| VOLS RETURN HOME TO FACE GAMECOCKS
- Tennessee plays at home for only second time this month and the when the Vols play host to the South Carolina Gamecocks at 6 p.m. EST Saturday, Jan. 20, at Thompson-Boling Arena.
- The Vols are in a stretch where they are playing five of six games on the road. UT concluded a stretch of three consecutive road games (at Vanderbilt, at Ohio State and at Auburn) Wednesday night. After hosting South Carolina, the Vols return to the road to play at Mississippi and at Kentucky.
- The Vols are coming off an 80-83 loss at Auburn Wednesday, Jan. 17. Auburn went on an 18-0 run while UT missed 10 consecutive shots in the second half as the Tigers took control of the game. Auburn made 18 of 23 free throws in the second half to just three attempts for the Vols. Chris Lofton led Tennessee with 22 points while Ramar Smith added a career-high 19 points.
- The Vols have dropped their last three games by a combined six points. Vanderbilt scored on a tip-in as time expired to take an 82-81 win in Nashville Jan. 10 and then Ohio State needed a 3-pointer with 11.2 seconds left for a 68-66 in Columbus, Ohio, Jan. 13. Auburn held on for an 83-80 win Jan. 17.
- All-America candidate Chris Lofton is leading the SEC and ranks 10th in the nation with 22.5 points per game. One of the top shooters in the country, he is averages 3.9 3-pointers per game and is connecting on 46.7 percent of his shots from beyond the arc.
- Tennessee is leading the SEC and ranks seventh in the nation with 84.2 points per game.
- South Carolina is 10-6 on the season and 0-3 in Southeastern Conference action following a 49-87 loss to Kentucky Tuesday. Senior guard Tre' Kelley leads the Gamecocks with 16.5 points per game.
Tennessee Trends
- With two steals at Auburn (1/17/07) Dane Bradshaw tied Allan Houston for 10th on UT's career lists with 133 thefts.
- Tennessee is shooting just 43.9 percent (18-of-41) from the free throw line in its last three games. UT's opponents are shooting 76.9 percent (50-of-65) at the line during that time.
- Chris Lofton (70) and JaJuan Smith (44) have combined to make nearly as many 3-pointers as Tennessee's opponents have (117).
- Tennessee leads the SEC with 14.3 offensive rebounds per game.
- The Vols are forcing 20.2 turnovers per game.
- Tennessee's 13-2 start was its best 15-game start since beginning the 2000-01 season with a 14-1 record.
- UT scored 100 or more points in back-to-back games against Texas (111) and Tennessee Tech (101). The only other time in school history that the Vols reached the century mark in back-to-back games was during the 1957-58 season when the Vols won at Florida (100-91) and over Mississippi State (104-83).
- Tennessee is 22-2 at Thompson-Boling Arena over the last two seasons.
- The Vols are 15-0 in non-conference home games under Bruce Pearl.
- Bruce Pearl is 5-3 against ranked teams while at Tennessee. This year he is 2-2 with wins over No. 15 Oklahoma State and No. 16 Memphis and losses to No. 2 North Carolina and at No. 5 Ohio State.
- 11 different Vols have hit a 3-pointer this season.
- Chris Lofton has made at least one 3-pointer in 77 of his 79 career games.
- The Vols have made at least one 3-pointer in 302 consecutive games.
- UT's bench is averaging 22.7 points per game this season. In 2005-06, Tennessee's bench averaged 21.0 points per game.
- Since 2005-06 Tennessee's SEC opponents have a 5-13 record in the game immediately following their contests against the Vols.
- Under Bruce Pearl, UT is 29-3 when leading or tied with five minutes left in the game.
- UT is 23-3 when scoring 80 or more points under the direction of Bruce Pearl.
- UT is 25-14 (.641) 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 1,380-897-2 in 98 seasons of basketball.
- UT's 611 regular season Southeastern Conference victories rank third all-time in the SEC. Only Kentucky and Alabama have won more league games.
- Tennessee is 222-86 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 is the only Division I school ever to rank in the top five nationally in attendance for football, men's basketball and women's basketball in the same season. The Vols turned the trick for the third time in 2005-06.
- Seven walk-ons are listed on Tennessee's roster this season. Ben Bosse, Quinn Cannington, Rick Daniels-Mulholland, Justin Jackson, Marq Murden, Steven Pearl and Tanner Wild are each on the Volunteer squad.
Vanderbilt Time Change
The start time for Tennessee's Feb. 10 game against Vanderbilt has been changed to 1 p.m. EST. Lincoln-Financial Sports will televise the game from Thompson-Boling Arena. Looking At South Carolina
South Carolina has struggled through a treacherous schedule to start 2007 ... The Gamecocks are 10-6 on the season and 0-3 in SEC action after dropping consecutive games to No. 9 Kansas (54-70), at Georgia (56-80), vs. No. Florida (50-84) and to No. 25 Kentucky (49-87) ... Senior guard Tre' Kelley leads the Gamecocks with 16.5 points and 4.5 assists per game ... Kelley, who has struggled with a sprained left knee suffered Dec. 29, led USC with 19 points against Kentucky Tuesday night ... Brandon Wallace, a 6-foot-9 forward, is second on the team with 11.0 points and a team-best 8.8 rebounds per game ... Wallace ranks 16th nationally with 2.6 blocked shots per game ... Two of USC's top four scorers are freshmen ... Dominique Archie and Brandis Raley-Ross are each averaging 8.1 points per game ... Raley-Ross has earned SEC Freshman of the Week honors two times while Archie has won the award once ... The Gamecocks rank fourth in the nation by committing just 13.5 personal fouls per game ... USC takes care of the ball, averaging just 11.9 turnovers per game ... Dave Odom is 110-75 in his sixth season at South Carolina and 388-249 in 22 years as a head coach. The South Carolina Series
Tennessee leads the all-time series 25-22 ... The Vols swept this last year's regular season meetings with a 76-69 win in Columbia and an 81-65 victory in Knoxville but South Carolina took a 79-71 win in the second round of the SEC Tournament ... When the series is played in Knoxville, the Vols own a 17-7 advantage ... The Vols have won 12 of the last 19 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 three times in the Southeastern Conference Tournament with South Carolina holding a 2-1 advantage ... 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
South Carolina upset Tennessee 79-71 March 10, 2006, in the semifinals of the SEC Tournament in Nashville ... The Gamecocks shot 70.0 percent (14-of-20) in the second half and finished the game shooting 54.9 percent ... South Carolina went on a 9-3 run to finish the first half and never trailed in the second half ... USC led by as many as 17 points in the second half ... C.J. Watson led the Vols with 23 points on 8-of-12 shooting from the field ... Chris Lofton scored all of his 12 points in the second half and Dane Bradshaw added 10 points ... Tre' Kelley led USC with 25 points on 7-of-13 shooting from the field and 9-of-10 shooting from the free throw stripe ... The Vols committed 21 turnovers off 12 South Carolina steals. Last Game: Vols Fall At Auburn
Auburn used an 18-0 run and then made 12 of its 14 free throws in the game's final three minutes to upset the 22nd-ranked Volunteers 83-80 Wednesday, Jan. 17, at Beard-Eaves Memorial Coliseum in Auburn ... It was a game in which free throw shooting played a pivotal role as the Tigers made 20-of-28 attempts (71.4 percent), including 18-of-23 in the second half while Tennessee converted just 46.7 percent of its charity tosses, including just 2-of-3 in the second half ... UT led 66-52 midway through the second half when Auburn went on an 18-0 run to take the lead ... Tennessee went nearly seven minutes without scoring during the run until Chris Lofton hit a layup with just over three minutes remaining to cut the lead to 70-68 ... Lofton scored 10 of the Vols' final 14 points on his way to a 22-point effort ... Lofton was 6-of-12 from 3-point range ... Freshman Ramar Smith scored a career-high 19 points while JaJuan Smith added 16 ... Frank Tolbert led the Tigers with 24 points and Quan Prowell had 21. Prince Joins Vols
Bruce Pearl announced Jan. 16 that J.P. Prince has enrolled at the University of Tennessee and will join the Vols' basketball team ... A 6-foot-6 guard, Prince will be allowed to practice with the team immediately and will be eligible to play as a sophomore beginning in January 2008 ... Prince transferred to Tennessee from the University of Arizona where he made three appearances for the nationally-ranked Wildcats this season ... As a freshman last year he averaged 2.2 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 28 games ... At White Station High School in Memphis he led the Spartans to a 142-12 record and three state championships (2002-04) ... He was named the Gatorade Player of the Year for the state of Tennessee as a senior in 2005 after averaging 27.0 points, 7.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 3.0 steals per game. Close Calls
Tennessee has lost its last three games by a combined total of six points ... Two of the games were decided by shots in the final seconds ... Vanderbilt's Shan Foster tipped in a miss as time expired to give the Commodores an 82-81 in Nashville Jan. 10 ... Ohio State's Ron Lewis hit a 3-pointer with 11.2 seconds remaining to give the fifth-ranked Buckeyes a two-point (68-66) win in Columbus, Ohio, Jan. 13 ... UT is 5-3 in games decided by 10 points or less and 2-3 in games decided by five points or fewer this season. Tough Schedule
Tennessee's schedule ranked as the 10th toughest in the nation according to CollegeRPI.com on Jan. 15 ... The Vols' non-conference slate has featured six teams currently ranked in the Associated Press poll ... UT has played No. 4 North Carolina, No. 7 Ohio State, No. 12 Oklahoma State, No. 17 Memphis, No. 18 Butler and No. 21 Texas (current rankings listed) ... Additionally, the Vols have six more games remaining on their schedule against teams that are currently ranked in the Associated Press poll. UT Leading SEC In Scoring
Tennessee is leading the SEC and ranks seventh nationally in scoring offense with 84.2 points per game ... Leading the league in scoring is nothing new for a Bruce Pearl coached team ... Pearl's teams are leading their conference in scoring for the eighth consecutive year ... The last time one of his squads did not lead the league in scoring was in 1998-99 when Southern Indiana finished second in the Great Lakes Valley Conference with 81.2 points per game. Lofton Lately
- Leads the SEC with 22.5 points per game.
- Leads the SEC with 3.9 3-pointers per game.
- According to the Jan. 15 NCAA statistics, he ranks ninth in the nation in scoring (22.5), fifth in 3-pointers per game (3.8), 23rd in 3-point percentage (46.4).
- 70 3-pointers this season rank eighth on UT's single-season charts.
- Shooting 46.7 percent (70-of-150) from behind the arc this season. Jon Higgins (2000-01) owns the school record at 48.6 percent (53-of-109).
- Made at least five 3-pointers in a game eight times.
- Made at least two 3s in 27 of his last 29 games.
- Owns five of the top six scoring performances in the SEC this year.
- Scored 30 or more points five times this season.
- Has shot 88 free throws this season after shooting just 60 free throws all of last season.
- Scored 28 of his career-high 35 points after halftime to lead the Vols from a 17-point second half deficit to a 111-105 overtime win over Texas (12/23/06).
- Scored his first career double-double with 35 points and 11 rebounds against Texas (12/23/06).
- Scored 34 points in Tennessee's win over 16th-ranked Memphis (12/6/06). With less than a minute left in the first half his 21 points were more than the Tigers' 20 points.
- He reached the 1,000 career scoring mark Nov. 22 against Butler in New York's Madison Square Garden ... He currently ranks 19th on UT's career scoring lists with 1,332 career points ... 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.
Free Throw Woes
Free throws have been a key component to Tennessee's three-game losing streak ... The Vols are shooting just 43.9 percent (18-of-41) from the line over the last three games, which have been decided by a total of just six points ... UT's opponents are shooting 76.9 percent (50-of-65) during the stretch ... Through their first 15 games, the Vols were averaging 27.7 free throw attempts per game but are getting to the stripe just 13.7 times in the last three games ... Chris Lofton averaged 5.7 free throw attempts in his first 15 games but has shot just three free throws in the last three games. Vols In The NCAA Stats
Tennessee is prominently listed among the national leaders according to the January 15 NCAA statistics. Following is where the Vols rank nationally: - Scoring offense: 84.5 ppg / 7th
- 3-pointers per game: 9.5 3pg /10th
- Assists per game: 16.2 apg / 47th
- Steals per game: 10.2 spg / 10th
- Points per game: Chris Lofton - 22.5 pts / 9th
- 3-pointers per game: Chris Lofton - 3.8 3pg / 5th
- 3-point percentage: Chris Lofton - 46.4 % / 23rd
- Steals per game: Dane Bradshaw - 2.1 spg / 50th
- Steals per game: JaJuan Smith - 2.1 spg / 50th
Freshmen Growing Up
Tennessee has relied heavily upon its freshmen this season and each of them have continued to improve with each game they play. - Wayne Chism shot just 34.7 percent from the field through his first 10 games but has adjusted to the physical play in the paint and is shooting 47.3 percent through his last eight games.
- Ramar Smith averaged just 5.5 points and 2.2 assists and had an assist-to-turnover ratio of 0.7 in his first 11 games. In his last seven games he is averaging 14.7 points and 4.4 assists with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.8.
- Duke Crews made the smoothest transition from high school to college but even he has seen his number increase from 9.2 points and 5.3 rebounds through his first 10 games to 10.9 points and 6.8 rebounds while making 57.1 percent of his field goals in his last seven outings.
- Josh Tabb's contributions are not as obvious statistically but his play continues to improve as he has become one of UT's top defensive players this year.
Bench Contributing
Tennessee's bench has played a key role in the Vols' success early this season ... UT's bench is averaging 22.7 points per game ... Two times this season the bench has contributed at least 40 points in a game ... Wayne Chism is giving the Vols 8.3 points and 5.3 rebounds per game coming off the bench ... Last year UT got 21.0 points per game from its bench ... Part of the reason for the production off the bench is that no one averages more than 31 minutes per game. Comeback Kids
Tennessee has overcome a second half deficit in six of its last eight games ... The Vols have come back to win four of those games, including a 79-77 decision over No. 15 Oklahoma State and a 111-105 overtime thriller against Texas ... Three times in the last eight games UT has rallied from a double digit deficit. - Oklahoma State led by as many as seven points in the second half and it took a Dane Bradshaw tip-in with 1.9 seconds left to give the Vols the win.
- The Vols trailed by as many as 17 points in the second half against Texas and were down by seven with less than two minutes left. Chris Lofton made a pair of 3s, Duke Crews scored a bucket and Ramar Smith hit a free throw to send the game to overtime.
- East Tennessee State held a six-point (58-52) lead with just over 15 minutes left but the Vols went on an 11-0 run and took a 93-88 win.
- Mississippi State held a five-point (67-62) with 10 minutes left but UT rallied to win92-84.
- Vanderbilt led by 11 points (59-48) with less than 11 minutes left but Tennessee rallied to take the lead and it took a tip-in as time expired for the Commodores to take the win.
- Fifth-ranked Ohio State led 51-41 with 13 minutes left but UT but needed a 3-pointer with 11.2 seconds remaining after UT had taken a 66-65 lead with under a minute to play.
Vols Bring The Pressure
Tennessee's pressure defense has made the simple act of inbounding the ball a headache for its opponents ... The Vols are forcing 6.3 turnovers per game off inbounds plays, most of which are coming off their press ... Three times their opponents have had 10 or more turnovers just from trying to inbound the ball ... UT is forcing an average of 20.2 turnovers per game. - Opponents have had to call timeout 20 times because they could not get the ball inbounds.
- They have been whistled for a five-second count 17 times on inbounds plays.
- Coppin State (11/19/06) committed a season-high 13 turnovers on inbounds plays alone.
Scholarly Vols
Nine of the 17 players on Tennessee's roster have earned the right to wear the VOLScholar patch on their jersey following the fall semester ... The VOLScholar program, an initiative of UT's Thornton Athletics Student Life Center in cooperation with the men's and women's athletics departments, is a comprehensive academic and citizenship-building program that has gained enthusiastic support from several of UT's athletic teams ... Student-athletes earn the right to wear the VOLScholar patch by achieving a 3.0 grade-point average in the previous fall and/or spring semester. Bomb Squad Is Back
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. - UT is leading the SEC 9.6 3-pointers per game.
- Lofton leads the SEC with 3.9 triples per game.
- JaJuan Smith is fifth in the SEC with 2.4 3-pointers per game.
- Combined, Lofton (70) and Smith (44) have made as nearly many 3-pointers as UT's opponents (117).
- Tennessee's 15 3-pointers against second-ranked North Carolina (11/24/06) came just one short of tying the school record of 16.
JaJuan Smith Earns Star(ting) Role
Named the "Best Player Off The Bench" in the SEC by The Tennessean, JaJuan Smith has worked his way into the starting lineup for the Vols this season ... The Cleveland, Tenn., native ranks second on the team with 14.2 points, is first with 39 steals and third with 27 assists while making 44 3-pointers this year. - He ranks fifth in the SEC with 2.44 3-pointers per game on the season.
- Two times this season he has scored a career-high 23 points, accomplishing the feat against Tennessee Tech (12/28/06) and East Tennessee State (12/30/06).
- He has scored 20 or more points in a game four times this season.
- Led UT's scoring efforts five times this season after leading the Vols in scoring once last year.
- He scored 19 points in UT's win over Texas (12/23/06).
- Scored a career-high 23 points on 5-of-10 3-point shooting against Tennessee Tech (12/28/06).
- He scored 21 points on 5-of-11 3-point shooting against Western Kentucky (12/16/06).
Big Game Dane
Three times in his career Dane Bradshaw has made a late shot to knock off a nationally ranked team ... Two of the teams that fell victim to his late-game heroics were unbeaten entering the game. - Jan. 21, 2006 his lay-up with 20 seconds left gave UT a 78-76 lead and eventually an 80-76 victory over No. 2 Florida. The Gators entered the game with a 17-0 record and were the last unbeaten team in the nation.
- Feb. 22, 2006 his steal of an inbounds pass and layup with 15 seconds left gave Tennessee a 74-72 lead and a 76-72 win at 12th-ranked Florida. The win gave the Vols the 2005-06 SEC Eastern Division title.
- Dec. 18, 2006 against 11-0 and 15th-ranked Oklahoma State he stole the ball with 20 seconds left and then hit the game-winning tip-in over OSU's 6-7 Mario Boggan and 6-8 David Monds with 1.9 seconds left to give the Vols a 79-77 victory.
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 as a junior last year. - Bradshaw leads the Vols in assists (85), blocks (13) and is second in steals (38).
- He has led the Vols in assists 11 out of 18 games this year and recorded a career-high nine dimes against Coppin State (11/19/06).
- Had nine assists against one turnover while adding seven points and seven rebounds against Tennessee Tech (12/28/06).
- Last eight games he is averaging 5.5 assists per game and has an assist-to-turnover ratio of 3.7.
Crews Missile
One of the most heralded freshmen in the Southeastern Conference this season, Duke Crews has not disappointed ... The 6-foot-7 forward earned a starting assignment in the Vols season-opener and has won over Tennessee fans with his hustle and athleticism ... Named the SEC Newcomer of the Year by Lindy's and Athlon, the Hampton, Va., native is averaging 9.9 points and 5.9 rebounds per game. - Scored career marks with 17 points and nine rebounds against a larger Oklahoma State (12/18/06) front line. Five of his game-high nine rebounds came at the offensive end of the floor.
- Earned SEC Freshman of the Week honors on Dec. 24 after averaging 16.5 points and 8.5 rebounds in victories over No. 15 Oklahoma State and Texas.
- Earned his first career double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds against Tennessee Tech (12/28/06).
- 53 of his 107 rebounds (50 percent) have come at the offensive end of the floor.
- He leads all SEC freshmen with 5.9 rebounds.
- Ranks third in the SEC with 2.9 offensive rebounds per game.
Remarkable Ramar
Freshman point guard Ramar Smith has made significant improvements to his game as the season has worn on ... In his first 11 games this season he averaged 5.5 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game and had an assist-to-turnover ratio of 0.7 while struggling to adjust to the point guard position ... In the seven games since then he is averaging 14.7 points, 3.7 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.8 ... On the season, the 6-foot-2 Smith is averaging 9.1 points, 3.2 rebounds and 3.1 assists in 25.1 minutes per game. - He has earned 12 starting assignments.
- Against Texas (12/23/06) he scored 16 points to go with nine assists and no turnovers.
- Gathered a career-high nine rebounds at No. 5 Ohio State (1/13/07).
- Scored 17 points to go with seven assists and one turnover at Vanderbilt (1/10/07).
- Scored a career-high 19 points at Auburn (1/17/07).
- He has scored 10 or more points in eight of his last nine games.
- He was named the SEC Freshman of the Week on Jan. 8 after he had 13 points, seven assists (one turnover), six rebounds and two blocks in the SEC opener against Mississippi State.
Big Wayne Strong In The Paint
Freshman center Wayne Chism has played a key role for a Tennessee team that lists just two players taller than 6-foot-7 ... A 6-9 native of Boliver, Tenn., Chism became the first Vols freshman to record a double-double since Vincent Yarbrough (22 points and 11 rebounds vs. Georgia) did it during the 1998-99 season when he had 11 points and 11 rebounds against Coppin State (11/19/06) ... Chism is second on the team with 5.3 rebounds and is fifth on the squad with 8.3 points per game. - Chism has been the first Vol off the bench in 14 of Tennessee's 18 games.
- Had nine points and six rebounds in 14 minutes of action against 15th-ranked Oklahoma State (12/18/06).
- Scored a career-high 18 points to go with eight rebounds in the win over Texas (12/23/06).
Hard Work Pays Off For Childress
There's a saying that goes, "The best thing about freshmen is that they become sophomores." .. That couldn't be more true for UT sophomore forward Ryan Childress ... As a true freshman last season the Cincinnati, Ohio, product averaged 1.2 points and 1.2 rebounds in 29 appearances for the Vols ... A summer of hard work resulted in him dropping 20 pounds and adding more than seven inches to his vertical leap ... That hard work in the offseason has paid huge dividends for the 6-foot-9 Childress as he is averaging 5.7 points and 4.2 rebounds. - Childress needed just four games this season to score more points than he did all season as a freshman. He scored 43 points through UT's first four games after having 33 points in 29 games as a freshman.
- This year he has set or tied career highs for points (14), rebounds (11), assists (4), blocks (3) and steals (2).
- He doubled his previous career rebounding best of five when he grabbed 10 boards against Western Kentucky (11/16/06).
- Recorded his first career double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds against Tennessee Tech (12/28/06).
- He earned his first career start against East Tennessee State (12/30/06).
Injury Interrupts Strong Season For Howell
Jordan Howell suffered a fracture to his right (shooting) hand during practice Dec. 21 that is expected to keep him out of the lineup for 6-8 weeks ... The injury has interrupted what was a very strong season for the junior point guard ... A starter for five games before the injury, Howell hadn't been putting up big numbers and that was just fine with head coach Bruce Pearl ... Howell, who made his first career start against the Louisiana-Lafayette (11/27/06), is averaging 3.1 points, 2.2 assists and 0.9 rebounds per game ... But the most significant statistic for Howell has been his assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.75-to-1 ... In 174 minutes played this season, the 6-foot-3 junior guard has turned the ball over just eight times. Fab Freshmen? Don't Forget These Guys
The Vols have played against three of the most highly-rated freshmen in the nation this season ... Tennessee has faced North Carolina's Brandan Wright and Texas' Kevin Durant and Ohio State's Greg Oden ... However, Tennessee's freshmen are deserving of some attention too ... UT's recruiting class was rated sixth in the nation by Rivals.com and they have not disappointed. - Duke Crews (Rivals.com No. 26 overall) is averaging 9.9 points and leads SEC freshmen with 5.9 rebounds. The 6-foot-7 forward is shooting 53.0 percent from the field.
- Wayne Chism (Rivals.com No. 34 overall) is second on the team with 5.3 rebounds and is fourth on the team with 8.3 points.
- Ramar Smith (Rivals.com No. 20 overall) has shown a lot of versatility and athleticism to his game as he learns the point guard position after playing primarily the two-guard spot for much of his career. In his last seven games he has 31 assists against 11 turnovers.
Thompson-Boling Provides Homecourt Advantage
Thompson-Boling Arena is celebrating its 20th season in 2006-07 ... The Vols have won 72.0 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. - Tennessee is 222-86 (.721) in its 20th season in Thompson-Boling Arena.
- Since the 1998 season, the Vols are 123-27 (.820) in Thompson-Boling Arena.
- The Vols are 53-20 against SEC teams at home over the last nine seasons.
- UT has won 75 of its last 82 home games against non-conference opponents.
- UT is 15-0 in home games against non-conference opponents under Bruce Pearl.
- Tennessee is 9-0 at home this season.
Two Sign In Early Period
On the first day of the early signing period Cameron Tatum and Brian Williams signed national letters of intent to play basketball at the University of Tennessee beginning with the 2007-08 season. - Tatum, a versatile 6-foot-5, 190-pound wing from Patterson Prep in Lenoir, N.C., can put the ball on the floor and create, hit the 3-pointer or take the ball to the rim ... Rated as a four-star prospect and the No. 13 shooting guard in the nation by Rivals.com, he averaged 21 points and 7.7 rebounds as a senior at Tucker High School in Tucker, Ga.
- A 6-9, 300-pound post player at Harmony Community Prep in Cincinnati, Williams will give the Vols much needed depth and size in the paint ... A player with exceptional hands, good feet and a soft shooting touch, he attended Christopher Columbus High School in Bronx, N.Y., before going to Harmony Prep where he was a teammate of current Vols freshman Josh Tabb.
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