| VOLS CLOSE OUT EXHIBITION SLATE AGAINST TUSCULUM
- The Tennessee Volunteers will play their final preseason exhibition game Friday, Nov. 3, when the Tusculum College Pioneers visit Thompson-Boling Arena. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
- UT made its first 18 shots on its way to a 126-66 win over LeMoyne-Owen in the Vols' first exhibition game on Tuesday, Oct. 31. JaJuan Smith led all scorers with 22 points on 8-of-11 shooting. The 126 points are the most Tennessee has ever scored in an exhibition or regular season game.
- Tennessee is 50-16 all-time in exhibition games and has won 27 of its last 29 home exhibition contests.
- The Vols return two starters, including their top scorer from last season. Chris Lofton, a preseason Wooden Award candidate, led the Vols with 17.2 points in 2005-06 while making 114 3-pointers, the second-highest total in Southeastern Conference history. Dane Bradshaw, the lone senior on the squad, returns after averaging 7.1 points and 5.4 rebounds while leading the SEC in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.76). One of the best sixth-men in the league last season, junior guard JaJuan Smith averaged 9.5 points last year.
- Tennessee will officially open the 2006-07 season at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 10, when the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders come to Knoxville.
Tennessee Trends
- UT is faced with replacing more than half of its scoring (54 percent), rebounds (51.8) and minutes played (51.3%) from the 2005-06 squad.
- UT's roster lists just three scholarship players taller than 6-foot-5. Duke Crews (6-8), Wayne Chism (6-9) and Ryan Childress (6-9) are the only Vols topping the 6-5 mark.
- In 2005-06 games, Tennessee's SEC opponents had a 4-12 record in the game immediately following their contests against the Vols. The only teams to win their next game after playing UT were Arkansas, Georgia, LSU and Vanderbilt.
- Under Bruce Pearl, UT is 18-2 when leading or tied with five minutes left in the game.
- UT is 14-0 when scoring 80 or more points under the direction of Bruce Pearl.
- UT is 23-14 (.622) when playing before crowds of 20,000 or larger at Thompson-Boling Arena. In 2005-06 the Vols were 4-2 playing in front of 20,000 fans at home.
- Tennessee has an all-time record of 1,367-892-2 in 98 seasons of basketball.
- UT's 610 regular season Southeastern Conference victories rank third all-time in the SEC. Only Kentucky and Alabama have won more league games.
- Tennessee is 213-86 in its 20th season in Thompson-Boling Arena. The Volunteers have posted winning home records in 17 of their 19 seasons in the facility.
Tennessee In Exhibition Games
The Vols are 50-16 all-time in exhibition games, including a 41-8 mark in home exhibition games ... Tennessee has won 27 of its last 29 home exhibition games dating back to the 1992 season ... Last year the Vols swept both of their exhibition games with an 86-78 win over Southern Indiana and a 106-73 win over Carson-Newman ... UT opened 2006-07 with a 126-66 exhibition win over LeMoyne-Owen Oct. 31. UT Partners With "Coats For The Cold"
The University of Tennessee Athletics Department has partnered with "Coats for the Cold" for Friday's exhibition game ... Any fan who brings a winter coat for "Coats for the Cold" to the UT ticket office at Thompson-Boling Arena beginning 90 minutes before the game will receive a free ticket for the men's game against Tusculum on Friday, Nov. 3 ... The game tips off at 7:30 p.m. on Friday ... Gates will open at 6 p.m ... Parking for the game is free and available on a first-come, first-served basis. Experimental Rule Used In Exhibition Games
The NCAA Men's Basketball Rules Committee is experimenting with eliminating the first lane space nearest the basket on each side of the lane and using the present, second, third and fourth marked lane spaces on each side of the lane. Looking At Tusculum College
The Pioneers dropped their exhibition opener 82-58 at Xavier University Wednesday in Cincinnati ... Tusculum returns a pair of starters and a total of seven letterwinners from last season's team that posted a 14-15 overall record ... Last year TC won 10 of its first 14 games before hitting a skid that saw it lose its final five regular season games ... The Pioneers have plenty of experience on their roster with six seniors listed, however there are also nine newcomers to the team ... Junior forward Jordan Lear and senior guard Chris Poore are preseason All-South Atlantic Conference selections ... Lear, a 6-foot-7 forward who started his collegiate career as a punter on the University of Cincinnati's football team, led the Pioneers with 14.4 points while shooting 50.5 percent from the field ... Greeneville, Tenn., native Poore averaged 13.1 points while leading the squad with 5.7 rebounds per game ... Head coach Jim Boone recorded a 14-15 record in his first season in Greeneville and owns a 335-248 career record in 20 seasons at California (Pa.), Robert Morris and Eastern Michigan. The Tusculum Series
This is just the second meeting between the schools in the last 62 years ... The Vols hold a 10-2 all-time series advantage, including a 9-0 mark when the games are played in Knoxville ... Tennessee has won the last six meetings between the teams ... The series returned from a 60 year break in November 2004 when the Vols hosted the Pioneers in an exhibition contest ... That exhibition game resulted in a 117-89 victory for the Vols on Nov. 5, 2004 ... The last meeting prior to the one two years ago was a 49-17 Vols win on Dec. 15, 1944 ... The series dates back more than 90 years to Feb. 13, 1911 when UT defeated TC 45-26. Last Meeting With Tusculum
Scooter McFadgon paced a balanced Tennessee scoring attack in a 117-89 win over Tusculum in the Volunteers' exhibition opener Nov. 5, 2004 ... Five Vols scored in double-figures, including McFadgon's game-high 20 points ... Andre Patterson, who was making his first appearance in a Tennessee uniform, had 19 points to go with a game-high nine rebounds ... Brandon Crump added 17 points ... Freshman Chris Lofton had 16 points in his UT debut ... Point guard C.J. Watson turned in a stellar performance running the Vols' offense with 15 points and 10 assists ... The Vols made their first nine 3-point attempts and finished the game 16-of-30 (53.3 percent) from behind the arc ... UT's 16 3-pointers in the contest would have been a school record if exhibition contests counted ... Division II Tusculum was led by Drew Harmon's 16 points ... The Pioneers shot 49.2 percent from the field and made 15-of-36 (41.7 percent) of their 3-pointers. Last Game: Vols Run Over LeMoyne-Owen
Tennessee hit its first 18 field goal attempts on its way to a 126-66 exhibition win over LeMoyne-Owen Tuesday, Oct. 31 ... The Vols shot 80.6 percent from the field in the first half en route to a 76-29 halftime lead ... The 126 points are the most a Tennessee team has scored in a game ... The previous record for an exhibition game was 119 against St. Mary's of Canada on Dec. 13, 1975 ... The school record for points in a regular season game is 121 against Mexico on Jan. 24, 1966 ... 13 of the 14 Vols who saw action against the Magicians scored at least two points ... Seven Vols reached double figure scoring ... Junior guard JaJuan Smith led all scorers with 22 points on 8-of-11 shooting ... Freshman Wayne Chism and sophomore Tony Passley, both making their debut in Tennessee uniforms, each added 17 points ... Freshmen Duke Crews and Ramar Smith each had 12 points ... Jihad Sharif led LeMoyne-Owen with 14 points. Vols Enter 20th Season At Thompson-Boling
Thompson-Boling Arena is celebrating its 20th season in 2005-06 ... The Vols have won 71.2 percent of their games in Thompson-Boling Arena and have ranked in the top 10 nationally in attendance nine times, including in 2005-06 when UT ranked fifth nationally with 17,954 fans per game ... The arena is getting ready to undergo its first major facelift as construction has already begun on a practice facility and construction will begin on the inside of the arena immediately following the 2006-07 season. - In October 2006 Tennessee Athletics had a ground-breaking ceremony to officially recognize construction on the Pratt Pavilion, the state-of-art basketball practice facility named in UT alumnus Larry F. Pratt's honor for his $5 million lead gift to the basketball programs. The Pratt Pavilion will house two full-size gymnasiums, one for each of the men's and women's varsity basketball teams, as well as space for an athletic training room, a weight room and a film study room.
- Thompson-Boling Arena will receive a dramatic facelift prior to the 2007-08 basketball season. With all new black seats, a center hung scoreboard, renovated concourses, 32 luxury suites and 160 loge seats, Thompson-Boling Arena will look and feel like a state-of-the-art arena ready for its next 20 years of service.
Thompson-Boling Provides Homecourt 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 213-86 (.712) entering its 20th season in Thompson-Boling Arena.
- Since the 1998 season, the Vols are 114-27 (.809) in Thompson-Boling Arena.
- The Vols are 52-20 against SEC teams at home over the last nine seasons.
- UT has won 67 of its last 74 home games against non-conference opponents.
Bomb Squad Returns
Tennessee returns 80.3 percent of its SEC-leading 8.80 3-point field goals per game from last season ... Leading the way is junior guard Chris Lofton who set a single-season school record with 114 triples in 2005-06 ... Junior JaJuan Smith was second on the team with 61 treys while senior Dane Bradshaw contributed 20 3-pointers and Jordan Howell had 15 ... Tennessee's 264 3-pointers in 2005-06 fell two shy of tying the school record set in 1999-2000. Lofton A Preseason Wooden Award Candidate
Junior guard Chris Lofton was named one of the top 50 preseason candidates for the 2006-07 Wooden Award All-American Team on Oct. 25 ... The Maysville, Ky., native was one of six players from the Southeastern Conference named to the watch list ... A finalist for the 2005-06 Wooden All-American Team, Lofton led the Vols with 17.2 points while breaking the school record for 3-pointers in a season with 114, the second-highest total in SEC history ... In January, the Wooden Award committee will release the midseason top 30 followed by the national ballot in early March ... On Tuesday, March 27, the 10-player Wooden Award All-American Team will be announced. Lofton Earns Honors From SEC Coaches
Chris Lofton was a first team selection on the 2007 SEC Coaches Preseason All-SEC Team ... Lofton joined Alabama's Ronald Steele, Florida's Joakim Noah and LSU's Glen Davis as unanimous selections ... As a sophomore in 2005-06, the Maysville, Ky., native was a consensus All-SEC selection after averaging 17.2 points per game and making 114 3-pointers, the second-highest total in SEC history. Lofton Nearing 1,000 Points
Chris Lofton enters his junior season needing 73 points to become the 39th player in school history to reach the 1,000 career point mark ... The Maysville, Ky., native has scored 927 points in his first 61 games at Tennessee ... Only Allan Houston (1,415), Bernard King (1,290), Mike Edwards (962) and Ernie Grunfeld (928) scored more points in their first two seasons at Tennessee. Lofton Hits Them Often
Chris Lofton has established himself as one of the top shooters in the nation in his first two seasons on Rocky Top ... As a sophomore in 2005-06 he set school records for 3-pointers made (9) and attempted (18) in a game and 3-pointers made (114), attempted (261) and 3-pointers per game (3.80) in a single-season ... His 43.7 3-point percentage (114-of-261) was the third-best percentage in school history and was best in the nation among players who had at least 260 attempts. Bradshaw Does It All
One of the most versatile players in the nation, Dane Bradshaw can and will play any position for the Vols from point guard through power forward ... Originally recruited to UT as a point guard, the 6-foot-4 Bradshaw started every game last season at power forward for the Vols ... In 2005-06 the Memphis native was second on the team in assists (116), rebounding (5.4 rpg), and third in steals (56) and blocks (11) while his assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.76 led the SEC ... 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). JaJuan Smith Looking For Starting Role
Named the "Best Player Off The Bench" in the SEC by The Tennessean, JaJuan Smith is looking to work his way into the starting lineup for the Vols this season ... The Cleveland, Tenn., native saw his minutes increase from 8.0 per game as a freshman in 2005 to 24.0 as a sophomore last season ... Smith saw his production increase along with his minutes as he averaged 11.3 points against SEC opponents 2005-06 ... His 61 3-pointers ranked second and 57 assists were third on the team last season. |
