Comparisons | | Tennessee | | Louisville | 74.0
| Points
| 77.6
| 67.0
| Opponent Points
| 63.9
| +7.0
| Scoring Margin
| +13.8
| 47.6
| Field Goal %
| 43.2
| 39.9
| Opponent Field Goal %
| 40.1
| 42.2
| Three-Point %
| 29.5
| 31.9
| Opponent Three-Point %
| 31.1
| 69.4
| Free Throw %
| 60.2
| 37.0
| Rebounds
| 40.6
| 35.1
| Opponent Rebounds
| 40.2
| +1.9
| Rebounding Margin
| +0.4
| 17.5
| Assists
| 15.3
| 17.5
| Turnovers
| 15.4
| 3.0
| Blocks
| 4.6
| 6.9
| Steals
| 9.4
| 5-3
| Record
| 7-1
|
| Individual Statistical Leaders | | Tennessee |
| Louisville | | Yarbrough, 20.1 | Points
| Gaines, 19.1 | | Yarbrough, 7.4 | Rebounds
| Myles, 12.5 | | Higgins, 5.1 | Assists
| Gaines, 3.8 | | Crump, 58.3 | Field Goal %
| Myles, 60.0 | | Holden, 47.1 | Three-Point %
| Gaines, 42.4 | | Grindstaff, 90.9 | Free Throw %
| Gaines, 84.2 | | 7 Of UT's First 11 games Are On The Road
The Vols' Dec. 17 game against Radford will be Tennessee's third home game in eight outings this season. Tennessee opened the season at home against Tennessee Tech before traveling to Anchorage, Alaska, for the Great Alaska Shootout in November and then returned home to play Appalachian State on Nov. 29. The month of December sees the Vols travel to SMU (Dec. 6), Memphis (Dec. 15), Louisville (Dec. 20) and Wisconsin (Dec. 29). The Vols host Radford (Dec. 17) and West Virginia (Dec. 22) during the month of December. Three For Three
Vincent Yarbrough, Jon Higgins and Thaydeus Holden have made Tennessee one of the best three-point shooting teams in the nation this year.
*The Vols ranked third in the Dec. 10 NCAA statistics by making 46.5 percent of their three-pointers.
*Tennessee currently ranks second in the SEC in three-point shooting at 42.2 percent.
*Holden leads the SEC by making 47.1 percent (16-of-34) of his three-point attempts.
*Yarbrough ranks fifth in the league by making 45.9 percent (17-of-37) of his treys.
*Higgins, who led the SEC in three-point shooting last year, ranks seventh in the conference with 44.4 percent (16-of-36).
*Ron Slay (35.7 percent) can also shoot from long range.
Playing The Percentages
Tennessee has made 50 percent or better of its field goals in three games this season, including a 60 percent (27-of-45) effort against Marquette (11/21/01).
* In six of UT's seven games, the Vols have shot 45 percent or better.
* The Vols have made at least half of their three-pointers three times this year, including a 61.9 percent (13-of-21) outing against SMU. Yarbrough Closing In On Steals Record
Senior forward Vincent Yarbrough needs just five more steals to break the school record of 177 set by Fred Jenkins (1983-87). Yarbrough currently ranks in a tie with Tyrone Beaman (1980-84) for second all-time at Tennessee with 173 career steals. Haislip's Back
Marcus Haislip's presence has been felt since his return to the lineup Saturday against Memphis on Dec. 15. The junior, who missed Tennessee's first six games due to academics, is averaging 14.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 2.5 blocks in the two games since his return.
* Haislip set career highs against Memphis for rebounds (8), field goals attempted (11) and minutes played (25). He tied his career best of three-pointers attempted (4) against the Tigers.
Vols Recovering From Injuries
The Radford game marked the second time this season that the Vols have been at full strength. Tennessee had been limited to just eight scholarship players available to play in four of its first six games this season. Against Memphis and Radford, the Vols were able to play nine scholarship players for the first time all season. Following is a list of injuries still lingering on the Vol roster.
* Ron Slay suffered a stress fracture to his fibula in his right leg the weekend of Oct. 28 and sat out UT's first two games until returning to the lineup at the Great Alaska Shootout.
* Andy Ikeakor remains out indefinitely after suffering a mid-foot injury in his left foot in mid-October.
* Del Baker was diagnosed with a stress fracture in his right ankle on Thursday, Nov. 28, and has not returned to the lineup yet.
Looking Back At Radford
Tennessee trailed by as many as 11 points in the second half but was able to overcome the deficit for a 72-66 win Monday night at Thompson-Boling Arena. Following a David Popoola trey that gave Radford a 48-37 lead with just over 17 minutes left in the second half, Tennessee went on a 14-2 run to take a 51-50 lead with just over 11 minutes left. The Highlanders reconstructed their lead to five points with 5:42 left in the game on a Correy Watkins three-point play. After three free throws from Vincent Yarbrough and Marcus Haislip and a three-pointer from Thaydeus Holden, the Vols went up 65-64 with 2:42 remaining. Ron Slay hit four free throws to give the Vols a safer 69-64 lead.
* Tennessee missed five of six free throws in the final 30 seconds of the game.
* Radford did not score a field goal in the final 5:42 of the game. During that span they scored just two points on a pair of Andrey Savtchenko free throws.
* The Highlanders had only three field goals in the final 15 minutes of the game.
* Radford shot 85.7 percent (6-of-7) from three-point range in the first half but was only 1-of-5 (20.0 percent) in the second half.
* Vincent Yarbrough led the Vols with 20 points.
* Marcus Haislip scored 12 of his 14 points in the second half.
* Thaydeus Holden finished the game with 11 points and a career-high eight rebounds.
* The win was Tennessee's 38th consecutive home win against a non-conference opponent. The Vols haven't dropped a home game to a non-SEC foe since Tennessee Tech took a 73-62 decision on Dec. 4, 1996.
Looking At Louisville
Louisville is 7-1 on the season after a 70-66 win over Tennessee Tech Monday night at Freedom Hall. The game against the Golden Eagles was the second in a 48 hour span for the Cardinals. On Saturday, Dec. 15, Louisville defeated previously unbeaten Ohio State 66-61. Reece Gaines, a 6-foot-6 guard, leads the Cardinals with 19.1 points and 3.8 assists per game this season. Ellis Myles, a 6-foot-8 sophomore forward, is averaging a double-double with 12.5 points and 12.5 rebounds per game.
* Louisville's pressure defense is forcing opponents into a Conference USA leading 20.1 turnovers per game.
* Reece Gaines earned Conference USA Player of the Week honors on Dec. 9 after averaging 21.5 points, four rebounds and 3.5 assists at the Jim Thorpe Classic. Gaines also earned tournament MVP for his efforts in the games against UW-Milwaukee and Murray State.
* Gaines was listed as one of the best "Gunners" in the nation by Basketball News.
* Louisville is 60-4 over the last seven seasons when scoring 80 or more points. This season the Cards are 4-0 when scoring 80 or more points.
* Rick Pitino is 359-125 in his 16th season as a head coach on the collegiate level and 7-1 in his first season at Louisville. Pitino recorded a 219-50 (.814) in eight seasons as the head coach at the University of Kentucky. In his eight seasons in Lexington, Pitino recorded a 14-3 record against Tennessee and has won nine in a row against the Vols.
* The Tennessee contest is the seventh game of an eight-game homestand for Louisville. It will be the third game in five days for the Cardinals who also played Ohio State (Dec. 15) and Tennessee Tech (Dec. 17).
* Louisville was picked to finish fourth in the American Division of Conference USA in a preseason poll of the league's coaches. Cincinnati, Charlotte and Marquette were tabbed to finish ahead of the Cardinals.
The Louisville Series
The all-time series between Tennessee and Louisville is tied 7-7.
* This is the first meeting between the two schools since a 100-84 Tennessee win on March 29, 1985 in the consolation game of the National Invitation Tournament in New York City.
* Louisville owned a seven-game winning streak over the Vols until Tennessee's win in the 1985 NIT.
* The series has been one of streaks. Tennessee won the first six meetings until Louisville started a seven-game winning streak over the Vols.
* The series dates back to the 1913 season. Tennessee won the first meeting 24-16 on Feb. 19, 1913 in Louisville.
* Ironically, Tennessee leads the all-time series when it is played in Louisville 5-3. The Cardinals lead the series when it is played in Knoxville 3-1. It is tied 1-1 on neutral sites.
* The two schools have met one time in the NCAA Tournament. The No. 1-seeded Cardinals defeated the eighth-seeded Vols 70-57 in the second round of the 1983 NCAA Tournament in Evansville, Ind. UL went on to play in the NCAA Mideast Regionals in Knoxville and then on to the Final Four where the Cardinals lost to Houston in the national semifinals.
Yarbrough On Wooden Watch List
For the second consecutive year, Vincent Yarbrough was on the John R. Wooden Award's preseason list of its top 50 candidates for the Wooden Award All-America team. Yarbrough, who was one of six SEC student-athletes on the preseason list, has been a second team All-SEC selection each of the last two seasons. The Wooden Award committee will announce its All-America team on March 26, 2002 and then the recipient of the Wooden Award Trophy on April 7, 2002. Buzz Ball Begins
A new era in Tennessee basketball begins this season with Buzz Peterson taking over the helm of the Volunteer program. Peterson, 38, came to Tennessee from the University of Tulsa where he led the Golden Hurricane to a 26-11 record and a National Invitation Tournament championship during the 2000-01 season. In his sixth season as a head coach he has recorded a 109-53 career record that also includes a 79-39 mark in four seasons at Appalachian State. Winning has been a trademark of Peterson's on every level. In high school, he was named the top player in the state of North Carolina. In college, at the University of North Carolina, he was a part of the Tar Heels' 1982 NCAA Championship team. As an assistant coach he helped direct Appalachian State, East Tennessee State, North Carolina State and Vanderbilt to a combined 154-117 record and appearances in the NCAA Tournament and NIT. As a head coach he has directed teams to NCAA Tournament appearances, conference championships and a National Invitation Tournament title. In all, he has coached six teams to postseason tournament action, including three NCAA Tournament appearances and three National Invitation Tournament appearances in Atlanta while CBS will show the championship game on March 10. Looking Ahead At West Virginia
West Virginia is 6-1 on the season after cruising to a 102-86 win over Robert Morris on Saturday, Dec. 15. The Mountaineers play Duquesne on Dec. 19 before traveling to Knoxville for the Dec. 22 contest.
* WVU opened the season with four consecutive wins before dropping a 75-91 contest at James Madison on Dec. 5. Since then they have won both of their outings.
* West Virginia will conclude a three-game homestand against Duquesne (Dec. 19) before traveling to Tennessee. The Mountaineers won the first game of the homestand 74-61 against Florida International and then defeated Robert Morris 102-86 on Dec. 15.
* Junior guard Tim Lyles is expected to miss the entire 2001-02 season after suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament in September. Last year Lyles had 12 points and five assists against the Vols as a starting guard.
* West Virginia needs four wins to become just the 19th NCAA Division I school to reach the 1,400 win plateau.
* Freshman Jonathan Hargett was selected the preseason Big East Conference Rookie of the Year by the league's coaches. He earned the conference's rookie of the week honor after 20.5 points and 8.0 assists in two games at the Hispanic College Fund Classic. On the season he is second the Mountaineers with 16.9 points per game.
* Freshman guard Drew Shifino set a West Virginia and Big East Conference record with 11 steals against Arkansas-Monticello on Dec. 1.
* West Virginia was picked to finish fourth in the Big East Conference's West Division in a poll of the league's coaches. Georgetown was the preseason favorite in the West. The West Virginia Series
West Virginia leads the all-time series, 3-2, with the series evenly split 1-1 when it is played in Knoxville.
* West Virginia won the first three meetings in the series but the Vols have won the last two games between the schools.
* Last year the Vols took a 79-78 win in Morgantown to even the series 1-1 when played at West Virginia.
* Last year UT made its first trip to Morgantown since Dec. 1, 1959, when Jerry West's 21 points led WVU to a 93-78 win over the Vols. When the first Associated Press poll was released three weeks later, West Virginia was the No. 2-rated team in the country.
* The games in this series haven't been very close. Only two of the five meetings has been decided by less than 15 points. In fact, the average margin of victory in the series has been 15.2 points.
* Tennessee and West Virginia have met in the postseason one time. In the first round of the 1989 NCAA Tournament, the 17th-ranked Mountaineers defeated Tennessee, 84-68, in Greensboro, N.C. WVU lost to eventual Final Four participant Duke in the second round.
* WVU's Gale Catlett is 1-2 all-time against Tennessee.
* Tennessee is 20-25 all-time against current members of the Big East Conference.
* Tennessee has won eight of its last nine games against members of the Big East Conference. UT's lone loss in that stretch was a 55-69 setback against St. John's earlier this season. Last Meeting With West Virginia
Terrence Woods drilled a three-pointer with 32.7 seconds left to give Tennessee the lead as the Volunteers overcame a 10 point second half deficit to beat West Virginia 79-78 in Morgantown on Dec. 2, 2000. West Virginia couldn't convert a pair of opportunities with 22 seconds left in the game that would have given the Mountaineers the lead. Ron Slay and WVU's Lionel Armstead each converted a pair of free throws in the final seconds as Tennessee escaped with the victory. West Virginia led 47-37 at halftime but Tennessee's defense held the Mountaineers to just six points in the first 7:33 of the second half as the Vols narrowed the gap to 52-53. West Virginia responded by rebuilding its lead to as much as six points before Tennessee tied the score at 66-66 on a Vincent Yarbrough lay-up with 6:59 left in the game.
* Tennessee shot 84.2 percent (16-of-19) from the free throw line in the second half while West Virginia managed just 8-of-16 (50 percent) of its free throw attempts in the final half.
* The Volunteers were just 6-of-30 (20 percent) from three-point range in the game. They were 2-of-14 (14.3 percent) in the second half.
* Tony Harris was limited to just 16 minutes of action due to early foul problems.
* A total of 52 fouls were called in the game with 27 coming against Tennessee and 25 against West Virginia.
* The Vols outrebounded the Mountaineers, 49-40, in the contest. |
