University of Tennessee Athletics
TENNESSEE'S SEC TOURNAMENT PREVIEW
March 06, 2006 | Men's Basketball
March 6, 2006
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THE COACHES: 2005-06 Roster South Carolina Gamecocks Overall Record: 370-243 (.604 / 20th year)
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Tennessee Trends
- ESPN.com's Pat Forde named Bruce Pearl the SEC Coach of the Year in his March 2 column.
- Tennessee's last five regular season road games (at Kentucky, Georgia, Alabama, Florida and Vanderbilt) were each sold out.
- UT is shooting 39.4 percent from 3-point range as a team. The school record for 3-point percentage is 39.1 percent set in 1992-93.
- Bruce Pearl's 21 wins in his first season at the helm of the Tennessee program is tied for the best record by a first-year coach at UT. Don DeVoe (1978-89) also recorded 21 wins in his first season at UT.
- Over the last eight games, UT has shot 42.1 percent (83-of-197) from 3-point range and is averaging 10.4 3-pointers per game.
- In Southeastern Conference games, Tennessee's opponents have a 3-12 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 and LSU.
- UT is 17-1 when leading with five minutes left in the game.
- UT's eight-game SEC winning streak (1/21 - 2/15) was its longest since the 1981-82 season when the Vols opened SEC play with nine consecutive wins.
- 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.
- 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 23-14 (.622) when playing before crowds of 20,000 or larger at Thompson-Boling Arena. This year the Vols were 4-2 playing in front of 20,000 fans at home.
- UT has rallied to overcome deficits of nine points or more six 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 16 of their 27 games.
- Tennessee is getting an average of 21.9 points per game from its bench. The Vols' bench has contributed 591 points in 27 games this season.
- UT has recorded more than 100 more steals than its opponents. The Vols have 277 steals compared to just 163 by their opponents.
- Tennessee's opponents are averaging 18.6 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. 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 1,366-890-2 in its 97th season 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 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 | SC / MSU |
| 81.7 | Points | 67.7 / 68.9 |
| 73.5 | Opponent Points | 63.5 / 68.9 |
| +8.2 | Scoring Margin | +4.2 / 0.0 |
| .467 | Field Goal % | .461 / .446 |
| .469 | Opponent Field Goal % | .432 / .409 |
| .394 | Three-Point % | .366 / .315 |
| .363 | Opponent Three-Point % | .359 / .336 |
| .700 | Free Throw % | .677 / .634 |
| 33.5 | Rebounds | 32.8 / 39.1 |
| 36.7 | Opponent Rebounds | 31.4 / 35.0 |
| -3.2 | Rebounding Margin | +1.4 / +4.1 |
| 17.4 | Assists | 14.1 / 11.1 |
| 12.7 | Turnovers | 12.6 / 17.3 |
| 10.3 | Steals | 7.1 / 6.3 |
| 3.0 | Blocks | 4.8 / 4.5 |
| 21-6, 12-4 SEC | Record | 15-14 / 15-14 |
| Individual Statistical Leaders | ||
| Tennessee | Stat Category | SC / MSU |
| Lofton, 17.5 | Points | Kinsey, 15.5 / Rhodes, 13.9 |
| Patterson, 6.5 | Rebounds | Wallace, 6.2 / Rhodes, 7.3 |
| Watson, 4.1 | Assists | Kelley, 4.3 / Gordon, 4.3 |
| Wingate, .552 | Field Goal % | Wallace, .635 / Rhodes, .567 |
| Lofton, .450 | Three-Point % | Trice, .400 / Re. Delk, .413 |
| Lofton, .931 | Free Throw % | Kinsey, .873 / Edmondson, .716 |
Tennessee In The SEC Tournament
The Vols are 54-41 all-time in the SEC Tournament ... Since the tournament was renewed in 1979, the Vols are 19-26 ... Tennessee's four SEC Tournament titles are the third-most of any league member ... Only Kentucky (25) and Alabama (6) have won the tournament more times ... Only Kentucky (107 wins) and Alabama (55) have more SEC Tournament victories.
Tennessee As The East's No. 1 Seed
The Vols are the SEC East's No. 1 seed for the third time since league expansion in 1992 ... The Vols also earned the East's top seed in 1999 and 2000 ... UT is 0-2 as the top seed, losing to West No. 4 Mississippi State 56-62 in 1999 and East No. 5 South Carolina 68-75 in 2000.
Tennessee Against The Seeds
Tennessee is 0-1 all-time against the SEC East's No. 5 seed in the SEC Tournament ... UT's only meeting with the East's fifth seed was in 2000 when South Carolina upset the No. 1 seeded Vols 75-68 ... The Vols are 1-1 all-time against the West's No. 4 seed ... Last year UT eliminated West No. 4 Arkansas 65-46 from the SEC Tournament.
The Vols In Nashville
The Vols are 41-51 all-time when playing in Nashville ... Eighty-four of Tennessee's games in Nashville have been against Vanderbilt with the Commodores holding a 48-35 advantage ... The Vols are 3-1 all-time when playing in the Gaylord Entertainment Center ... UT defeated Middle Tennessee State 99-83 Dec. 15, 2000 at the GEC and then went 1-1 at the 2001 SEC Tournament at the facility ... Earlier this season, Tennessee defeated Murray State 64-53 at the GEC ... The Vols have registered a 5-3 record when the SEC Tournament is played in Nashville.
Throwback Jerseys On Display At Tournament
Each Southeastern Conference school will be wearing their throwback uniform's for the 2006 SEC Tournament in Nashville ... All of the league's 12 schools participated in a "SEC Throwback Week" February 18-26 in which they wore a previous year's uniform ... 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.
Looking At South Carolina
South Carolina earned the SEC Eastern Division's No. 5 seed with its 15-14 overall record and 6-10 mark in conference games ... The Gamecocks ended a four-game losing streak with a 67-63 victory at Auburn on the last day of the regular season ... Carolina is led by senior guard Tarence Kinsey's 15.5 points per game ... Tre' Kelley, a 6-foot-1 junior guard, is averaging 11.6 points and 4.3 assists per game this season ... Renaldo Balkman, a 6-8 junior forward, adds 9.5 points and 5.9 rebounds per game ... USC is allowing opponents just 63.5 points per game, the lowest in the SEC ... The Gamecocks pulled off an impressive sweep of Florida, winning 68-62 in Columbia and 71-67 in Gainesville ... South Carolina will meet Western Division No. 4 seed Mississippi State in the first round of the SEC Tournament ... The Gamecocks defeated the Bulldogs 83-61 on Feb. 11 in Columbia.
The South Carolina Series
Tennessee leads the all-time series 25-21 ... The Vols swept this year's regular season meetings with a 76-69 win in Columbia Jan . 8 and an 81-65 victory in Knoxville Jan. 28 ... When the series is played in Knoxville, the Vols own a 17-7 advantage ... The Vols have won 12 of the last 18 meetings between the schools ... South Carolina leads the series 13-7 when it is played in Columbia ... UT is 1-3 against South Carolina in the Colonial Center ... The two teams have met two times in the Southeastern Conference Tournament with each team winning one time ... Tennessee and South Carolina met for the first time on Jan 15, 1927 in Columbia ... The two teams played off-and-on between the 1927 and 1972 seasons but did not play each other from 1972 until 1988 when the series was renewed.
Last Meeting With South Carolina
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.
Looking At Mississippi State
Mississippi State recorded a 15-14 overall record and a 5-11 mark in league play to earn the SEC Western Division's No. 4 seed for the SEC Tournament ... The Bulldogs finished the regular season with a 71-58 upset of Alabama, a team that earned the No. 2 seed in the SEC West ... Charles Rhodes, a 6-foot-8 sophomore forward, leads the Bulldogs with 13.9 points and 7.3 rebounds ... Jamont Gordon, one of the top freshmen in the SEC this season, also averages 13.9 points, 6.6 rebounds and a team-high 4.35 assists per game ... Gordon is the only Bulldog to start all of the team's 29 games this season ... Jamall Edmondson, a 5-9 senior guard, adds 11.4 points ... Dietric Slater contributes 10.1 points per game ... MSU is one of the best defensive teams in the SEC, allowing opponents to shoot just 40.9 percent from the field this year.
The Mississippi State Series
Tennessee leads the all-time series 71-38 ... The Vols won this year's regular season meeting 88-65 in Starkville ... Ten of the last 14 meetings have been decided by eight points or less ... The Vols and Bulldogs have met three times in the SEC Tournament with Mississippi State winning two of those meetings ... Mississippi State holds a narrow 26-24 advantage when the series is played in Starkville ... The Vols hold a 41-9 all-time advantage when the series is played in Knoxville ... The Mississippi State series dates back to the 1924 season ... UT defeated MSU, 20-17, on Jan. 15, 1924, in the first meeting between the two schools.
Last Meeting With Mississippi State
Playing just four days after upsetting second-ranked Florida in Knoxville, the 19th-ranked Tennessee Volunteers didn't have a letdown as they took an 88-65 win at Mississippi State Wednesday, Jan. 25 ... The win was the largest SEC road win for the Vols since beating MSU 87-63 on Feb. 17, 1998, in Starkville ... Tennessee took control of the game early, opening up a 14-5 lead less than seven minutes into the game ... The Bulldogs fought back to tie it at 14 but the Vols responded with a 21-5 run to take a 35-19 advantage with 5:27 remaining in the first half ... Mississippi State rallied to cut the lead to 10 points but JaJuan Smith hit a 3-pointer as time expired in the first half to give UT a 44-29 lead at the break ... In the second half Tennessee quickly built a 19-point lead before MSU rallied with a 9-2 run to cut the lead to 12 points ... A Dane Bradshaw layup ended the rally and the Bulldogs never got closer than 15 points the rest of the game ... The Vols shot 52.4 percent from the field while limiting the Bulldogs to just 32.8 percent shooting ... MSU made just 18.5 percent (5-of-27) of its 3-point attempts in dropping its fifth game in a row ... C.J. Watson led all scorers with 19 points on 8-of-10 shooting to go with five assists and four steals ... Andre Patterson, who was making just his second start of the season, recorded a double-double for the second consecutive game with 13 points and 11 rebounds ... Stanley Asumnu came off the bench to add 12 points while JaJuan Smith had 11 ... Charles Rhodes, Jamont Gordon and Jamall Edmondson each had 15 points to lead Mississippi State.
Last Game: Vols Sweep Vandy
Tennessee rallied from a 16-point second half deficit to sweep the regular season series with Vanderbilt with a 68-59 win in Nashville Saturday, March 4 ... Vanderbilt held a 37-21 lead early in the second half but the Vols used a 10-0 run to tie the game 44-44 with just over nine minutes left ... The 10-0 run, which was a result of the Vols turning up the heat on their fullcourt press, took less than two minutes to complete ... The teams battled back-and-forth until Andre Patterson gave the Vols the lead for good when he stole the ball and took it in for a slam dunk and a 56-55 lead with 2:50 remaining ... Dane Bradshaw extended the lead to 59-55 with a 3-pointer and then, after a pair of Mario Moore free throws, Chris Lofton hit another 3 to make the lead 62-57 with just over a minute to go ... The Vols went 6-of-6 from the free throw line in the game's final minute to seal the win ... Vanderbilt shot a season-low 32.8 percent from the field and turned the ball over 12 times in the second half ... Chris Lofton led the Vols with 21 points on 8-of-18 shooting ... Lofton shot just 2-of-11 from 3-point range but was 6-of-7 from inside the 3-point arc ... C.J. Watson added 11 points and Major Wingate had 10 points and six rebounds ... Patterson had 10 points, five steals, four blocks and four rebounds ... Shan Foster scored nine of his 15 points in the first half to lead the Commodores.
Pearl's 21 Wins Rare For A 1st Year Coach
| Coach, School | Record | Year |
| Tubby Smith, UK | 35-4 | 1997-98 |
| Eddie Sutton, UK | 32-4 | 1985-86 |
| Dave Odom, SC | 22-15 | 2001-02 |
| Bruce Pearl, UT | 21-6 | 2005-06 |
| Tubby Smith, UG | 21-10 | 1995-96 |
| Don DeVoe, UT | 21-12 | 1978-79 |
| Eddie Fogler, VU | 21-14 | 1989-90 |
CollegeInsider.com Names Pearl SEC Coach Of The Year, Lofton MVP
CollegeInsider.com named Bruce Pearl its choice as SEC Coach of the Year on March 1 ... They also named UT sophomore Chris Lofton as the SEC's Most Valuable Player ... LSU's Glen Davis was named the SEC Player of the Year ... .
Pearl's First Year At UT Has Been Impressive
Having led the Vols to a 21-6 overall record and a national ranking as high as No. 8, Tennessee head coach Bruce Pearl has been receiving a lot of mention as a candidate for national coach of the year from media around the country ... When considering what Pearl and the Vols have accomplished this season there is no question why he is receiving this attention.
- Despite being picked to finish fifth out of six teams in the SEC East this season, the Vols posted a 12-4 league record and won the SEC's Eastern Division.
- All of UT's core players have seen their production go up this season when compared to last year.
- The Vols won on the road at No. 6 Texas, at No. 12 Florida and at Kentucky. They also earned season sweeps over South Carolina, Georgia, Florida and Vanderbilt.
- Tennessee was 9-1 against the SEC East.
- UT's average attendance of 17,954 is the third-largest in school history and an increase of more than 5,500 fans over last year's average.
- Tennessee's roster isn't loaded with All-Americas. In fact, UT's roster lists just one high school All-America (C.J. Watson was fourth team Parade All-America).
- The Vols lost two of their top four scorers from last year's team that posted a 14-17 overall record and finished fifth in the SEC East.
- ESPN's Jay Bilas said on March 4, "Coach of the Year often times means exceeding expectations. I would go ahead and go to Bruce Pearl at Tennessee. He's done an extraordinary job of taking a team and making them believe they can win at the highest level."
Pearl A Finalist For Phelan Award
Tennessee head coach Bruce Pearl is one of 15 finalists for the 2006 Jim Phelan National Coach of the Year that was announced March 1 ... The award honors legendary Jim Phelan, who coached more games then anyone in the history of college basketball at Mount St. Mary's ... The 20-member selection panel, which is chaired by Phelan, is headlined by ESPN's Jay Bilas and former Kentucky All-American Kyle Macy ... All final ballots will be cast by March 12 and the winner will be announced at the 2006 Final Four in Indianapolis, Ind.Lofton A Finalist For Wooden Award
Chris Lofton was one of 22 players named on March 5 to the official voting ballot for the 2005-06 Wooden Award All-American Team and Player of the Year, presented annually to the nation's top collegiate basketball player ... The winner will be announced on Saturday, April 8 ... Lofton was one of five newcomers selected to the National Ballot who were not selected to the Midseason list ... In order to be considered for the National Ballot, all players must have been accredited by their university as meeting the Wooden Award criteria which includes making normal progress towards graduation and maintaining a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher ... A panel of over 1,000 voters comprised of sports media members and college basketball experts from around the nation will cast their votes for both the 10-member All-American Team and the Wooden Award.Bill Justus Named SEC Legend
Knoxville native Bill Justus will be one of 12 former SEC greats who will be honored at the 2006 SEC Tournament in Nashville as a Chick-fil-A SEC Basketball Legend ... Justus will be recognized at halftime of Tennessee's game on Friday, March 10 ... A 1969 first team All-America, Justus was a two-time first team All-SEC selection after earning honorable mention honors as a sophomore in 1967 ... A 6-foot-1 guard known for his deft shooting touch, he knocked down the winning free throws in a triple overtime win at Mississippi State for the 1967 SEC title ... In 1968-69 he captained the Vols' 21-7 team that finished second in the SEC ... He led the NCAA while setting a school record with his 90.5-percent (133-of-147) free throw shooting in 1969 ... His 22 free throws made against Ohio University remains a school record ... He equalled his success on the court with success in the classroom as he was named to Academic All-SEC and All-America honors in 1968.UT Honors Mears And Ward
Tennessee honored former coach Ray Mears and Vol Network announcer John Ward for their contributions and years of service to the Tennessee basketball program by hanging banners bearing their names in the rafters of Thompson-Boling Arena ... UT made the presentation at halftime of the Kentucky game (3/1/06) ... A two-time Southeastern Conference Coach of the Year (1967 and 1977) Mears is Tennessee's all-time winningest coach with a 278-112 record in 15 seasons ... Ward called Tennessee basketball games from 1965 through the 1999 season ... In 1976 he was named the best college announcer in the nation and 28 times he was named Sportscaster of the Year in Tennessee.
Defying Preseason Predictions Tennessee Wins SEC's Eastern Division
Almost a consensus pick to finish no better than fifth in the Southeastern Conference's Eastern Division, the Vols proved every preseason prediction wrong this year ... Tennessee's 11-4 league record with one game remaining in the regular season secures the school its third Eastern Division title and the East's No. 1 seed in the SEC Tournament in Nashville ... It marks UT's first divisional title since the 1999-2000 season when the Vols won a share of the SEC East championship ... It is the third time since the SEC split into divisions in 1991-92 that Tennessee has won the SEC East.Vols Win 20 For 19th Time
Tennessee recorded its 19th 20-win season in school history with a 76-72 win at 12th-ranked Florida (2/22/06) ... The Vols required just 24 games to reach the 20-win mark this season which is the second-fastest in school history to 20 wins ... Only the 1999-2000 squad reached the milestone faster, needing 23 games ... It is the 13th time in 14 years as a head coach that Bruce Pearl has led a team to 20 wins in a season.Lofton Breaks 3-Point Records
Having already broken Tennessee's single-game record for 3-pointers with nine against Georgia (2/11/06), Chris Lofton broke the single-season 3-point record against Kentucky (3/1/06) ... With three 3-pointers against the Wildcats, Lofton broke Allan Houston's single-season school record of 99 set in 1990-91 ... Lofton has made 103 triples this season ... Last season, Lofton's 93 treys were the most-ever by an SEC freshman and currently rank third on UT's single-season lists ... In his second season in Knoxville, he has made 196 3-pointers.Lofton's Free Throw Steak Comes Up One Short
Chris Lofton came within one free throw of tying Tennessee's school record for consecutive free throws made ... The sophomore guard made 38 consecutive free throws before missing his first attempt at Vanderbilt (3/4/06) ... The school record for consecutive free throws made is 39 by Danny Schultz (12/2/1963 to 12/28/1963) and by Michael Brooks (1/30/1985 to 3/6/1985) ... Lofton made 39-of-40 free throws in SEC games and was also 2-of-2 against Memphis (1/18/06) during the streak ... On the season he is shooting 93.1 percent (54-of-58) from the free throw line ... The only reason he does not qualify for the SEC leaders is because he is not averaging the minimum of 2.5 free throws per game to be listed.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 17th all-time at UT with 1,372 career points.
- His 572 career assists are second only to Johnny Darden's (1975-79) 715 career assists. The 569 career assists rank 11th in Southeastern Conference history.
- He ranks second in school history with 195 career steals. Vincent Yarbrough (1998-02) is UT's record holder with 211 career thefts.
Pearl Is A League Leader
Bruce Pearl has coached 57 consecutive regular season league games 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 through his 16 SEC games at Tennessee ... This year the Vols won the SEC's Eastern Division championship with an 12-4 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.School Records For 3s Falling
Tennessee broke school records for 3-pointers in consecutive 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.A Band Of Thieves
Tennessee's pressure defense has given its opponents all kinds of trouble this season as the Vols' opponents are averaging 18.7 turnovers per game. - UT leads the SEC in steals (10.26 spg) and turnover margin (+5.89).
- Three Vols rank in the top seven in the SEC in steals. C.J. Watson (2.07 spg) and Chris Lofton are tied for second (2.07 spg) and Dane Bradshaw is seventh (1.85 spg).
- Bradshaw leads the league in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.74) while Watson is third (2.04).
- The Vols have had more assists than turnovers in 20 of their 27 games this year.
- On the season, UT has 470 assists to 342 turnovers (1.37 assists-to-turnovers).
- Conversely, the Vols' opponents have had more turnovers than assists in 19 of 27 games (0.86 assists-to-turnovers).
Volunteer Bombardiers
While Chris Lofton has bogarted much of the attention as a dangerous 3-point shooter, he is not the only member of Tennessee's squadron of long-range bombers ... Lofton, C.J. Watson and JaJuan Smith have formed to make one of the most dangerous shooting backcourts in the nation ... The trio has combined to make 200 3-pointers in 27 games this season ... UT leads the SEC and ranks 15th in the nation with 8.81 3-pointers per game ... The Vols are making 39.4 percent of their 3s, a figure that ranks first in the SEC and 17th nationally. - Lofton is leading the SEC and ranks third in the nation with 3.82 triples per game. He also leads the SEC with his 45.8 percent (103-of-225) shooting from behind the arc.
- Watson has improved upon his 37.5 percent shooting last season to convert 42.2 (43-of-102) 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 54 3-pointers on the season.
- Lofton, Watson and Smith are not the only 3-point bombers on the Vols' roster. Jordan Howell has made 42.9 percent (15-of-35) 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 21.9 points (591 points in 27 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 34.4 points per game ... All eight regular players have exceeded their scoring totals from last season (Stanley Asumnu, Dane Bradshaw, Jordan Howell, Chris Lofton, Andre Patterson, JaJuan Smith, C.J. Watson 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 9.7 +7.8 ppg Asumnu 2.4 8.3 +5.9 ppg Wingate 5.0 10.3 +5.3 ppg Bradshaw 3.0 7.3 +4.3 ppg Lofton 13.2 17.5 +4.3 ppg Watson 11.9 15.0 +3.3 ppg Patterson 7.4 9.9 +2.5 ppg Howell 1.1 2.1 +1.0 ppg
Vols In The NCAA Stats
Tennessee is prominently listed among the national leaders according to the Feb. 27 NCAA statistics. Following is where the Vols rank nationally: - Steals per game: 10.3 spg / 4th
- Scoring offense: 82.4 ppg / 6th
- Assists per game: 17.6 apg / 11th
- 3-pointers per game: 8.8 3pg /15th
- 3-point percentage: 39.9 percent / 17th
- Turnovers per game: 12.6 tpg / 30th
- Scoring margin: +8.6 ppg / 36th
- 3-pointers per game: Chris Lofton - 3.9 3pg / 3rd
- 3-point percentage: Chris Lofton - 47.3 % / 5th
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 610-484 mark in league games ... Only Kentucky (832) and Alabama (684) have won more SEC games.Vols Return To Rankings
Tennessee is ranked 14th by the Associated Press and 15th by ESPN/USA Today in the March 6 polls ... The No. 8 ranking UT achieved on Feb. 13 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 Feb. 20 10th 11th Feb. 27 11th 11th March 6 14th 15th
Rally Vols
Tennessee has rallied from deficits of at least nine points in six games this season ... Five 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 UT 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.
- Tennessee rallied from a 12-point first half deficit at Georgia (2/11/06) to take an 83-78 win in Athens.
- Florida led the Vols by 13 points (36-23) late in the first half of their game in Gainesville (2/22/06) but Tennessee rallied for a 76-72 victory.
- Vanderbilt led by 16 points (37-21) with 17:30 remaining in the second half in Nashville (3/4/06) before the Vols rallied for a 68-59 victory.
- 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.
Lofton & Watson Earn NABC All-District Honors
Chris Lofton and C.J. Watson were named to the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) All-District 7 Team on February 17 ... Lofton was a first team selection while Watson was a second team pick ... The teams are selected by a panel of member coaches of the NABC ... First team selections included Chris Lofton (Tennessee), Rodney Carney (Memphis), Taquan Dean (Louisville), Anthony Winchester (Western Kentucky) and Rajon Rondo (Kentucky). Second team picks were Shan Foster (Vanderbilt), Darius Washington Jr. (Memphis), Tim Smith (East Tenn. State), C.J. Watson (Tennessee) and Courtney Lee (Western Kentucky).Lofton & 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.
Asumnu Named To Good Works Team
Senior guard/forward Stanley Asumnu was featured as the SEC Good Works Team Player of the Week the week of Feb. 22-26 ... The Houston, Texas native has participated for three years in the annual National Student Athlete Day community service event, known as April Play Day ... Along with his teammates, he helped deliver turkeys to Second Harvest Food Bank as part of the "Blocks for Turkeys" program ... He spoke at a youth probationary boot camp about team work and assisted the Oak Ridge Lab with their United Way Lick-Off event ... He also participated with teammates and football team members in Orange Aid 2005 by signing autographs and mingling to benefit victims of Hurricane Katrina ... Asumnu joins C.J. Watson (2004 & 2005), Jon Higgins (2001, 2002 & 2003) and C.J. Black (2000) as Vols named to the SEC Good Works Team.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, IonaCan I Get A Witness?
Tennessee saw a huge increase in the size of its crowds at Thompson-Boling Arena this season ... The crowds at UT's home games this season increased by 5,504 fans per game over last season. - Six times UT 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 17,954. Kentucky leads the league with 22,763.
- The Vols' attendance of 17,954 this season is an increase of 5,064 fans per game over last year's average of 12,450 per game.
- UT averaged 20,796 fans in SEC games.
- Tennessee's average attendance of 17,954 ranks third all-time in school history and the best since the Vols averaged 19,313 fans in the Arena's second year (1988-89).
- 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.
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 15.0 points and 4.15 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 572.
- His 572 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 4.15 assists per game are currently eighth in the SEC.
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 17.5 points per game ... He is making an SEC-best 3.82 3-pointers per game and is shooting 45.8 percent from behind the arc ... He also ranks in a tie for second in the SEC with 2.07 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 list. 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).
- 103 triples this season are a school record. They rank in a tie for fourth on the SEC's single-season list.
- Just a sophomore, he ranks fifth all-time at UT with 196 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."
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 93.1 percent (54-of-58) from the free throw line on the season. In conference play, he shot 97.5 percent (39-of-40) from the stripe.
- He ranks in a tie for first on the team and a tie for second in the Southeastern Conference with 2.07 steals per game. Two times this season he has had five steals in a game.
- Lofton is fourth on the team with 50 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 17.5 points per game on the season. In league games, his 18.1 points were third 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 assists (107), rebounding (5.6 rpg), and is third in steals (1.9 spg) and blocks (0.4 bpg).
- His assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.74 leads the SEC.
- His 1.85 steals per game are seventh in the SEC.
- His 3.96 assists per game are 10th 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).
- Twelve 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 10.3 points per game.
- Wingate has scored in double-figures in 19 of UT's 27 games ... In two previous seasons 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.
- Wingate is leading the Vols with a 55.2 (112-of-203) field goal percentage on the season. In SEC games he improved that number to 58.4 percent (59-of-101).
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 24.6 minutes per game this season ... This year he has tied or established new career marks for scoring (19), rebounds (8), assists (6), steals (4), blocks (1) and minutes played (31) ... Smith, who has been the first player off the bench in 26 of Tennessee's 27 games this season, is averaging 9.7 points per game ... His 54 3-pointers are second and his 52 assists are third 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 12 games since gaining a starting spot, the 6-foot-7 senior is averaging 10.1 points and 7.6 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/
