Ramar Smith | VOLS FACE CATS; AIMING FOR THIRD CONSECUTIVE WIN
- Tennessee and Kentucky will meet for the 203rd time when the Vols host the Wildcats on Tuesday, Feb. 13. The UT-UK rivalry is the second-most played rivalry in SEC history. Only Ole Miss and Mississippi State (235 meetings) have played more often.
- Tennessee is riding a two-game winning streak and have won three of their last four games. UT has wins over Georgia (82-71), LSU (70-67) and Vanderbilt (84-57) while its only loss during the four-game stretch came at No. 1-ranked Florida (78-94).
- Despite struggling early in league play, including a stretch of four games without leading scorer Chris Lofton, the Vols are still in the upper half of the league standings. Tennessee's 5-5 record is tied for fifth in the SEC standings.
- UT is coming off an impressive 84-57 victory over Vanderbilt Saturday. The Vols shot 50.9 percent from the field while holding the Commodores to a season-low 29.8 percent shooting. Freshman forward Wayne Chism recorded his third double-double of the season with 17 points and a career-high 12 rebounds. Chris Lofton added 16 points and JaJuan Smith had 11.
- UK has won the last two meetings with the Vols, including a 76-57 decision earlier this year in Lexington.
- Maysville, Ky., native Chris Lofton has returned to the lineup after missing four games with an ankle injury. The junior guard, who is averaging 12.0 points in the two games since making his return against LSU on Feb. 6, leads the SEC with 20.6 points per game on the season and ranks second in SEC history with a career 3-point percentage of 45.2 (280-of-620).
Tennessee Trends
- Chris Lofton needs three 3-pointers to tie Kentucky's career leader Tony Delk (283 from 1992-96) for fifth on the SEC career 3-pointers made list. He has made 280 career shots behind the 3-point arc.
- Tennessee has not trailed at any point of either of its last two games (LSU and Vanderbilt).
- UT's 229 3-pointers this season ranks as the fourth-most in school history.
- Bruce Pearl will be wearing his orange jacket for the second consecutive game. Pearl only wears the jacket for games against Vanderbilt and Kentucky. UT defeated Vandy 84-57 Saturday.
- Four times this season Tennessee has had three freshmen in the starting lineup. It is the first time since the 1996-97 season the Vols have had three freshmen in the starting lineup for a game.
- Three of UT's top five scorers are freshmen.
- Each of UT's four freshmen are averaging at least 18 minutes of action per game.
- Dane Bradshaw ranks second in the SEC in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.64), fourth in steals (1.92) and fifth in assists (4.76).
- Bradshaw has moved into 10th on UT's career charts with 340 career assists. He needs 13 dimes to pass Jon Higgins' (1999-00) 352 career assists.
- Chris Lofton and JaJuan Smith are the highest scoring duo in the Southeastern Conference. Lofton averages 20.6 points while Smith adds 15.5 points.
- Wayne Chism and Duke Crews are the top two freshmen rebounders in the SEC. Chism leads all SEC freshmen with 5.6 rebounds and Crews is second with 5.3 boards.
- In league games, Ramar Smith leads all SEC freshmen in assists (3.50) and steals (1.50) and is second in scoring (14.2 ppg).
- Jordan Howell has made 10 of his last 16 3-point attempts (62.5 percent) and is averaging 8.3 points over his last four games.
- Chris Lofton (73) and JaJuan Smith (67) have combined to make nearly as many 3-pointers as Tennessee's opponents have (171).
- The Vols are forcing 18.8 turnovers per game.
- Tennessee is 26-2 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 6-4 against ranked teams while at Tennessee. This year he is 3-3 with wins over No. 15 Oklahoma State, No. 16 Memphis and No. 23 Vanderbilt and losses to No. 2 North Carolina, at No. 5 Ohio State and at No. 1 Florida.
- 11 different Vols have hit a 3-pointer this season. Eight have made at least 10 3-pointers.
- The Vols have made at least one 3-pointer in 309 consecutive games.
- Under Bruce Pearl, UT is 32-2 when leading or tied with five minutes left in the game.
- UT is 25-3 when scoring 80 or more points under the direction of Bruce Pearl.
- UT is 27-14 (.659) 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 1,384-900-2 in 98 seasons of basketball.
- UT's 615 regular season Southeastern Conference victories rank third all-time in the SEC. Only Kentucky and Alabama have won more league games.
- Tennessee is 226-86 in its 20th season in Thompson-Boling Arena. The Volunteers have posted winning home records in 18 of their 20 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.
Looking At Kentucky
Kentucky enters Tuesday night's game with an 18-6 overall record following a 61-64 loss to top-ranked Florida Saturday Lexington ... The Wildcats possess the second-best SEC record with a 7-3 conference mark ... The loss to the Gators ended a three-game UK winning streak ... Randolph Morris, a 6-foot-11 junior, leads the 'Cats with 15.7 points and 7.4 rebounds ... Junior Joe Crawford ranks third in the league with 17.1 points in SEC play and is third in 3-point percentage (.475) ... Ramel Bradley has scored 20 or more points in each of his last four games and is averaging 14.2 points and 3.9 assists per game ... Kentucky owns SEC road wins at Ole Miss, South Carolina and Arkansas ... In league play, the 'Cats are second in the SEC in field goal percentage defense (.413) ... UK is holding its opponents to just 31.2 percent 3-point shooting on the season ... Tubby Smith is 259-77 in his 10th season at Kentucky and is 383-139 in his 16th year as a head coach. The Kentucky Series
This will be the 203rd meeting all-time between the two schools ... Kentucky leads the all-time series 139-63 ... The Wildcats took a 76-57 win in the first meeting between the schools this year ... Kentucky leads the series 48-43 when played in Knoxville ... The Wildcats hold an 81-16 advantage when playing in Lexington ... Tennessee was the second team ever and the first SEC team to defeat Kentucky at Rupp Arena when the Vols took a 71-67 win on Jan. 12, 1977 ... Utah was the first opponent to win in Rupp when the Utes defeated the Wildcats 70-68 on Dec. 18, 1976 in the finals of the UK Invitation Tournament ... UK holds a 10-4 advantage when the schools meet in the SEC Tournament ... Tennessee's 63 wins against the Wildcats are more than any other Kentucky opponent ... Vanderbilt has beaten UK 40 times to rank second ... Kentucky's 139 wins against Tennessee are the most of any Volunteer opponent ... The Kentucky series is Tennessee's oldest and most played among SEC opponents ... The Vols and Wildcats first met on Feb. 5, 1910 ... That was just the second season that the University of Tennessee fielded a basketball team. My Old Kentucky Home
In five career games against Kentucky, Tennessee junior guard Chris Lofton is averaging 18.4 points per game on 46.8 percent (22-of-47) 3-point shooting ... The Maysville, Ky., native is also adding 3.8 rebounds in the five games ... In two games at UK's Rupp Arena, he is averaging 24.0 points on 63.2 percent (12-of-19) 3-point shooting ... Lofton is no stranger to Kentucky's Rupp Arena, having played an estimated 10 high school games in the arena ... He made nine 3-pointers and scored 39 points to lead Mason County HS to a 2003 state championship over Louisville Ballard HS in Rupp Arena. More Kentucky Connections
Chris Lofton is the third Kentucky Mr. Basketball to play for the Vols, joining Allan Houston (1989) and Jermaine Brown (1991) ... UT sophomore guard J.P. Prince, who is sitting out after transferring from Arizona last month, is a cousin of former Kentucky standout and current Detroit Piston Tayshaun Prince ... Kentucky Athletics Director Mitch Barnhart worked at Tennessee from 1986-98 ... Barnhart was UT's Senior Associate Athletic Director from 1996-98 ... UK's Tubby Smith and Tennessee track coach Bill Webb attended High Point University in North Carolina together in the 1970s ... Teammates on both the High Point basketball and track and field teams, they comprised half of the shuttle hurdle relay team that set a school record that still stands today ... Webb has led the Tennessee men's track and field team to 2001 outdoor and 2002 indoor national championships ... Smith led UK to the 1998 NCAA basketball championship. Last Meeting with Kentucky
JaJuan Smith stepped up with a career-high scoring output but it wasn't enough as the Vols fell 57-76 to Kentucky Sunday, Jan. 28, at Rupp Arena ... The Vols were playing their second straight game with the SEC's leading scorer sitting on the bench with an ankle injury ... The Wildcats led 47-46 with 10 minutes left when they went on a 20-2 run to seal the win ... UK hit five of their 11 3-pointers during the run ... Tennessee had led 32-31 at halftime ... Smith scored a career-high 25 points on 5-of-11 shooting from 3-point range ... Ramar Smith was the only other Vols player in double figure scoring with 10 points ... Josh Tabb got his first career start and was one of three freshmen in the starting lineup for the Vols ... Maysville, Ky., native Chris Lofton, who was leading the SEC with 21.5 points per game, missed his second consecutive contest with an ankle injury ... Ramel Bradley led the 'Cats with 21 points while Jodie Meeks added 16 points ... Kentucky outrebounded the Vols 42-27 ... The game concluded a stretch where the Vols played five of six games on the road. Last Game: Vols Blow Out Vandy
Tennessee earned its largest margin of victory over Vanderbilt in nearly 60 years with an 84-57 win over the 23rd-ranked Commodores Saturday, Feb. 10, at Thompson-Boling Arena ... Tennessee's 27-point win over Vanderbilt was the Vols' second-biggest win over the Commodores in 171 all-time meetings ... It is the largest margin of victory over the 'Dores since a 56-21 win on Dec. 22, 1947 ... The Vols opened the game on a 13-0 run that featured a pair of 3-pointers from 6-foot-9 freshman Wayne Chism ... UT extended its lead to 22-4 on a Chris Lofton triple with 11 minutes left ... Vandy rallied to cut the lead to 12 but the Vols responded with a 3-pointer from Jordan Howell and a jumper from JaJuan Smith ... UT took a 42-21 lead at the half ... Tennessee never let Vanderbilt get closer than 17 points in the second half ... Chism recorded his third career double-double with 17 points and a career-high 12 rebounds ... Lofton, playing in his second game since returning from an ankle injury that forced him to miss four games, had 16 points while JaJuan Smith added 11 ... Shan Foster and Ross Neltner each had 15 points to lead the Commodores ... Tennessee shot 50.9 percent from the field and 48.0 percent from 3-point range ... Vanderbilt shot just 29.8 percent from the field and 23.1 percent from behind the 3-point arc ... UT held a 43-31 advantage on the boards. UT To Retire Bernard King's Number
Tennessee will retire Bernard King's No. 53 at halftime of Tuesday's game against Kentucky ... King will become the first men's basketball player at UT to have his number retired ... Considered one of the best players in SEC history, King played at UT from 1974-77, earning first team All-America honors in each of his three seasons ... A three-time SEC Player of the Year, he led the Vols to the 1977 SEC championship with a 22-6 overall record and a 16-2 mark in the league ... The Brooklyn, N.Y., native finished his career ranking second all-time at UT with 1,962 career points and 1,004 rebounds ... Following his junior season he was drafted in the first round (seventh overall selection) by the New Jersey Nets ... During his 14-year career in the NBA he was a two-time first team All-NBA selection, four-time NBA All-Star and finished his career with a scoring average of 22.5 points per game. He's Back
After missing four games with an ankle injury, Chris Lofton returned to the lineup against LSU (2/6/07) ... The Maysville, Ky., native showed that he was returning to form in the Vols' win over Vanderbilt (2/10/07) when he scored 16 points on 2-of-4 3-point shooting in 26 minutes of action ... He scored eight points in 21 minutes in his return to the court against LSU ... Tennessee had struggled to replace Lofton in the lineup, averaging just 63.3 points in the first three games (including the game he was injured) without him ... However, in the two games before he returned to the lineup the Vols had averaged 79.0 points per game. UT's Babies Stop Big Baby
Freshmen forwards Wayne Chism and Duke Crews combined to hold LSU's Glen "Big Baby" Davis to his lowest scoring total since his freshman year in Tennessee's 70-67 victory over LSU ... The 2006 SEC Player of the Year, Davis was held to five points on 2-of-10 shooting from the field, his lowest scoring output in 72 games ... It was the 6-foot-9 junior's fourth-lowest scoring total of his career ... Chism, a 6-foot-9 forward, finished the game with six points and three rebounds while Crews, a 6-foot-7 forward, had six points and three blocks. Chism Is Third Vol To Earn SEC Frosh Honor
Wayne Chism was named the SEC Freshman of the Week on Feb. 12 after he recorded his third career double-double with 17 points and 12 rebounds in UT's win over 23rd-ranked Vanderbilt (2/10/07) ... Chism became the third UT player to earn SEC Freshman of the Week honors this year ... Ramar Smith has earned the honor two times (Jan. 8 and Feb. 5) and Duke Crews has won it one time (Dec. 24) ... UT is the only team in the conference to have three different freshmen win the weekly award this season. Lofton Lately
- Returned to the lineup against LSU (2/6/07) after missing four games with an ankle injury suffered against South Carolina (1/20/07).
- Leads the SEC with 20.6 points per game.
- Leads the SEC with 3.5 3-pointers per game.
- According to the Feb. 4 NCAA statistics, he ranks 11th in the nation in scoring (21.5), eighth in 3-pointers per game (3.7), 11th in 3-point percentage (46.1).
- 73 3-pointers this season rank seventh on UT's single-season charts.
- Shooting 45.9 percent (73-of-159) 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 28 of his last 32 games.
- Owns three of the top five scoring performances in the SEC this year.
- Scored 30 or more points five times this season.
- Has shot 99 free throws this season after shooting just 101 free throws in his first two years at Tennessee.
- 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 18th on UT's career scoring lists with 1,360 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.
Lofton A Wooden Award Midseason Top 30 Pick
On Jan. 30 the John R. Wooden Award Committee announced the Wooden Award Midseason All-American Team which is composed of the top 30 players who will compete for this season's player of the year award ... The Southeastern Conference lists six candidates for the award ... The 10-player Wooden Award All-American Team will be announced March 27. Vols Have Started Three Freshmen
UT has had three freshmen in the starting lineup for four games this season ... It is the most freshmen in the starting lineup for the Vols since the 1996-97 season when four Vols started an SEC Tournament game ... Ramar Smith, Wayne Chism and Duke Crews started UT's game against Ole Miss (1/24/07) and then Josh Tabb joined Smith and Chism in the starting lineup for the Kentucky (1/28/07), Georgia (1/31/07) and Florida (2/3/07) games ... South Carolina is the only other SEC school to have three freshmen in the starting lineup for a game this season (one player was a redshirt freshman) ... The four freshmen who drew starting assignments for Tennessee's 1997 SEC Tournament game were Cornelius Jackson, C.J. Black, Charles Hathaway and Vegas Davis. Tough Schedule
Tennessee's schedule ranked as the fifth toughest in the nation according to CollegeRPI.com on Feb. 11 ... The Vols' non-conference slate has featured seven teams currently ranked and another one receiving votes in the Associated Press poll ... UT has played No. 1 Florida, No. 2 Ohio State, No. 4 North Carolina, No. 8 Memphis, No. 13 Butler, No. 18 Oklahoma State and No. 20 Kentucky (current rankings listed) ... Additionally, the Vols have three more games remaining on their schedule against teams that are currently ranked or receiving votes in the Associated Press poll. UT One Of SEC's Top Scoring Teams
Tennessee is second in the SEC and ranks 12th nationally in scoring offense with 80.8 points per game ... Leading the league in scoring is nothing new for a Bruce Pearl coached team ... Pearl's teams have led their conference in scoring each of the last seven seasons ... 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. Close Calls
Tennessee has dropped six of its last 10 games with five of those games being decided by one possession ... Two of those losses 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 ... The Vols did take a 70-67 win over LSU Feb. 6 ... UT is 7-3 in games decided by 10 points or less and 4-3 in games decided by five points or fewer this season. Free Throw Woes
Free throws have been a key component to Tennessee dropping six of its last 10 games ... The Vols are shooting just 63.2 percent (115-of-182) from the line over the last 10 games, four of which have been decided by just three points or less ... UT's opponents are shooting 72.9 percent (153-of-210) 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 18.2 times in the last 10 games. Vols In The NCAA Stats
UT is prominently listed among the national leaders according to the February 12 NCAA statistics. - Scoring offense: 80.8 ppg / 11th
- 3-pointers per game: 9.2 3pg / 13th
- Steals per game: 9.6 spg / 15th
- Assists per game: 15.5 apg / 54th
- Points per game: Chris Lofton - 20.6 pts / 18th
- 3-pointers per game: Chris Lofton - 3.5 3pg / 9th
- 3-point percentage: Chris Lofton - 45.9 % / 11th
- Steals per game: JaJuan Smith - 2.1 spg / 41st
- 3-pointers per game: JaJuan Smith - 2.7 3pg / 70th
- Steals per game: Dane Bradshaw - 1.9 spg / 68th
- Assists per game: Dane Bradshaw - 4.8 apg / 68th
Vols Bring The Pressure
Tennessee's pressure defense has made the simple act of inbounding the ball a headache for its opponents ... The Vols have forced 137 turnovers 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 18.8 turnovers per game. - 24 times the pressure has caused a timeout.
- 18 5-second counts have been called on UT's foes.
- 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 ... JaJuan Smith was second on the team with 61 treys while 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 leads the SEC with 9.16 3-pointers per game.
- Lofton leads the SEC with 3.48 triples per game.
- JaJuan Smith is third in the SEC with 2.68 3-pointers per game.
- Combined, Lofton (73) and Smith (67) have made as nearly many 3-pointers as UT's opponents (171).
- Tennessee's 15 3-pointers against second-ranked North Carolina (11/24/06) came just one short of tying the school record of 16.
Bench Contributing
Tennessee's bench has played a key role in the Vols' success early this season ... UT's bench is averaging 22.1 points per game ... Two times this season the bench has contributed at least 40 points in a game ... 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 30 minutes per game. 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 15.5 points, is first with 53 steals and third with 35 assists while making 67 3-pointers this year. - He is third in the SEC with 2.68 3-pointers per game on the season.
- He has scored 20 or more points in a game eight times this season.
- Led UT's scoring efforts 10 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 25 points on 5-of-11 3-point shooting at Kentucky (1/28/07).
- 16.6 points in SEC games rank fifth in the league.
- Last seven games is averaging 18.9 points on 48.9 percent shooting from the field and 40.4 percent (23-of-57) 3-point shooting.
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 (119) and is second in steals (48) and third in blocks (13).
- He has led the Vols in assists 16 out of 25 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).
- In SEC games he is averaging 5.5 assists per game and has an assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.75.
Crews Missile
One of the most heralded freshmen in the SEC 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 8.5 points and 5.3 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).
- 63 of his 133 rebounds (47 percent) have come at the offensive end of the floor.
- He is second among all SEC freshmen with 5.3 rebounds.
- Ranks seventh in the SEC with 2.52 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 14 games since then he is averaging 14.0 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game ... On the season, the 6-foot-2 Smith is averaging 10.2 points, 3.2 rebounds and 3.1 assists in 26.6 minutes per game. - He has earned 19 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).
- He has scored 10 or more points in 14 of his last 16 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.
- Earned his second SEC Freshman of the Week honor on Feb. 5 after he scored a career-high 21 points on 8-of-11 shooting against Georgia (1/31/07).
- In league games, he leads all SEC freshmen in assists (3.50) and steals (1.50) and is second in scoring (14.2 ppg).
- Ranks 13th in the SEC with 14.2 points per game in league games.
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 leads the Vols with 5.6 rebounds and is fourth on the squad with 9.1 points per game. - Chism has eight starting assignments and has been the first Vol off the bench in 15 of UT's 24 games.
- Had nine points and six rebounds in 14 minutes against 15th-ranked Oklahoma State (12/18/06).
- Scored 18 points to go with eight rebounds in the win over Texas (12/23/06).
- Registered a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds against South Carolina (1/20/07).
- Scored a career-high 19 points on 7-of-9 shooting from the field to go with six rebounds at No. 1 Florida (2/3/07).
- Had his third double-double of the season with 17 points and a career-high 12 rebounds against 23rd-ranked Vanderbilt (2/10/07).
- Since moving into the starting lineup against Ole Miss (1/24/07) he is averaging 10.7 points and 5.5 rebounds.
- In six games against ranked opponents, he averages 11.2 points and 6.2 rebounds while shooting 52.2 percent from the field and 45.0 percent from 3-point range.
Howell Is A Steadying Influence
Jordan Howell suffered a fracture to his right (shooting) hand during practice Dec. 21 that caused him to miss seven games ... He returned to the lineup against South Carolina (1/20/07) ... The injury interrupted 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 4.4 points, 1.6 assists and 1.3 rebounds per game ... But the most significant statistic for Howell has been his assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.64-to-1 ... In 322 minutes played this season Howell has turned the ball over just 11 times. - In 148 minutes (seven games) of action since returning from the hand injury he has committed just three turnovers.
- Scored a career-high 11 points on 3-of-5 3-point shooting against Georgia (1/31/07).
- Last four games is averaging 8.3 points on 10-of-16 (62.5 percent) 3-point shooting.
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 5.5 points and 3.8 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.
- Has set or tied career highs for points (14), rebounds (11), assists (4), blocks (3) and steals (3).
- 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).
Thompson-Boling Provides Homecourt Advantage
Thompson-Boling Arena is celebrating its 20th season in 2006-07 ... The Vols have won 72.4 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 226-86 (.724) in its 20th season in Thompson-Boling Arena.
- Since the 1998 season, the Vols are 126-27 (.824) in Thompson-Boling Arena.
- The Vols are 57-20 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 13-0 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.
Prince Joins Vols
Bruce Pearl announced Jan. 16 that J.P. Prince has enrolled at 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. |
