University of Tennessee Athletics
TENNESSEE VS. MISSISSIPPI STATE -- GAME PREVIEW
January 23, 2006 | Men's Basketball
Jan. 23, 2006
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Tennessee Trends
- C.J. Watson's 3.60 assist-to-turnover ratio in four Southeastern Conference games leads the league. His 2.50 steals in league games is also tops in the SEC.
- With victories over No. 6 Texas and No. 2 Florida, Tennessee has recorded two wins over teams ranked in the top six of the Associated Press Poll in a season for just the second time in school history. The other time was in 1977 when Ernie Grunfeld and Bernard King led UT to four wins over top six teams.
- The win over second-ranked Florida was Tennessee's first over a team ranked that high since defeating No. Kentucky 78-77 on Feb. 24, 1993.
- The Tennessean newspaper in Nashville named UT's win over No. 2 Florida (1/21/06) the second-best moment for the team in Thompson-Boling Arena history.
- Tennessee is 9-0 when playing at Thompson-Boling Arena this season and have an 11-game homecourt winning streak.
- UT is 23-12 (.657) when playing before crowds of 20,000 or larger at Thompson-Boling Arena. This year the Vols are 3-0 playing in front of 20,000 fans at home.
- Tennessee is 10-0 when holding opponents to fewer than 80 points this season.
- C.J. Watson has a streak of 79 consecutive starts and has made 103 starts in his career.
- UT has rallied to overcome deficits of nine points or more three times. South Carolina (1/8/06) led by as many as 15 points in the second half before the Vols came back to win 76-69 in Columbia.
- Four Vols rank in the top 10 in the SEC in steals. C.J. Watson and Chris Lofton are tied for second (2.33 spg), Dane Bradshaw is fourth (2.07 spg) and JaJuan Smith is tied for 10 (1.67 spg).
- Dane Bradshaw leads the SEC in assist-to-turnover ratio with 3.00 assists for every turnover.
- The Vols have recorded at least 10 steals in nine of their last 11 games.
- Tennessee is getting an average of 22.5 points per game from its bench. The Vols' bench has contributed 337 points in 15 games this season.
- The Vols have scored 80 or more points nine times this season.
- UT has recorded almost twice as many steals as its opponents. The Vols have 165 steals compared to just 90 by their opponents.
- Tennessee's opponents are averaging 20.4 turnovers per game this year. East Tennessee State's (11/18/05) 33 turnovers are the most by a UT opponent since American-Puerto Rico (12/21/99) turned the ball over 40 times. Eight times this season UT's opponents have turned the ball over at least 20 times.
- UT has shot better than its opponent in nine of its 15 games this season.
- Tennessee has shot 50 percent or better from the field in seven of 15 games.
- The Vols are playing with just 10 scholarship players this season. UT's roster lists 11 scholarship players but Tony Passley will sit out the season under NCAA transfer guidelines.
- Six walk-ons are listed on the Vols' roster. Eddie DeBro is the only returning walk-on while Ben Bosse, Jonah Cox, Justin Jackson, Jordan Smith and Tanner Wild are each in their rookie season with the squad.
- The basketball court at Thompson-Boling Arena has been named "The Summitt" in honor of Pat Summitt, who recorded her 882nd career win in 2005.
- Tennessee has an all-time record of 1,357-887-2 in its 97th season of basketball.
- UT's 601 regular season Southeastern Conference victories rank third all-time in the SEC. Only Kentucky and Alabama have won more league games.
- Tennessee is 209-84 in its 19th season in Thompson-Boling Arena. The Volunteers have posted winning home records in 16 of their 18 previous seasons in the facility.
| Team Statistical Comparisons | ||
| Tennessee | Stat Category | Mississippi State |
| 83.3 | Points | 68.8 |
| 74.0 | Opponent Points | 67.8 |
| +9.3 | Scoring Margin | +1.0 |
| .466 | Field Goal % | .448 |
| .474 | Opponent Field Goal % | .400 |
| .398 | Three-Point % | .308 |
| .386 | Opponent Three-Point % | .328 |
| .688 | Free Throw % | .659 |
| 33.5 | Rebounds | 39.6 |
| 37.3 | Opponent Rebounds | 34.7 |
| -3.9 | Rebounding Margin | +5.0 |
| 17.8 | Assists | 10.1 |
| 12.3 | Turnovers | 18.3 |
| 11.0 | Steals | 6.3 |
| 3.5 | Blocks | 4.6 |
| 12-3, 3-1 SEC | Record | 11-7, 1-4 SEC |
| Individual Statistical Leaders | ||
| Tennessee | Stat Category | Mississippi State |
| Lofton, 16.5 | Points | Gordon, 13.2 |
| Bradshaw, 6.3 | Rebounds | Morgan, 6.8 |
| Bradshaw, 4.4 | Assists | Gordon, 3.9 |
| Wingate, .519 | Field Goal % | Morgan, .560 |
| Lofton, .440 | Three-Point % | Delk, .397 |
| Lofton, .875 | Free Throw % | Rhodes, .768 |
Looking At Mississippi State
Mississippi State fell to 11-7 on the season and 1-4 in Southeastern Conference action with a 52-80 loss at Vanderbilt Saturday ... After opening league play with an impressive 69-67 win over Arkansas, the Bulldogs have dropped games at No. 2 Florida, at in-state rival Mississippi, to LSU and at Vanderbilt ... Freshman guard/forward Jamont Gordon leads MSU and ranks third among SEC freshmen with 13.2 points per game ... The 6-foot-4 Gordon's 6.4 rebounds per game rank second among SEC freshman and are tied for second at Mississippi State ... Jamall Edmondson, who missed the Arkansas and Florida games with a groin injury, is second on the team with 13.1 points per game ... A 6-8 sophomore forward, Charles Rhodes is the only other player in double-figure scoring with 11.8 points to go with 6.4 rebounds per game ... Wesley Morgan, a 7-2 center, leads MSU with and ranks eighth in the SEC with 6.8 rebounds per game ... The Bulldogs are looking to avoid their first five-game losing streak since the 1999-2000 season ... MSU, which is outrebounding opponents by five rebounds per game, is one of two teams this season to outrebound (40-33) LSU this year ... Mississippi State ranks second in the SEC in field goal percentage defense (.400) and third in 3-point field goal percentage defense (.328) ... Vanderbilt (.577) was the first team to shoot over 50 percent against the Bulldogs this year ... The Bulldogs have been one of the most successful SEC teams recently, having won at least 20 wins in each of the last four years and making four consecutive NCAA Tournaments ... State is 7-3 at home this season and have a 90-20 overall record at home under head coach Rick Stansbury ... Stansbury is 160-82 in his eighth season at MSU and as a head coach.
The Mississippi State Series
Tennessee leads the all-time series 70-38 ... Mississippi State holds a narrow 26-23 advantage when the series is played in Starkville ... The Vols hold a 41-9 all-time advantage when the series is played in Knoxville ... Tennessee upset 11th-ranked Mississippi State 64-63 in Knoxville last season ... 10 of the last 13 meetings have been decided by eight points or less ... The Vols and Bulldogs have met three times in the SEC Tournament with Mississippi State winning two of those meetings ... The Mississippi State series dates back to the 1924 season ... UT defeated MSU, 20-17, on Jan. 15, 1924, in the first meeting between the two schools.
Last Meeting With Mississippi State
Tennessee ended the nation's longest road winning streak with a 64-63 victory over the 11th-ranked Mississippi State Bulldogs Wednesday, Jan. 12, 2005, at Thompson-Boling Arena ... The Bulldogs entered the game having won 16 consecutive road games ... MSU had not lost a road game since March 5, 2003 when they fell 49-59 at Tennessee ... Scooter McFadgon scored all of his 14 points in the first half as the Vols built a 16-point halftime lead, 42-26 ... Two times in the second half the Vols extended the lead to as many as 18 points ... Midway through the second half the Bulldogs went on an 8-2 run to cut Tennessee's lead to five (52-49) ... A Lawrence Roberts lay-in with 1:54 left brought MSU to within two points 60-62 ... Andre Patterson followed a Scooter McFadgon miss with a putback dunk with 1:12 remaining to give the Vols a 64-60 lead ... Shane Power made a 3-pointer to bring the Bulldogs within a point and a Brandon Crump miss at the other end gave Mississippi State one final chance at the win ... MSU got three chances to inbound the ball under UT's basket with 7.4 seconds left but could not score as the Vols earned their first win over a ranked team on the season ... Crump was the only other Vol in double figure scoring with 12 points ... C.J. Watson nearly registered a double-double with nine points, nine assists and three steals ... Roberts led all scorers with 22 points and 13 rebounds ... Power added 17 points for the Bulldogs.
Last Game: 24,000 Watch UT Upset Florida
Tennessee's largest crowd in 15 years cheered the Vols on to an 80-26 victory over second-ranked Florida Saturday, Jan. 21, in Knoxville ... The crowd of 24,011 was the largest at Thompson-Boling Arena since the 1991 season ... Florida entered the game with a 17-0 record and, with losses to Duke and Pitt earlier in the day, was the last undefeated team in the nation ... Florida jumped out to an early 8-2 lead and eventually took a 42-36 advantage at the half ... Chris Lofton scored half (18) of Tennessee's first half points on 7-of-9 shooting from the field ... In the second half the Gators built its lead to eight points on a Lee Humphrey 3-pointer with 18:13 remaining ... It marked UF's largest lead of the game as the Vols battled back to tie the score 59-59 on a Lofton 3-pointer with 9:30 left ... JaJuan Smith gave the Vols their first lead at 61-60 less than a minute later ... Neither team built a lead more than three points until the closing seconds ... Corey Brewer, who overcame a sprained ankle suffered in the first half, tied the score at 76 with 45 seconds left ... Lofton missed a very long 3 at the other end that resulted in a Florida 2-on-1 fast break off the rebound ... Lofton picked off Brewer's pass and found Dane Bradshaw at the other end of the floor to give Tennessee a 78-76 lead with 20 seconds left ... Humphrey missed a 3 at the other end and Lofton was fouled soon after gathering the rebound ... Lofton sealed the game with two free throws with six seconds left ... Lofton led all scorers with a season-high 29 points to go with six rebounds, three assists and three steals ... Andre Patterson came off the bench to record a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds ... Smith added 10 points while C.J. Watson had six points and six assists ... Brewer led Florida with 20 points while Taurean Green added 17 ... Tennessee outrebounded the Gators 40-35.
Lofton Earns SEC Player Of The Week Honor
Sophomore guard Chris Lofton was named the Southeastern Conference Player of the Week on Monday, Jan. 23, following a 29-point performance in Tennessee's victory over then-No. 2 Florida ... Despite his offensive output, it was on the defensive end where Lofton made his biggest play ... The lone player back on a 2-on-1 break, he picked off a pass and found Dane Bradshaw at the other end of the court for the game-winning lay up ... Earlier in the week he scored 16 points and had seven rebounds at No. 4 Memphis ... On the week, he averaged 22.5 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.0 assists ... It was the second player of the week honor this season for Lofton, who also earned the honor on Dec. 19.
Watson Climbing Charts
This has been a memorable season for senior point guard C.J. Watson as he has scored his 1,000th point and dished out his 500th career assist already this year ... The Las Vegas native is quickly climbing UT's career charts also.
- With 13 more points, Watson will be ranked among the top 25 scorers in Tennessee history. He currently ranks 26th all-time with 1,205 career points.
- He needs three assists to move into second place on UT's career assists chart. Watson enters the Mississippi State game with 523 career assists.
- Watson needs four steals to pass Fred Jenkins (1983-87) for second on the Vols' career steals list.
A Band Of Thieves
Tennessee's pressure defense has given its opponents all kinds of trouble this season as the Vols' opponents are averaging 20.4 turnovers per game this year. - UT leads the SEC in steals (11.00 spg) and turnover margin (+8.07).
- Four Vols rank in the top 10 in the SEC in steals. C.J. Watson and Chris Lofton are tied for second (2.33 spg), Dane Bradshaw is fourth (2.07 spg) and JaJuan Smith is tied for 10th (1.67 spg).
- Bradshaw leads the league in assist-to-turnover ratio (3.00) while Watson is fourth (2.25).
- The Vols have had more assists than turnovers in 12 of their 15 games this year.
- On the season, UT has 267 assists to 185 turnovers (1.44 assists-to-turnovers).
- Conversely, the Vols' opponents have had more turnovers than assists in 11 of 15 games (0.77 assists-to-turnovers).
Volunteer Bombardiers
While Chris Lofton has bogarted much of the attention as a dangerous 3-point shooter, he is not the only member of Tennessee's squadron of long-range bombers ... Lofton, C.J. Watson and JaJuan Smith have formed to make one of the most dangerous shooting backcourts in the nation ... The trio have combined to make 107 3-pointers in 15 games this season ... UT leads the SEC and ranks 17th in the nation with 8.60 3-pointers per game ... The Vols are making 39.8 percent of their 3s, a figure that ranks third in the SEC and ninth nationally. - Lofton is leading the SEC and ranks seventh in the nation with 3.67 triples per game. He is shooting 44.0 percent (55-of-125) from behind the arc.
- Watson has improved upon his 37.5 percent shooting last season to convert 40.7 (24-of-59) of his 3-pointers this year.
- Smith has given the Vols a huge scoring boost coming off the bench. He is second on the team with 28 3-pointers on the season and ranks eighth in the SEC with his 38.4 (28-of-73) 3-point percentage.
- Lofton, Watson and Smith are not the only 3-point bombers on the Vols' roster. Jordan Howell has made 50.0 percent (9-of-18) of his 3-point attempts this season. Dane Bradshaw has shown a propensity for hitting the big 3-point shot like when he sealed UT's win at South Carolina (1/8/06).
Improved Vols
Every returning scholarship player has seen their offensive production increase exponentially this season ... The improved production accounts for 35.3 points per game ... Five players have already exceeded their scoring totals from last season ( Stanley Asumnu, Dane Bradshaw, Jordan Howell, JaJuan Smith and Major Wingate) ... Following is a list of players who have seen increased scoring totals this year:Player 2005 Pts 2006 Pts Differential Asumnu 2.4 9.0 +6.6 ppg Wingate 5.0 11.5 +6.5 ppg Smith 1.9 8.5 +6.6 ppg Watson 11.9 15.9 +4.0 ppg Bradshaw 3.0 7.5 +4.5 ppg Lofton 13.2 16.5 +3.3 ppg Patterson 7.4 9.7 +2.3 ppg Howell 1.1 2.3 +1.2 ppg
Crowded House
The crowds at Thompson-Boling Arena have been impressive all season ... The crowds at Tennessee's home games this season have increased by more than 4,000 fans per game over last season. - Tennessee ranks second in the SEC in home attendance with an average of 16,507. Kentucky leads the league with 22,236.
- The Vols' attendance of 16,507 this season is an increase of 4,057 fans per game over last year's average of 12,450 per game.
- The 21,280 fans in attendance for the Vols' season-opening win over East Tennessee State (11/18/05) was the fourth-largest crowd to see a season-opener in school history.
- Two of the largest holiday crowds (games between Dec. 20 and Jan. 4) in school history came to see the Vols play. Against Lipscomb (12/29/05) 15,967 fans were in attendance and against Alabama A&M (12/27/05) 15, 797 fans came to see the Vols.
- The crowd of 24,011 for the Florida game (1/21/06) was the sixth-largest in school history and the biggest in more than 15 years at the arena.
UT Wins 600th SEC Game
Tennessee won its 600th all-time Southeastern Conference game with an 89-76 victory over Georgia (1/11/06) ... In their 73rd season of SEC play, the Vols have posted a 601-481 mark in league games ... Only Kentucky (825) and Alabama (677) have won more SEC games.Vols In The NCAA Stats
Tennessee is prominently listed among the national leaders according to the Jan. 16 NCAA statistics. Following is where the Vols rank nationally: - Scoring offense: 83.8 ppg / 3rd
- Steals per game: 11.0 spg / 4th
- 3-point percentage: 41.5 percent / 9th
- Turnovers per game: 12.1 tpg / 12th
- Assists per game: 18.1 apg / 13th
- 3-pointers per game: 8.8 3pg / 17th
- Field goal percentage: 48.0 percent / 35th
- Scoring margin: +11.1 ppg / 40th
- 3-pointers per game: Chris Lofton - 3.5 3pg / 7th
- 3-point percentage: Chris Lofton - 45.5 % / 20th
- FT percentage: C. J. Watson - 88.0 % / 28th
- Steals per game: C.J. Watson - 2.5 spg / 34th
Watson & Lofton Named One Of Top Backcourts In The Nation
SI.com named Tennessee's backcourt of C.J. Watson and Chris Lofton the No. 8 backcourt in the nation on Jan. 20 ... They were the only SEC backcourt to receive mention on the list ... Following is a list of their rankings of the top 10 backcourts nationally:
1. Randy Foye and Allan Ray, Villanova
2. Maurice Ager and Shannon Brown, Michigan State
3. Jordan Farmar and Arron Afflalo, UCLA
4. Marcus Williams and Rashad Anderson, UConn
5. Curtis Stinson and Will Blalock, Iowa State
6. Robert Vaden and Marshall Strickland, Indiana
7. J.R. Pinnock and Carl Elliott, George Washington
8. C.J. Watson and Chris Lofton, Tennessee
9. Adam Haluska and Jeff Horner, Iowa
10. Steve Burtt Jr. and Ricky Soliver, IonaWatson Dishes Out 500th Career Assist
Senior guard C.J. Watson became just the fourth player in Tennessee history to record 500 career assists when he reached the milestone against South Alabama (1/4/06) ... The Las Vegas native has recorded 523 assists in 104 career games ... Watson, who also has 1,205 career points, joins Tony Harris (1998-01) as the only players in school history to have 1,000 career points and 500 assists ... Watson is just the ninth player in Southeastern Conference history to be a member of the 1,000/500 club. - Watson's 523 career assists rank third all-time in Tennessee history. He needs three assists to pass Rodney Woods (525 from 1972-75) for second on UT's career lists.
- His 523 career assists are 14th on the SEC's career lists. UT's Rodney Woods (525 from 1972-75) is 13th all-time in SEC history.
Watson Reaches 1,000 Points In Unique Way
C.J. Watson became the 38th player in Tennessee history to reach the 1,000 career point milestone in a 17-point outing against Louisiana-Lafayette (11/22/05) ... Watson, who now has 1,205 career points, reached the milestone when he was fouled on a made 3-pointer and then scored his 1,000th point on the free throw.Las Vegas Dealer: Watson Deals Assists
One could only dream of sitting down at a blackjack table and seeing a dealer as friendly as Tennessee's point guard C.J. Watson ... The senior from Las Vegas has dealt nothing but aces and face cards while running the Vols' attack ... Twice he has led the Southeastern Conference in assists and this year he has taken on a larger scoring role while also dishing out the assists ... This year the 6-foot-2 Watson is averaging 15.9 points and 4.20 assists per game. - In 2004-05 (5.00 apg) and 2002-03 (5.44 apg) he led the SEC in assists against league opponents.
- Watson owns three of the top 13 single-season assist marks in Tennessee history.
- Watson is the Southeastern Conference's active career leader in assists with 523.
- His 523 career assists are third all-time at UT.
- He ranks 14th in SEC history in assists with 523.
- Watson's 4.20 assists per game are currently eighth in the SEC.
Lofton Is A Triples Threat
Chris Lofton, a 6-foot-2 sophomore, took the SEC by storm as a freshman by leading the league in 3-point percentage (.465) and 3-pointers made per game (3.00 3pg) ... He ranked fourth nationally in 3-point accuracy on his way to earning a spot on the SEC All-Freshman team ... His 93 3-pointers were the most ever by an SEC freshman. - He ranks fourth in the SEC with 16.5 points per game and is tied for second in the league with 2.33 steals per game.
- With 55 3-pointers already this season, Lofton ranks eighth on Tennessee's career lists with 148.
- He is currently leading the Southeastern Conference with 3.67 3-pointers per game.
- Against Murray State (11/30/05) he scored 12 consecutive points to help the Vols rally to a 64-53 win.
- Two times this season he has made six 3-pointers in a game. He had six against East Tennessee State (11/18/05) and at South Carolina (1/8/06).
Bradshaw Playing Power/Point
With only four scholarship players taller than 6-foot-5 on the roster, junior guard Dane Bradshaw has been called upon to play big, quite literally ... The 6-4 backup point guard has earned starting assignments at power forward for each of the Vols' games this year ... Playing in the paint isn't anything new for the Memphis native ... In 2005 he drew difficult defensive assignments by guarding 6-8, 252-pound Brandon Bass against LSU (2/5/05) and 6-10 Jermareo Davidson of Alabama (2/9/05). - Bradshaw is leading Tennessee in rebounding (6.3 rpg) and assists (4.4 apg) and is third in steals (2.1 spg) and blocks (0.5 bpg).
- His assist-to-turnover ratio of 3.00 leads the SEC.
- His 2.07 steals per game are fourth in the SEC.
- His 4.40 assists per game are seventh in the SEC.
- Six times this season he has led the Vols in rebounding, including a career-high 12 boards against ETSU (11/18/05).
- Nine times he has led UT in assists, including a career-high eight against South Alabama (1/4/06) and Georgia (1/11/06).
- Against South Alabama (1/4/06) he recorded a career-high eight assists while gathering five rebounds, scoring six points and making three steals.
- He had a streak of 181 minutes (seven games) without a turnover come to an end in the first half of the Vols' game against Georgia (1/11/06). During the streak, which started in the first half of the Appalachian State (12/6/05) game, he recorded 34 assists.
Bradshaw Is A Warrior Against Memphis
Playing his first collegiate game in his hometown of Memphis, Dane Bradshaw had one of the most impressive games a college basketball player has had all season ... Having to deal with hecklers that had singled him out from the moment the doors opened, Bradshaw put on a show against the fourth-ranked Memphis Tigers at the FedExForum ... Playing in the post against UM's front line of 6-foot-9 Shawne Williams and 6-9 Joey Dorsey, the 6-4 Bradshaw scored a career-high 21 points on 9-of-13 shooting to go with 10 rebounds (five of them offensive), five steals and four assists ... Not backing down for a moment during the game, he drew a charge call in the second half when a Dorsey elbow caught him just below his eye that gave him a black eye.Wingate Stepping Up In The Paint
Major Wingate wasn't going to let anything stop him from playing against Louisiana-Lafayette on Nov. 22 ... After suffering a foot injury in practice two days earlier that left him on crutches, Wingate spent the next two nights in the training room rehabbing the injury so he could play ... When it came time to play, Wingate was there standing in the center circle ready for the jump ball ... The junior from Florence, S.C., scored 12 points and blocked three shots in 28 minutes of action against the Ragin' Cajuns ... Defensively, he held Louisiana's star center Michael Southall to just four points and four rebounds. - On the year he ranks third on the team with 11.5 points per game.
- Wingate has scored in double-figures in 11 of UT's 15 games ... In two previous season at Tennessee he had reached double-figure scoring just three times.
- Against sixth-ranked Texas (12/19/05) Wingate played a key role in limiting LaMarcus Aldridge to just four field goals. Aldridge, who finished with 15 points total, scored just one point when Wingate was guarding him.
JaJuan Smith Giving Vols A Spark Off The Bench
JaJuan Smith, a 6-foot-2 guard from Decatur, Tenn., has seen his role grow from 8.0 minutes per game as a freshman last year to 24.3 minutes per game this season ... Already this year he has tied or established new career marks for scoring (16), rebounds (6), assists (6), steals (3), blocks (1) and minutes played (29) ... Smith, who has been the first player off the bench in 14 of Tennessee's 15 games this season, is averaging 8.5 points per game ... His 29 assists are fourth on the team. - Smith had his best game of his career at sixth-ranked Texas when he came off the bench to score 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting from 3-point range.
- He scored a career-high 16 points on 6-of-9 shooting from the field to go with five assists and two steals against Alabama A&M (12/27/05).
Patterson Making His Shots
When Andre Patterson led the Vols with his 56.8 percent field goal shooting in 2004-05, it marked the second school he had led in field goal percentage ... As a sophomore at UCLA in 2002-03 he led the Bruins and the Pac-10 Conference with a 60.8 field goal percentage ... As a junior at UT last season, Patterson averaged 7.4 points per game while leading the Vols with 6.2 rebounds per game. - He is currently shooting 48.7 percent (57-of-117) from the field and is averaging 9.7 points per game off the bench.
- Patterson recorded a career-high 14 rebounds against Murray State (11/30/05) while recording his third career-double-double.
Asumnu Builds On Strong Finish To 2005
Senior guard/forward Stanley Asumnu started his senior season like he ended his junior year ... The Houston native scored a career-high 18 points on 8-of-11 shooting in the Vols' season-opening win over East Tennessee State (11/18/05) ... In 15 games he is averaging 9.0 points per game ... The ultra-athletic Asumnu scored 24 points in 27 minutes of playing time over Tennessee's final four games of the 2005 season ... Against Georgia (3/5/05), the 6-foot-5 Asumnu scored a then career-high 14 points on 6-of-6 shooting from the field in just 10 minutes of action. - It took Asumnu just seven games this season to score 67 points, surpassing the 63 points he scored in 26 contests as a junior.
Eddie "The Show" DeBro
Senior walk-on Eddie DeBro needed just eight minutes to put on a show in Tennessee's win over South Alabama (1/4/06) ... DeBro, inserted into the lineup when Stanley Asumnu got into early foul trouble, recorded two assists, two rebounds and a steal in eight minutes of first half action against the Jaguars ... Each of those numbers are career-highs for the native of Smyrna, Tenn. ... One play in particular saw the 5-foot-11 DeBro get a steal and then run the fastbreak, making an impressive bounce pass to C.J. Watson for the lay up.Watson & Lofton Earn Back-To-Back SEC Player Of The Week Honors
Chris Lofton was named the co-SEC Player of the Week on Dec. 19 after leading the Vols to a 95-78 upset at sixth-ranked Texas ... Lofton, who shared the award with Kentucky's Rajon Rondo, scored a game-high 21 points on 5-of-9 3-point shooting against the Longhorns ... It marked the second consecutive week a UT player earned the honor ... C.J. Watson took home player of the week honors Dec. 12 after scoring a season-high 23 points against Appalachian State Dec. 5.National Recognition For Vols
- SI.com listed C.J. Watson and Chris Lofton (with special mention for Dane Bradshaw) as the nation's eighth-best backcourt on Jan. 20.
- UT was named the national team of the week on Dec. 19 by Dick Vitale and Andy Katz on ESPN.com and by Mike DeCourcy of The Sporting News.
- ESPN commentator Dick Vitale took time in his weekly "Roundball Chatter" column on Dec. 16 to mention a pair of Vols by saying, "The backcourt of C.J. Watson and Chris Lofton is one of the most underrated in America... ."
- Lofton was called by ESPN's Dick Vitale, "... one of the most underrated players in America"
- CBS SportsLine.com's Gregg Doyel named Bruce Pearl as one of his 10 best stories for 2005.
Rally Vols
Tennessee has rallied from deficits of at least nine points in three games this season ... Two of the rallys have been away from Thompson-Boling Arena. - Murray State (11/30/05) built a nine-point lead early in the second half before the Vols rallied for a 64-53 victory in Nashville ... At one point during the Tennessee rally, Chris Lofton outscored the Racers 12-1.
- Appalachian State (12/5/05) took a 12-point lead with just over six minutes left in the first half but UT went on a 19-2 run to take a 48-46 lead at halftime.
- UT rallied from a 15-point second half deficit to defeat South Carolina (1/8/06) in Columbia.
- Against Oklahoma State (12/22/05) the Vols rallied from a 16-point halftime deficit to cut the lead to one point but could never overtake the Cowboys.
Home Court Advantage
Thompson-Boling Arena has provided the Vols with a definite home court advantage since the facility opened in time for the 1987-88 season.- Tennessee is 209-84 (.713) in its 19th season in Thompson-Boling Arena.
- Since the 1998 season, the Vols are 110-25 (.815) in Thompson-Boling Arena.
- The Vols are 49-16 against SEC teams at home over the last six seasons.
- UT has won 67 of its last 74 home games against non-conference opponents.
Pearl Won 87 Percent Of Games In 2005
Frank Sinatra may have had Bruce Pearl in mind when he crooned that "It Was A Very Good Year" ... In fact, 2005 was a great year for Pearl as he won 87.1 percent of his games during the calendar year ... Pearl was 19-3 at UW-Milwaukee and 8-1 at Tennessee in 2005 ... That ranks as the third-best winning percentage in the nation in 2005 ... Bruce Weber at Illinois posted the best winning percentage in 2005 with a 37-2 record (94.9 percent).
Pearl's Start Second Best All-Time
Bruce Pearl came to Tennessee as one of the winningest coaches in the nation, having won 79.1 percent (317-84) of his career games entering the season ... Pearl did not disappoint the UT faithful, winning his first six games as the leader of the Vols program ... Pearl's 6-0 record was the second-best start to a career amongst UT's all-time coaches:
Great Starts
Tennessee's 6-0 start to the 2005-06 season was the 14th time in school history that the Vols have begun a season by winning its first six games ... It was the eighth time in the modern era (since World War II) that UT has started 6-0 ... Following is how this year's start ranks with past years in the modern era:
Vols' Recruiting Class Ranked Among Top 10 In The Nation
Bruce Pearl's first recruiting class at the University of Tennessee has drawn rave reviews and has been rated as one of the best classes in the Southeastern Conference and among the top 10 classes in the nation. The Vols signed four players during the early signing period in November: Wayne Chism, Duke Crews, Marques Johnson and Josh Tabb.
- Chism, a 6-foot-9 forward from Bolivar, Tenn., is a four-star prospect who is rated the No. 42 overall player in the country. As a junior he led Bolivar Central High School to the Class AA state title while averaging 13.6 points, 10 rebounds, seven blocks and 2.2 assists per game. At the Reebok ABCD Camp last summer he was rated the No. 2 center.
- One of the highest-rated players to sign with the Vols in recent years, Crews is a 6-7 forward from Hampton, Va. Rated the No. 14 player in the nation, he is considered a five-star prospect. As a junior he averaged 16 points per game while leading Bethel High School to a 22-4 record last year. Last summer Crews was rated as the No. 2 player at the 2005 Nike Camp in Indianapolis.
- Ranked among the top-50 players by several scouting services, Johnson is a 6-5 guard from Fort Wayne, Ind. A starter since his freshman season, the two-time all-conference selection has led Snider High School to a 50-15 record in his three years. As a junior he averaged 21 points, 6.2 rebounds and four assists.
- A four-star prospect, Tabb is a 6-4 guard from Harmony Christian Prep in Cincinnati. A two-time Class A All-State selection who is originally from Carbondale, Ill., Tabb averaged 21 points, five assists and six rebounds as a senior while leading Carbondale High School to the 2005 state championship game.
SEC Throwback Week
Each Southeastern Conference school has designated a previous year's uniform to be worn as a part of "SEC Throwback Week" ... The week of February 18-26 (Saturday through Sunday) has been designated as "SEC Throwback Week" ... Additionally, the uniforms will be worn during the SEC Tournament in Nashville ... Tennessee took a poll of fans on UTsports.com to determine which era to choose their uniforms ... The fans selected the Ernie & Bernie era so UT's uniforms will resemble those worn in the 1970s.
Parking
Limited individual game parking for the 2005-06 men's basketball season will be sold for $5 for the following parking lots on a first come, first served basis:
- Lot 23 Corner of Volunteer Blvd and Pat Head Summitt Street
- Lot 23B (next to Music Building) - Corner of Pat Head Summitt Street and Volunteer Blvd.
- Lot 4 and Lot 5 - Phillip Fulmer Way between Thompson-Boling Arena and Neyland Stadium
- Lot 30A - Peyton Manning Pass, off of Volunteer Blvd.
- Lot C15 - Chamique Holdsclaw Drive
- Lot 9A - Volunteer Blvd. between the Humanities Plaza & the Architecture Bldg.
- Lot C18/Staff 7 - accessed from Cumberland Avenue at 11th Street, or from Neyland Drive across from the Tennessee Grill
- Lot G10 on Neyland Drve between Thompson-Boling Arena and Neyland Stadium
Special parking arrangements for disabled persons may be requested by calling Parking Services at (865) 974-6031. The UT Athletic Department also provides FREE parking at the Ag Campus with a free shuttle service to and from Thompson-Boling Arena. The KAT shuttle begins 1 1/2 hours prior to game time, and runs for one hour postgame.
