University of Tennessee Athletics
TENNESSEE VS. ALABAMA -- GAME PREVIEW
February 17, 2006 | Men's Basketball
Feb. 17, 2006
| QUICK FACTS | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
RADIO: TELEVISION: LIVE STATS: RANKINGS: THE COACHES: Alabama Crimson Tide | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FEATURES | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tennessee Trends
- A win Saturday against Alabama would give the Vols a 20-3 record. It would tie for the fastest to 20-wins in school history. The fastest UT has ever reached the 20-win mark was in 1999-2000 when the Vols won 20 of their first 23 contests.
- Tennessee needs one win to achieve the 19th 20-win season in school history.
- Bruce Pearl needs one more victory to mark the 13th 20-win season season in 14 years as a head coach.
- Over the last three games, UT has shot 45.6 percent (36-of-79) from 3-point range and is averaging 12.0 3-pointers per game.
- Tennessee's eight-game SEC winning streak is its longest since the 1981-82 season when the Vols opened SEC play with nine consecutive wins.
- Tennessee's 10-1 start in SEC action is its best since opening the 1976-77 campaign with a 10-1 record. The Vols went on to finish 16-2 in the league and tie for first in the SEC standings.
- Chris Lofton's 31 points against Kentucky are tied for the most by a Vol in Rupp Arena. Dale Ellis (1983) and Allan Houston (1993) also poured in 31 points against the 'Cats in Rupp Arena.
- The Vols are 14-0 when scoring 80 or more points.
- Tennessee is 13-0 when playing at Thompson-Boling Arena this season and has a 15-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 14 of their 22 games.
- Tennessee is getting an average of 22.8 points per game from its bench. The Vols' bench has contributed 501 points in 22 games this season.
- UT has recorded almost 100 more steals than its opponents. The Vols have 229 steals compared to just 133 by their opponents.
- Tennessee's opponents are averaging 19.1 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. Ten times this season UT's opponents have turned the ball over at least 20 times.
- 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.
- 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 1,364-887-2 in its 97th season of basketball.
- UT's 608 regular season Southeastern Conference victories rank third all-time in the SEC. Only Kentucky and Alabama have won more league games.
- Tennessee is 213-84 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 | Alabama |
| 83.5 | Points | 69.7 |
| 73.1 | Opponent Points | 66.3 |
| +10.4 | Scoring Margin | +3.3 |
| .472 | Field Goal % | .455 |
| .467 | Opponent Field Goal % | .420 |
| .393 | Three-Point % | .327 |
| .370 | Opponent Three-Point % | .352 |
| .701 | Free Throw % | .706 |
| 34.1 | Rebounds | 36.2 |
| 36.5 | Opponent Rebounds | 32.7 |
| -2.4 | Rebounding Margin | +3.6 |
| 18.1 | Assists | 12.3 |
| 12.5 | Turnovers | 13.0 |
| 10.4 | Steals | 6.7 |
| 3.1 | Blocks | 5.7 |
| 19-3, 10-1 SEC | Record | 14-9, 7-4 SEC |
| Individual Statistical Leaders | ||
| Tennessee | Stat Category | Alabama |
| Lofton, 17.6 | Points | Davidson, 13.9 |
| Patterson, 6.6 | Rebounds | Davidson, 8.8 |
| Bradshaw/Watson, 4.4 | Assists | Steele, 3.8 |
| Wingate, .552 | Field Goal % | Hendrix, .563 |
| Lofton, .465 | Three-Point % | Jonus, .435 |
| Lofton, .929 | Free Throw % | Steele, .905 |
Looking At Alabama
Alabama enters Saturday's contest with a 14-9 overall record and a 7-4 mark in Southeastern Conference games ... The Crimson Tide are in second place in the SEC's Western Division, two games behind LSU ... Alabama saw its three-game SEC winning streak come to an end at South Carolina Tuesday night ... The Gamecocks edged the Tide 67-56 in Columbia ... Prior to the USC game, Alabama had posted wins over LSU, Vanderbilt and at Mississippi ... Jermareo Davidson, a 6-foot-10 junior forward, leads UA with 13.9 points per game and ranks third in the SEC with 8.8 rebounds per game ... Sophomore point guard Ronald Steele is second on the team with 13.1 points while leading the squad with 3.78 assists per game ... Steele leads the SEC in free throw percentage, making 90.5 of his charity attempts ... Freshman forward Richard Hendrix is averaging 9.7 points on the season and has improved his numbers to 11.3 points per game in league play ... Hendrix is second on the team and fifth in the SEC with 7.6 rebounds per game ... In SEC games he is averaging 9.0 rebounds per game ... A pair of Alabama players rank among the top five in the SEC in minutes played ... Steele leads the SEC with 38.04 minutes and Davidson is fourth with 34.52 minutes per game ... In league games, Steele is averaging 40.45 minutes per game ... Alabama is one of the top rebounding teams in the SEC, ranking third with a rebounding margin of +3.6 ... The Crimson Tide ranks third in the SEC with 5.65 blocked shots per game ... Chuck Davis, a 6-8 senior forward, suffered a torn ACL and MCL against Mississippi on Jan. 7 that ended his season and collegiate career ... A preseason first team All-SEC selection, Davis was leading the Tide with 16.5 points per game at the time of the injury ... Mark Gottfried is 156-92 in his eighth season at Alabama and 224-116 in 11 years as a head coach.
The Alabama Series
Alabama leads the all-time series 70-61 ... UA leads the series 40-15 when it is played in Tuscaloosa ... Alabama has won the last six meetings in the series ... Since a 70-69 overtime win on Jan. 3, 1981, UT has lost 15 of its last 16 games against the Crimson Tide when playing in Tuscaloosa ... The Vols' lone win in Tuscaloosa since 1981 came in 1998 when UT won 84-70 (1/28/98) ... Tennessee holds a decisive 43-19 advantage when playing in Knoxville ...Tennessee and Alabama have met 13 times in the SEC Tournament with the Tide holding a 9-4 series lead ... Tennessee won the first meeting, 49-13 between the two schools on Feb. 6, 1914 ... The Tennessee-Alabama rivalry is UT's third-oldest in the SEC ... Only Tennessee's series with Kentucky (1910) and Georgia (1913) date back further.
Alabama Connections
A pair of former Murray State head coaches are on the benches for Saturday's game ... Tennessee assistant coach Scott Edgar posted a 78-40 record for the Racers from 1992-95 ... Alabama head coach Mark Gottfried followed him at Murray State and registered a 68-24 record from 1995-98 ... Edgar also spent three seasons (2003-05) coaching in Birmingham at UAB ... Alabama assistant coach Tom Asbury got his first coaching job as an assistant at the University of Wyoming in 1976-77 ... Asbury has gone on to a distinguished coaching career that has included head coaching stints at Pepperdine and Kansas State ... The head coach who gave Asbury his first job on the bench was Don DeVoe, who spent two seasons (1976-78) in Laramie before being named the head coach at Tennessee ... Jordan Howell, a sophomore guard for the Vols, is a native of Auburn, Ala.
Last Meeting With Alabama
Seventeenth-ranked Alabama shot 55.1 percent from the field and dominated the boards in taking a 72-54 win over Tennessee at Thompson-Boling Arena Jan. 9, 2005 ... Tennessee owned an 18-15 lead in the first half but Alabama went on a 10-2 run to regain control and eventually take a 30-25 lead into the locker room ... UT cut the lead to three points on an Andre Patterson dunk to open the second half but could get no closer as the Tide went on a 12-4 run ... Alabama outrebounded Tennessee 23-6 in the first half and finished the game with an impressive 43-19 edge on the boards ... The Tide entered the game as one of the best defensive teams in the SEC and held the Vols to a season-low 35.7 percent shooting ... Tennessee forced 20 Alabama turnovers ... Brandon Crump returned to the lineup after missing four games because of a sprained ankle he suffered against Louisville on Jan. 22 ... Crump played 15 minutes and had two points and two rebounds ... C.J. Watson led the Vols with 15 points and four assists ... Chris Lofton was 3-of-5 from 3-point range to add nine points ... Scooter McFadgon, Dane Bradshaw and JaJuan Smith each added six points ... Four Alabama players scored in double figures and were led by Kennedy Winston's 18 points ... Chuck Davis (16 points, 13 rebounds) and Jermareo Davidson (16 points, 14 rebounds) each recorded double-doubles.
Last Game: Vols Score 105 In Win Over Auburn
Tennessee set a school record for 3-pointers in a single game in a 105-89 win over Auburn Wednesday, Feb. 15, in Knoxville ... The Vols' made 16-of-29 3-pointers to break the previous record of 15 (set two times) for most 3-pointers in a single game ... Sophomore guard Chris Lofton led the Vols with seven (7-of-11) 3-pointers while JaJuan Smith added a career-high five (5-of-8) 3-pointers ... Tennessee opened the game with an 8-0 run and never let the Tigers get closer than five points the rest of the game ... The Vols shot 56.5 percent from the field and 55.2 percent from 3-point range ... Auburn shot 56.1 percent from the field and 63.2 percent from 3-point distance ... Six Vols scored in double figures for the first time since the 2000-01 season ... Lofton led all scorers with 25 points while Smith added a career-high 19 points ... C.J. Watson added 18 points and Andre Patterson threw in 15 points to go with seven rebounds ... Major Wingate added 12 points while Stanley Asumnu had 10 ... Ronny LeMelle led the Tigers with 19 points and nine rebounds.
Vols' 10-1 SEC Start Tied For Best In History
Tennessee's 10-1 start in conference play is tied for the the best league start in school history ... The Vols also started the 1975-76 and 1976-77 seasons by winning 10 of their first 11 league games.
Vols Have Won Eight Consecutive SEC Games
| Rnk. | Wins | Year |
| 1. | 10 | 1976-77 |
| 2. | 9 | 1981-82 |
| 9 | 1964-65 | |
| 4. | 8 | 2005-06 |
| 8 | 1975-76 | |
| 8 | 1972-73 |
School Records For 3s Falling
Tennessee has broken school records for 3-pointers in a game in each of the Vols' last two games ... Against Georgia (2/11/06) Chris Lofton broke Allan Houston's school record for 3-pointers in a game when he drilled nine 3-pointers against the Bulldogs ... Against Auburn (2/15/06) the Vols broke the team record for 3-pointers in a game when UT made 16 triples against the Tigers.
ESPN's The Season Follows The Vols
| Date | Time | Channel |
| Feb. 22 | 7:30 p.m. EST | ESPN2 |
| Feb. 26 | 12:30 a.m. EST | ESPN2 |
| March 1 | 7:30 p.m. EST | ESPN2 |
| March 3 | 1:30 a.m. EST | ESPN2 |
| March 7 | 3:30 p.m. EST | ESPN2 |
Vols & Lofton Receive National Honors
After scoring road wins at Kentucky (2/7/06) and at Georgia (2/11/06), Tennessee was named the national Team of the Week on Feb. 13 by Mike DeCourcy of SportingNews.com ... In addition to being named the SEC Player of the Week on Feb. 13, Chris Lofton was named the national Player of the Week by ESPN.com and FOXSports.com ... Lofton made 16-of-22 3-pointers while averaging 32.0 points in the Vols' games against the Wildcats and Bulldogs.
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 20th all-time at UT with 1,303 career points.
- His 556 career assists are second only to Johnny Darden's (1975-79) 715 career assists. The 556 career assists rank 11th in Southeastern Conference history.
- He ranks second in school history with 188 career steals. Vincent Yarbrough (1998-02) is UT's record holder with 211 career thefts.
Lofton 3s
Sophomore sharpshooter Chris Lofton had a week for the ages in leading the Vols to wins at Kentucky (2/7/06) and at Georgia (2/11/06) ... In the two games he averaged 32.0 points on 72.7 percent (16-of-22) 3-point shooting to go with 6.5 rebounds ... On the season he is leading Tennessee with 17.6 points per game ... He is making an SEC-best 3.91 3-pointers per game and is shooting 46.5 percent from behind the arc ... He also ranks third in the SEC with 2.09 steals per game. - Against Kentucky, the Maysville, Ky., native recorded a career-high 31 points on 7-of-10 shooting from 3-point range in leading the Vols to a 75-67 win. It is just UT's fourth win in 31 trips to play UK in Rupp Arena.
- His 31 points against Kentucky are tied for the most by a Vol in Rupp Arena. Dale Ellis (1983) and Allan Houston (1993) also poured in 31 points against the 'Cats in Rupp Arena.
- At Georgia he had his second career-high in as many games with 33 points on 9-of-12 3-point shooting in leading UT to an 83-78 win.
- Lofton's nine 3-pointers at Georgia broke Allan Houston's single-game school record of eight 3-pointers he set against Fordham (12/29/89).
- His nine 3-pointers against the Bulldogs are tied for fifth on the Southeastern Conference's single-game lists. They are tied for the third-most in a conference game.
- He became the first Vol since Allan Houston in 1993 to have 30 or more points in back-to-back games. Houston had 31 vs. South Carolina (1/6/93) and 31 vs. Kentucky (1/9/93).
- 86 3-pointers this season rank third on UT's single-season lists.
- Just a sophomore, he ranks in a tie for fifth all-time at UT with 179 career 3-pointers made.
- Following a 6-of-7 shooting performance at South Carolina (1/8/06), Dane Bradshaw was quoted saying, "Chris (Lofton) is like a 9-0 run himself."
Pearl Being Mentioned For Coach Of The Year
Having led the Vols to a 19-3 overall record and a No. 8 national ranking, Tennessee head coach Bruce Pearl has been receiving some mention as a candidate for national coach of the year from media around the country. - Seth Davis of SI.com listed Pearl as one of his 10 candidates for national coach of the year ... Davis selected Pearl No. 2 on his list, which was released Feb. 2.
- ESPN.com's Pat Forde called Pearl the "Coach of the Year in college hoops" in his Jan. 22 column about UT's victory over second-ranked Florida.
- FOXSports.com's Frank Burlison wrote, "he has to be considered the leading candidate for the COY hardware" on Feb. 11.
- Kevin Scarbinsky of the Birmingham News wrote, "Pearl is all but a lock to be named SEC coach of the year and contend for national honors" in a Jan. 23 column
- Pearl was also the national coach of the year selection of the Syracuse (N.Y.) Post-Standard's Kim Baxter in a Jan. 29 article.
Pearl Is A League Leader
Against Alabama, Bruce Pearl will be coaching his 53rd consecutive regular season league game where his team has either been in first place or within a game of first place ... The streak began at UW-Milwaukee where he coached 41 consecutive games in that situation and it has continued entering his 12th SEC game at Tennessee ... The Vols are currently leading the SEC with a 10-1 conference mark ... The last time Pearl was not within a game of first place was Jan. 23, 2003 when UWM was entering a game with Butler, 1 1/2 games behind the Bulldogs in the conference standings ... The Panthers won that contest to move to within a half game of Butler and eventually took over the league lead.Streak's Alive
With a 69-62 win over Vanderbilt, Bruce Pearl was assured of a winning record in his first season as Tennessee's head coach ... Pearl, who owns a 336-87 record in his 14th season as a head coach, has never had a losing season as a head coach.SEC Throwback Week Starts Saturday
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.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 four of the seven games since being inserted into the starting lineup, Patterson has recorded double-figure rebounds ... 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 seven games coming off the bench he has averaged 8.6 points and 2.9 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 0.3 turnovers ... 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."A Band Of Thieves
Tennessee's pressure defense has given its opponents all kinds of trouble this season as the Vols' opponents are averaging 19.1 turnovers per game. - UT leads the SEC in steals (10.41 spg) and turnover margin (+6.64).
- Three Vols rank in the top seven in the SEC in steals. C.J. Watson is second (2.23 spg), Chris Lofton is third (2.09 spg) and Dane Bradshaw is seventh (1.86 spg).
- Bradshaw leads the league in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.82) while Watson is second (2.46).
- The Vols have had more assists than turnovers in 18 of their 22 games this year.
- On the season, UT has 399 assists to 275 turnovers (1.45 assists-to-turnovers).
- Conversely, the Vols' opponents have had more turnovers than assists in 15 of 22 games (0.82 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 608-481 mark in league games ... Only Kentucky (829) and Alabama (681) 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 has combined to make 163 3-pointers in 22 games this season ... UT leads the SEC and ranks 28th in the nation with 8.68 3-pointers per game ... The Vols are making 39.3 percent of their 3s, a figure that ranks third in the SEC and 42nd nationally. - Lofton is leading the SEC and ranks sixth in the nation with 3.91 triples per game. He is shooting 46.5 percent (86-of-185) from behind the arc.
- Watson has improved upon his 37.5 percent shooting last season to convert 42.2 (35-of-83) 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 42 3-pointers on the season.
- Lofton, Watson and Smith are not the only 3-point bombers on the Vols' roster. Jordan Howell has made 39.3 percent (11-of-28) 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 22.8 points (501 points in 22 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 improvements account for an additional 35.5 points per game ... Five players have 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 Smith 1.9 9.6 +7.7 ppg Asumnu 2.4 8.9 +6.5 ppg Wingate 5.0 10.9 +5.9 ppg Lofton 13.2 17.4 +4.4 ppg Bradshaw 3.0 7.1 +4.1 ppg Watson 11.9 15.3 +3.4 ppg Patterson 7.4 10.0 +2.6 ppg Howell 1.1 2.0 +0.9 ppg
Vols In The NCAA Stats
Tennessee is prominently listed among the national leaders according to the Feb. 13 NCAA statistics. Following is where the Vols rank nationally: - Steals per game: 10.3 spg / 5th
- Scoring offense: 82.4 ppg / 6th
- Assists per game: 18.0 apg / 9th
- Scoring margin: +10.1 ppg / 26th
- 3-pointers per game: 8.3 3pg / 28th
- Turnovers per game: 12.7 tpg / 33rd
- 3-point percentage: 38.3 percent / 42nd
- 3-pointers per game: Chris Lofton - 3.8 3pg / 6th
- 3-point percentage: Chris Lofton - 45.4 % / 12th
- FT percentage: C. J. Watson - 87.2 % / 25th
- Steals per game: C.J. Watson - 2.2 spg / 46th
Vols Return To Rankings
Tennessee is ranked eighth by the Associated Press and 10th by ESPN/USA Today in the Feb. 13 polls ... The No. 8 ranking is the Vols' highest since being ranked eighth in the Jan. 29, 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 Feb. 6 11th 14th Feb. 13 8th 10th
Can I Get A Witness?
The crowds at Tennessee's home games this season have increased by more than 4,500 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 17,128. Kentucky leads the league with 22,526.
- The Vols' attendance of 17,128 this season is an increase of 4,678 fans per game over last year's average of 12,450 per game.
- In SEC games, UT is averaging 19,953 fans per game.
- Four times this season UT 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 17,128 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.
- Fans have also flocked to see the Vols play on the road. Almost 2,000 orange-clad fans were in attendance at Georgia's Stegeman Coliseum to see the Vols play the Bulldogs.
Bradshaw Named To All-Glue Team
Junior guard/forward Dane Bradshaw was named to SI.com's seventh annual All-Glue team on Feb. 14 ... The team was compiled by Seth Davis to honor the guys who "may not get credit for doing the little things in most places" ... Davis wrote that Bradshaw "has a moxie that well suits his fiery new coach" ... Joining Bradshaw on the All-Glue team are: Sean Dockery (Duke), Mike Hall (George Washington), Sean Marshall (Boston College), Luc Richard Mbah a Moute (UCLA), Kenton Paulino (Texas).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
Four times this season a Tennessee player has earned SEC Player of the Week honors ... Chris Lofton has earned the honor three times and C.J. Watson has been named recipient of the award once. - 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.
- On Feb. 13 Lofton won the award for a third time after averaging 32.0 points and 6.5 rebounds in wins at Kentucky and Georgia. He shot 16-of-22 (72.7 percent) from 3-point range in the two games.
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 15.3 points and 4.36 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 556.
- His 556 career assists are second all-time at UT and 11th on the SEC's career lists. Auburn's Wes Flanigan (1994-97) ranks 10th in SEC history with 573 career assists.
- Watson's 4.36 assists per game are currently sixth in the SEC.
Lofton Is More Than A Shooter
There is no doubt that Chris Lofton is a great 3-point shooter but, there is a lot more to the sophomore guard's game than just hoisting amazing shots from long-range. - Lofton is shooting a team-best 92.9 percent (39-of-42) from the free throw line on the season. In conference play, he is shooting 100.0 percent (24-of-24) from the stripe.
- He ranks second on the team and third in the Southeastern Conference with 2.09 steals per game. Two times this season he has had five steals in a game.
- Lofton is third on the team with 44 assists on the season. Five times he has had four assists in a game this year.
- The Maysville, Ky., native ranks fourth in the SEC with 17.6 points per game on the season. In league games, his 18.5 points are second in the SEC.
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 second on the team in rebounding (6.3 rpg), leading the team in assists (4.4 apg) and is third in steals (1.86 spg) and blocks (0.5 bpg).
- His assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.82 leads the SEC.
- His 1.86 steals per game are seventh in the SEC.
- His 4.36 assists per game are sixth in the SEC.
- Seven times this season he has led the Vols in rebounding, including a career-high 12 boards against ETSU (11/18/05) and Vanderbilt (2/1/06).
- Eleven times he has led UT in assists, including a career-high eight against South Alabama (1/4/06), Georgia (1/11/06) and at Georgia (2/11/06).
- 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.
- South Carolina head coach Dave Odom gave Bradshaw a strong compliment following UT's 81-65 win in Knoxville (1/28/06), "I know this is a fairly bold statement and not something I would say lightly, but if there were a vote taken by media and/or coaches in this conference at this time, I think without any question that Dane Bradshaw would be the MVP of this league. I think he's playing that well."
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 10.9 points per game.
- Wingate has scored in double-figures in 16 of UT's 22 games ... In two previous season 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
aJuan 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 24.5 minutes per game this season ... Already this year he has tied or established new career marks for scoring (19), rebounds (7), assists (6), steals (4), blocks (1) and minutes played (29) ... Smith, who has been the first player off the bench in 21 of Tennessee's 22 games this season, is averaging 9.6 points per game ... His 42 3-pointers are second and his 39 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 Works His Way Into Starting Lineup
Andre Patterson played well enough to be a starter in Tennessee's first 15 games this season, averaging 9.7 points and 5.6 points coming off the bench ... Against Mississippi State (1/25/06) he finally earned a spot in the starting lineup ... He responded well, registering 13 points and 11 rebounds against the Bulldogs ... In the seven games since gaining a starting spot, the 6-foot-7 senior is averaging 10.6 points and 8.7 rebounds per game. - Patterson became the first Vol in four seasons to record three consecutive double-doubles when he had 12 points, 10 rebounds against Florida (1/21/06), 13 points, 11 rebounds at Mississippi State (1/25/06) and 13 points and 12 rebounds against South Carolina (1/28/06).
- Patterson recorded a career-high 14 rebounds against Murray State (11/30/05) while recording his third career-double-double.
- Against second-ranked Florida's (1/21/06) much taller front line he registered 12 points and 10 rebounds, including four offensive boards.
Asumnu Shooting To Make UT Better
Stanley Asumnu has saved his best basketball for his senior season, and the later the season gets, the better the 6-foot-5 wing gets ... Since being moved to the bench following the Florida (1/21/06) game, Asumnu has averaged 8.6 points and 2.9 rebounds in those seven games ... Most impressively, the Houston native is shooting 58.3 percent (28-of-48) from the field over his last six outings ... On the season, he is averaging 8.9 points and 3.0 rebounds per game. - A career 39.7 percent shooter entering this season, Asumnu is connecting on 50.9 percent of his field goals as a senior.
- In his first three seasons he averaged 3.6 points per game but has improved that number to 8.9 points as a senior.
- 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 eight 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 eight games, Howell has seen his role grow to 8.1 minutes and Childress is averaging 6.3 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.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 1,303 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.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 213-84 (.717) in its 19th season in Thompson-Boling Arena.
- Since the 1998 season, the Vols are 114-25 (.820) in Thompson-Boling Arena.
- The Vols are 53-16 against SEC teams at home over the last six seasons.
- UT has won 67 of its last 74 home games against non-conference opponents.
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.
Showing Their Appreciation
Immediately following their season-opening win over East Tennessee State, Bruce Pearl and the Vols went out on the concourse of Thompson-Boling Arena to thank the fans for their support ... The 21,680 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 ... It was the largest crowd to watch a basketball game that night (including both NCAA and NBA attendance figures). - The Vols also showed their appreciation to the nearly 2,000 fans who traveled to Stegeman Coliseum to see UT defeat Georgia (2/11/06). After the game, Tennessee's players went into the crowd to thank the orange-clad faithful who had made the trip to Athens.
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: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.
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.
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.
