University of Tennessee Athletics
TENNESSEE VS. VANDERBILT -- GAME PREVIEW
January 30, 2006 | Men's Basketball
Jan. 30, 2006
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RADIO: TELEVISION: LIVE STATS: RANKINGS: THE COACHES: Vanderbilt Commodores | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Tennessee Trends
- A win over Vanderbilt would ensure a winning record for the Vols. Tennessee is currently 14-3 with 10 regular season games and at least one SEC Tournament game remaining.
- A win over Vanderbilt would give the Vols their fourth consecutive SEC win. It would be their longest SEC winning streak since winning five in a row in 2002-03.
- Three of the SEC's top five steals leaders are Vols. Chris Lofton is second (2.47 spg), C.J. Watson is third (2.41 spg) and Dane Bradshaw is fifth (2.00 spg).
- A pair of Vols lead the SEC in assist-to-turnover ratio. Dane Bradshaw leads the SEC in assist-to-turnover ratio with 3.00 assists for every turnover and C.J. Watson is second at 2.37. In league games, they rank third (2.78) and second (3.71) respectively.
- The Vols are 11-0 when scoring 80 or more points.
- Tennessee is 12-0 when holding opponents to fewer than 80 points this season.
- Tennessee is 10-0 when playing at Thompson-Boling Arena this season and has a 12-game home court winning streak.
- 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. 2 Kentucky 78-77 on Feb. 24, 1993.
- UT is 23-12 (.657) when playing before crowds of 20,000 or larger at Thompson-Boling Arena. This year the Vols are 4-0 playing in front of 20,000 fans at home.
- 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.
- The Vols have recorded at least 10 steals in 10 of their last 13 games.
- Tennessee is getting an average of 23.0 points per game from its bench. The Vols' bench has contributed 391 points in 17 games this season.
- UT has recorded almost twice as many steals as its opponents. The Vols have 185 steals compared to just 100 by their opponents.
- Tennessee's opponents are averaging 19.6 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.
- While Tennessee's field goal percentage defense ranks among the worst in the SEC, the Vols have shot better than their opponent in 11 of their 17 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 1,359-887-2 in its 97th season of basketball.
- UT's 603 regular season Southeastern Conference victories rank third all-time in the SEC. Only Kentucky and Alabama have won more league games.
- Tennessee is 210-84 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 | Vanderbilt |
| 83.4 | Points | 70.2 |
| 72.9 | Opponent Points | 63.4 |
| +10.5 | Scoring Margin | +6.9 |
| .470 | Field Goal % | .456 |
| .462 | Opponent Field Goal % | .436 |
| .389 | Three-Point % | .391 |
| .362 | Opponent Three-Point % | .356 |
| .693 | Free Throw % | .700 |
| 34.4 | Rebounds | 32.3 |
| 37.2 | Opponent Rebounds | 31.9 |
| -2.8 | Rebounding Margin | +0.4 |
| 17.8 | Assists | 15.7 |
| 12.4 | Turnovers | 12.4 |
| 10.9 | Steals | 6.9 |
| 3.4 | Blocks | 3.6 |
| 14-3, 5-1 SEC | Record | 12-5, 3-3 SEC |
| Individual Statistical Leaders | ||
| Tennessee | Stat Category | Vanderbilt |
| Lofton, 16.4 | Points | Foster, 15.9 |
| Bradshaw, 6.4 | Rebounds | Terrell, 7.8 |
| Bradshaw/Watson, 4.2 | Assists | Byars, 3.6 |
| Wingate, .528 | Field Goal % | Carroll, .537 |
| Watson, .431 | Three-Point % | Cage, .475 |
| Lofton, .897 | Free Throw % | Cage, .933 |
Looking At Vanderbilt
Vanderbilt enters Wednesday's game with a 12-5 overall record and a 3-3 mark in the Southeastern Conference ... The Commodores are coming off a 58-81 loss at fifth-ranked Florida over the weekend ... Vandy owns an impressive win at Kentucky's Rupp Arena in addition to victories over Auburn and Mississippi State so far in conference play ... Outside of league play, the Commodores have posted wins at Georgetown, at Dayton and over Oregon ... Vanderbilt ranks second in the Southeastern Conference with a team 3-point field goal percentage of 39.1 ... The Commodores are third in the league with 7.76 triples per game ... Sophomore forward Shan Foster leads Vanderbilt and ranks fifth in the SEC with 15.9 points per game ... Foster is third in the league by making 43.5 percent of his 3-pointers and is making 3.18 3s per game, second only to UT's Chris Lofton ... Derrick Byars, a transfer from Virginia, is second on the team with 11.0 points per game in his first season at Vanderbilt ... DeMarre Carroll, a 6-foot-7 forward, averages 10.6 points and 5.5 rebounds and is making 53.7 percent of his field goals ... Julian Terrell, a 6-9 senior, is fourth in the SEC in rebounding with 7.8 boards per game and is adding 10.1 points ... The Commodores have had fat least four players score in double figures in five of their six SEC games ... Vanderbilt's bench is contributing 22.1 points per game this season ... Vanderbilt head coach Kevin Stallings is 117-88 in his seventh season at Vanderbilt and 240-151 in his 13th year as a head coach.
The Vanderbilt Series
Tennessee leads the all-time series 102-65 ... Vanderbilt has won three consecutive games in the series ... UT leads the series 62-16 when playing in Knoxville ... Vanderbilt leads 48-34 when it is played on the Commodores' home court ... Tennessee's 102 wins over Vanderbilt is the most by the Vols over any opponent ... Tennessee and Vanderbilt have played every season since their first meeting during the 1922 season except for the war years of 1944 and 1945 ... Only Kentucky has been an opponent of the Vols more times than Vanderbilt ... The Vols have played the Wildcats 199 times while Wednesday's game will be their 168th against the Commodores ... UT has won nine of the last 15 meetings between the schools and 13 of the last 22 games ... Tennessee has won more games at Vanderbilt (36) than any other place outside of Knoxville.
Tennessee - Vanderbilt Connections
UT head coach Bruce Pearl was an assistant coach to Dr. Tom Davis at Iowa for six seasons (1986-92) ... Two of the years Pearl was at Iowa, Vanderbilt head coach Kevin Stallings was on the Purdue bench (1979-1988) assisting the legendary Gene Keady ... Tennessee's Chris Lofton and Vanderbilt's Ross Neltner each earned Mr. Basketball honors in the state of Kentucky ... Neltner earned the honor in 2003 while Lofton received the award in 2004 ... C.J. Watson's sister, Vonyette, along with his grandparents live in Nashville.
Last Meeting With Vanderbilt
Vanderbilt withstood a late Tennessee run to sweep the season series with a 67-62 victory Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2005, at Memorial Gymnasium in Nashville ... Vanderbilt freshman Alex Gordon, who was making just his second career start, led all scorers with 30 points on 8-of-11 shooting from the field and 5-of-7 from 3-point range ... The Vols jumped out to a 15-6 lead early in the game but Gordon shot the Commodores back into the game, drilling a 3-pointer to tie the score 21-21 with 4:10 left in the half ... Vanderbilt closed the half on an 11-3 run to take a 32-27 advantage at the break ... The Commodores led by as many as nine points (42-33) in the second half but the Vols cut the lead to 58-57 on a three-point play by C.J. Watson with 2:31 remaining in the game ... That was all the closer UT could get as Corey Smith drilled a 3-pointer with just under two minutes left to give the Commodores a two-possession lead ... Chris Lofton led the Vols with 16 points while Watson added 14 and Scooter McFadgon had an even dozen ... Smith was the only other 'Dore in double figures with 19 points.
Last Game: Vols Sweep Gamecocks
Tennessee completed the season sweep of South Carolina with an 81-65 victory over the Gamecocks on Saturday, Jan. 28, at Thompson-Boling Arena ... The 19th-ranked Vols defeated USC 76-69 on Jan. 8 to open conference play ... South Carolina led by as many as seven points (22-15) in the first half but the Vols outscored the Gamecocks 18-6 over the final 9:34 of the first half to take a 33-28 advantage at half time ... Tennessee led the entire second half, two times building a lead that reached double-digits, but could never put USC away ... Tre' Kelley cut UT's lead to 69-63 with a 3-pointer with just over three minutes left but Dane Bradshaw answered with a traditional three-point play at the other end ... Kelley scored on a drive with 2:20 left to bring the Gamecocks to within seven points but USC did not score again as Tennessee finished the game on a 9-0 run ... Chris Lofton overcame an off-shooting night to lead all scorers with 23 points on 4-of-11 shooting from 3-point range and 5-of-5 shooting from the charity strip ... Lofton also tied his career mark with five steals ... Andre Patterson recorded his third consecutive double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds ... C.J. Watson added 11 points while Stanley Asumnu came off the bench to give 10 points, four rebounds and four assists ... Tarence Kinsey led USC with 12 points while Kelley and Dwayne Day each had 11 ... Tennessee was 15-of-21 at the free throw line while South Carolina was just 2-of-4 ... Tennessee shot 48.4 percent from the field, including 56.3 percent in the second half ... The Vols outrebounded USC 43-30.
Lineup Changes Paying Off
When Bruce Pearl substituted Andre Patterson for Stanley Asumnu in the starting lineup at Mississippi State (1/25/06) it started paying dividends immediately .... In each of his two games in the starting lineup, Patterson has recorded a double-double ... Against the Bulldogs he had 13 points and 11 rebounds and then against South Carolina (1/28/06) he registered 13 points and 12 rebounds ... Asumnu has also responded to the move ... In the two games coming off the bench he has averaged 11.0 points and 4.0 rebounds ... Against South Carolina he had 10 points, four rebounds, four assists, a steal and no turnovers ... In fact, Asumnu has been so effective coming off the bench that after the USC game Pearl joked that, "he was playing his way to the bench."
UT Crashing The Boards Last Two Games
Although Tennessee ranks last in the SEC in rebounding margin (-2.8) for the season, the Vols have outrebounded two of their last three opponents ... Tennessee had a 40-35 advantage on the boards against second-ranked Florida (1/21/06) and a 43-30 margin over South Carolina (1/28/06) ... In league play, Tennessee ranks ninth in the SEC with a -1.2 rebounding margin.
Dunk You
When C.J. Watson picked off a South Carolina (1/28/06) pass and finished the fast break with a dunk, it marked the first time all season that the starting point guard (Watson), shooting guard (Chris Lofton) or power forward (Dane Bradshaw) position had dunked the ball for the Vols.
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 ranks among Tennessee's top 25 all-time scorers and is second in assists and steals.
- Watson ranks 24th all-time at UT with 1,235 career points.
- His 531 career assists are second only to Johnny Darden's (1975-79) 715 career assists.
- He ranks second in school history with 180 career steals. Vincent Yarbrough (1998-02) is UT's record holder with 211 career thefts.
A Band Of Thieves
Tennessee's pressure defense has given its opponents all kinds of trouble this season as the Vols' opponents are averaging 19.6 turnovers per game. - UT leads the SEC in steals (10.88 spg) and turnover margin (+7.24).
- Three Vols rank in the top five in the SEC in steals. Chris Lofton is second (2.47 spg), C.J. Watson is third (2.41 spg) and Dane Bradshaw is fifth (2.00 spg).
- Bradshaw leads the league in assist-to-turnover ratio (3.00) while Watson is second (2.37).
- The Vols have had more assists than turnovers in 14 of their 17 games this year.
- On the season, UT has 302 assists to 211 turnovers (1.43 assists-to-turnovers).
- Conversely, the Vols' opponents have had more turnovers than assists in 12 of 17 games (0.79 assists-to-turnovers).
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 603-481 mark in league games ... Only Kentucky (827) and Alabama (678) have won more SEC games.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 120 3-pointers in 17 games this season ... UT leads the SEC and ranks 22nd in the nation with 8.47 3-pointers per game ... The Vols are making 38.9 percent of their 3s, a figure that ranks third in the SEC and 19th nationally. - Lofton is leading the SEC and ranks seventh in the nation with 3.59 triples per game. He is shooting 43.0 percent (61-of-142) from behind the arc.
- Watson has improved upon his 37.5 percent shooting last season to convert 43.1 (28-of-65) 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 31 3-pointers on the season.
- Lofton, Watson and Smith are not the only 3-point bombers on the Vols' roster. Jordan Howell has made 45.5 percent (10-of-22) 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).
Bench Mob
The day before Tennessee's game against second-ranked Florida (1/21/06), head coach Bruce Pearl passed out t-shirts that had the words "Bench Mob" printed on them to recognize the impact of the players coming off the bench ... Although some of the starters liked the shirts and wanted one, only players who came off the bench were allowed one ... Tennessee's bench has played key roles in some of the Vols' biggest victories ... The Vols are getting an average of 23.0 points (391 points in 17 games) per game from its bench this season. - The Vols got 29 points from their bench in the upset of No. 2 Florida (1/21/06), including 12 points and 10 rebounds from Andre Patterson.
- The bench also contributed 31 points in UT's 95-78 win at No. 6 Texas. JaJuan Smith and Andre Patterson each had 12 points.
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 9.2 +6.8 ppg Smith 1.9 8.7 +6.8 ppg Wingate 5.0 11.0 +6.0 ppg Bradshaw 3.0 7.4 +4.4 ppg Watson 11.9 15.8 +3.9 ppg Lofton 13.2 16.4 +3.2 ppg Patterson 7.4 10.1 +2.7 ppg Howell 1.1 2.4 +1.3 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 ... Three times UT has had home crowds of more than 20,000 ... Entering this season, there had been only one home crowd of 20,000 or more this decade. - Tennessee ranks second in the SEC in home attendance with an average of 16,863. Kentucky leads the league with 22,373.
- The Vols' attendance of 16,863 this season is an increase of 4,413 fans per game over last year's average of 12,450 per game.
- In SEC games, UT is averaging 21,897 fans per game.
- Four times this season Tennessee has had crowds in excess of 20,000. The record for 20,000 crowds in a season is seven in the Arena's first season (1987-88).
- If the season were to end today, Tennessee's average attendance of 16,863 would rank fourth all-time in school history and the best since the Vols averaged 17,524 fans in the Arena's third year (1989-90)
- 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.
- 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.
Improved Vols
Tennessee is ranked 13th by the Associated Press and 16th by ESPN/USA Today in the Jan. 30 polls ... The No. 13 ranking is the Vols' highest since being ranked 10th in the Feb. 5, 2001 Associated Press Poll ... This is the first season since 2000-01 that the Vols have been ranked ... That year, UT peaked at No. 4 in the Associated Press Poll.Date Associated Press ESPN/USA Today Dec. 19 23rd rv Dec. 26 rv rv Jan. 2 rv rv Jan. 9 rv rv Jan. 16 rv rv Jan. 23 19th 20th Jan. 30 13th 16th
Vols In The NCAA Stats
Tennessee is prominently listed among the national leaders according to the Jan. 23 NCAA statistics. Following is where the Vols rank nationally: - Scoring offense: 83.3 ppg / 3rd
- Steals per game: 11.0 spg / 3rd
- Assists per game: 17.8 apg / 15th
- 3-point percentage: 39.8 percent / 19th
- Turnovers per game: 12.3 tpg / 19th
- 3-pointers per game: 8.6 3pg / 22nd
- Scoring margin: +9.3 ppg / 48th
- 3-pointers per game: Chris Lofton - 3.7 3pg / 7th
- 3-point percentage: Chris Lofton - 44.0 % / 26th
- FT percentage: C. J. Watson - 86.7 % / 31st
- Steals per game: C.J. Watson - 2.3 spg / 40th
- Steals per game: Chris Lofton - 2.3 spg / 40th
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, IonaLofton & Watson Earn SEC Player Of The Week Honors
Three times this season a Tennessee player has earned SEC Player of the Week honors ... Chris Lofton has earned the honor two times and C.J. Watson has been named recipient of the award one time. - Watson took home player of the week honors Dec. 12 after scoring a season-high 23 points against Appalachian State Dec. 5.
- 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.
- Lofton won the award again on Jan. 23 following a 29-point performance in Tennessee's victory over then-No. 2 Florida.
Watson 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 531 assists in 106 career games ... Watson, who also has 1,235 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 531 career assists rank second all-time in Tennessee history.
- His 531 career assists are 13th on the SEC's career lists. Kentucky's Anthony Epps (1994-97) and LSU's Torris Bright (2000-03) rank 12th in SEC history with 544 career assists.
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 1,235 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 15.8 points and 4.33 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 531.
- His 531 career assists are second all-time at UT.
- He ranks 13th in SEC history in assists with 531.
- Watson's 4.33 assists per game are currently seventh 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 16.4 points per game and is second in the league with 2.47 steals per game.
- With 61 3-pointers already this season, Lofton ranks seventh on Tennessee's career lists with 154.
- He is currently leading the Southeastern Conference with 3.59 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 (6.4 rpg) and assists (4.2 apg) and is third in steals (2.00 spg) and blocks (0.5 bpg).
- His assist-to-turnover ratio of 3.00 leads the SEC.
- His 2.00 steals per game are fifth in the SEC.
- His 4.24 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 11.0 points per game.
- Wingate has scored in double-figures in 11 of UT's 17 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 24.2 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 16 of Tennessee's 17 games this season, is averaging 8.7 points per game ... His 32 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 48.9 percent (67-of-137) from the field and is averaging 10.1 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 17 games he is averaging 9.2 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.
Howell & Childress Seeing Roles Grow
Sophomore guard Jordan Howell and freshman forward Ryan Childress are playing a more prominent role for the Vols over the last three games ... In UT's first 14 games this season, Howell averaged just 7.8 minutes and Childress carded 7.1 minutes per game ... Over the Vols' last three games, Howell has seen his role grow to 10.0 minutes and Childress is averaging 9.7 minutes per game. - Against No. 2 Florida (1/21/06) Howell had four points in 11 minutes but more importantly handled the point guard duties flawlessly when C.J. Watson fouled out with three minutes to go.
- Childress had three points, three rebounds and drew to big charges against the second-ranked Gators. He scored five points to go with two rebounds and two assists against Mississippi State (1/25/06).
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.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 210-84 (.714) in its 19th season in Thompson-Boling Arena.
- Since the 1998 season, the Vols are 111-25 (.816) in Thompson-Boling Arena.
- The Vols are 50-16 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.
