University of Tennessee Athletics
Tennessee vs. Nebraska - Game Preview
December 26, 2004 | Men's Basketball
Dec. 26, 2004
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| Nebraska Cornhuskers vs. Tennessee Volunteers
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Tennessee Trends
- Tennessee is playing the third game of a four-game home stand before opening conference play. The Vols host Belmont (Dec. 20), Campbell (Dec. 23), Nebraska (Dec. 30) and Coastal Carolina (Jan. 2) before opening SEC play at Georgia (Jan. 5).
- The Vols are in a stretch where they play eight of nine games at home. UT's only road game during the month of December was a visit to New Mexico on the 18th.
- Tennessee is 1-3 when a frontcourt starter does not score in double-figures
- After shooting 42.5 percent from the field and 38.2 percent from 3-point range in their first five games, the Vols are shooting 55.1 percent (124-of-225) from the field and converting 50.0 percent (38-of-76) of their 3-point attempts over their last five games.
- Tennessee has shot 50 percent or better from the field in four of its last five games.
- Brandon Crump needs two blocked shots for 100 rejections in his career.
- Chris Lofton has made 21 of his last 26 (80.8 percent) field goals and 14 of 18 (77.8 percent) 3-pointers.
- C.J. Watson's 256 career assists are eighth all-time at Tennessee. He needs 22 assists to tie Fred Jenkins (1983-87) for seventh all-time.
- UT's starters have accounted for 78.8 percent (581 of 728 points) of the Vols' scoring this season.
- C.J. Watson and Chris Lofton have tied a school record for single-game 3-point percentage by going 5-for-5 from 3-point range. Watson did it against Campbell (12/23/04) and Lofton accomplished the feat at New Mexico (12/18/04). They tied the mark set by Shane Carnes (5-for-5 against Michigan State on Dec. 20, 1994) and Thaydeus Holden (5-for-5 against Vanderbilt on Jan. 18, 2003).
- Tennessee's 70.0 percent (7-of-10) 3-point shooting against Xavier (12/11/04) established a new school record for 3-point success. It broke the record of 64.3 percent (9-of-14) set Jan. 27, 1992 against a North Carolina State team on which Buzz Peterson was an assistant coach.
- Six of Tennessee's 13 non-conference opponents this year appeared in the 2004 NCAA Tournament. Stanford, North Carolina, Texas, Xavier and Alabama State made NCAA appearances in 2004.
- Scooter McFadgon saw his streak of 31 consecutive free throws made come to an end against Xavier. It was the second-longest streak of his career. He had a streak of 32 consecutive free throws last year.
- Tennessee has an all-time record of 1,337-871-2 in its 96th season of basketball.
- Tennessee returns all five starters and a total of nine letterwinners for the 2005 season. It is the first time that UT has returned all five starters since 1998-99.
- Every statistical category leader from 2004 returns for the 2005 season. The Vols return 88.1 percent of their scoring and 85.5 percent of their rebounding. In fact, UT returns at least 78 percent of its 2004 production in every statistical category.
- Tennessee was one of six teams without a senior in 2003-04. Of those six teams, only Tennessee and Wake Forest received postseason invitations.
- Tennessee has made postseason appearances in six of the last seven seasons. It is the second-best stretch in school history. The Vols made nine postseason appearances in 10 seasons (1976-85), including a stretch of seven in a row (1979-85).
- Freshman Chris Lofton is the third Kentucky Mr. Basketball to sign with the Vols. The 6-foot-3 guard averaged 26.7 points per game for Mason County HS. Allan Houston (1989) and Jermaine Brown (1991) also earned Mr. Basketball honors in the state of Kentucky.
- Tennessee needs five home wins this season to reach the 200-win milestone in Thompson-Boling Arena. The Vols are 195-79 in 17 seasons of play in Thompson-Boling Arena. UT, which has averaged 12 home wins in Buzz Peterson's three seasons in Knoxville, has 16 home games on the schedule this year.
| Team Statistical Comparisons | ||
| Tennessee | Stat Category | Nebraska |
| 72.8 | Points | 66.8 |
| 69.0 | Opponent Points | 56.1 |
| +3.8 | Scoring Margin | +10.6 |
| .480 | Field Goal % | .424 |
| .445 | Opponent Field Goal % | .360 |
| .430 | Three-Point % | .319 |
| .352 | Opponent Three-Point % | .316 |
| .732 | Free Throw % | .606 |
| 32.9 | Rebounds | 41.2 |
| 31.3 | Opponent Rebounds | 33.4 |
| +1.6 | Rebounding Margin | +7.9 |
| 13.5 | Assists | 13.3 |
| 16.6 | Turnovers | 14.1 |
| 3.8 | Blocks | 4.5 |
| 8.0 | Steals | 7.5 |
| 6-4 | Record | 4-4 |
| Individual Statistical Leaders | ||
| Tennessee | Stat Category | Nebraska |
| McFadgon, 16.0 | Points | McCray, 14.4 |
| Crump, 5.6 | Rebounds | Maric, 8.0 |
| Watson, 5.1 | Assists | Neal, 3.1 |
| Lofton, .594 | Field Goal % | Maric, .581 |
| Lofton, .633 | Three-Point % | McCray, .381 |
| Lofton, .917 | Free Throw % | Neal, .818 |
Looking At Nebraska
Nebraska returns to action following a nine-day holiday break with a 4-4 record ... The Huskers fell at Marquette 62-81 in their most recent outing (Dec. 21) ... Nebraska boasts one of the top defenses in the Big 12 Conference by allowing just 56.1 points per game ... The Huskers held Morgan State to just 34 points (Dec. 6) ... Freshman guard Joe McCray is leading the Huskers with 14.4 points per game and has gotten it done on the inside (5.0 rebounds per game) as well as on the perimeter (team-best 38.1 percent 3-point shooting) ... Junior forward Wes Wilkinson missed five weeks of action after suffering a broken foot in Nebraska's first practice but has returned to the lineup to average 5.4 points and 3.1 rebounds in seven games ... Senior John Turek, who is averaging 7.9 points per game, earned his degree this month and will begin working on an MBA next semester ... Senior guard Jake Muhleisen is believed to be the first three-time captain at Nebraska ... The Huskers have outrebounded six of eight opponents and own a +7.9 advantage on the boards ... Nebraska is averaging 14.5 offensive rebounds per game ... UNL returns nine lettermen, including three starters from last year's team that advanced to the second round of the National Invitation Tournament ... Barry Collier is 60-67 in his fifth season at Nebraska and 256-199 in his 16th year as a head coach.
The Nebraska Series
This is the second meeting between Tennessee and Nebraska ... Nebraska took a 77-62 win in the first meeting between the two schools last year ... The Vols are 11- 10 all-time against current members of the Big 12 Conference, including an 0-1 mark this year after losing to then-15th ranked Texas 95-70 at the Maui Invitational ... Tennessee is 1-1 all-time against teams from the state of Nebraska with a 34-28 win over Creighton in 1937.
Cornhusker Connections
UNL athletic director Steve Pederson served as Tennessee's assistant athletic director for football recruiting (1992-93) and associate athletic director for football operations (1993-94) ... Keith Mann, Nebraska's sports information director, spent a year as an assistant in Tennessee's sports information office where he worked with the football team.
Last Meeting With Nebraska
Tennessee couldn't overcome cold shooting in losing its first road game of the year, a 62-77 to Nebraska Dec. 13, 2003 ... The Vols shot just 11.1 percent (3-of-27) in the first half and endured a stretch of 15:02 without connecting on a field goal ... The shooting improved in the second half as the Vols shot 37.8 percent (17-of-45) to finish the game at a more respectable 27.8 percent from the field ... Despite Tennessee's cold shooting, the Huskers only had a 30-17 halftime lead ... The Huskers extended their lead to 22 points in the second half but the Vols battled back to cut it to 11 points three different times but could not get any closer ... Scooter McFadgon, who entered the game averaging 22.0 points on 55.6 percent shooting from the field managed just seven points on 3-of-22 shooting ... Brandon Crump led the Vols with a career-high 25 points after a 9-of-11 effort at the free throw line ... C.J. Watson had nine points and five assists for the Vols, who were playing their first-ever game in the state of Nebraska ... John Turek led the Huskers with 21 points while Nate Johnson added 14 on perfect 10-of-10 shooting from the free throw line.
Last Game: Watson's Career-High Leads UT Over Campbell
C.J. Watson scored a career-high 20 points in leading Tennessee to a 90-49 win over Campbell Thursday, Dec. 23, at Thompson-Boling Arena ... The Vols made 14 of their 22 (63.6 percent) 3-point field goals in narrowly missing the school record of 15 triples in a game ... UT made 13 of their first 15 3-point attempts ... Tennessee used a 25-4 run midway through the first half to take a 51-24 halftime lead and then put the game away with a 26-3 run to open the second half ... Campbell turned the ball over a season-high 26 times ... The Vols shot 57.7 percent (30-of-52) from the field ... Watson tied a school record for 3-point percentage by going 5-for-5 from behind the 3-point line ... Scooter McFadgon had 18 points and Chris Lofton added 16 ... Walk-on Pee-Wee Gash threw in a career-high five points ... UT's starting backcourt of Watson, McFadgon and Lofton combined to go 11-of-13 from 3-point range ... Maurice Latham and Dominique Klein led the Camels with 10 points each.
Lofton Leading The Nation In 3-Point Percentage
Freshman Chris Lofton arrived on the UT campus with a reputation as an extraordinary 3-point shooter ... Ten games into the season the Maysville, Ky., native has not disappointed ... Lofton's 63.3 percent (31-of- 49) 3-point shooting is best in the nation according to the Dec. 20 NCAA Statistics ... Against New Mexico (12/18/04) he tied a school record by going 5-for-5 from 3-point range ... His 12.4 points per game ranks second on the UT roster so far this season ... 75.6 percent (31-of-41) of Lofton's field goals this season have come behind the 3-point line ... His 59.4 percent shooting from the field leads the team ... A guard has not led the Vols in field goal percentage since Bobby Carter's 46.1 percentage (142-of-310) in 1960-61.
Time Focusing On Shot Selection Pays Off
After shooting 40.4 percent (23-of-57) from the field against UT-Chattanooga (12/5/04) Buzz Peterson spent the next week emphasizing shot selection during Tennessee's practices ... That emphasis paid off as in the five games since then the Vols have converted 55.1 percent (124-of-225) of their field goals ... UT has shot 50 percent or better from the field in four of its last five games ... UT set a school record by shooting 70.0 percent (7-of-10) from behind the 3-point arc against the Musketeers (12/11/04) ... Tennessee converted 62.5 percent (25-of-40) of its field goals against Belmont (12/20/04).
Watson Breaks Out Of Shooting Slump With School Record Game
C.J. Watson broke out of a six-game shooting slump with a school record effort from behind the 3-point line against Campbell (12/23/04) ... Watson tied the school record for 3-point percentage by going 5-of- 5 from 3-point range and finished the game with a career-high 20 points on 6-of-7 shooting from the field ... Watson shot 32.6 percent (15-of-46) from the field and averaged 8.8 points per game in UT's previous six games.
Crump Bounces Back
Brandon Crump's senior season didn't start the way he wanted it to when after the Vols' first five games he was averaging 8.8 points per game, six points less than he averaged as a junior (14.8 ppg) ... The Houston, Texas, broke out of his early season slump in style with a career-high 26 points on 11-of-14 shooting against Xavier (12/11/04) ... The 26 points were one better than his previous career high that he had accomplished two times (most recently against Mississippi in 2004) ... In his last five games he is averaging 15.2 points on 68.3 percent (28-of-41 shooting).
Milestones For Crump: 1,000 Points and 500 Rebounds Reached This Season
Brandon Crump became the 37th player in Tennessee history to score 1,000 career points when he reached the milestone against UT-Chattanooga (12/5/04) ... He became just the fourth UT player 6-foot- 10 or taller to reach the 1,000-point milestone ... The 6-foot-10 senior forward has scored 1,081 points in 98 career games ... He is the first Vol to reach 1,000 career points since Ron Slay accomplished the milestone in the 2002-03 season ... Crump recorded his 500th career rebound against North Carolina (11/23/04) ... He has 551 career rebounds.
Scooter's Free Throw Streak Stops At 31
After missing two free throws in the season-opener against Stanford (11/22/04), Scooter McFadgon went on a streak where he made 31 consecutive free throws without a miss ... The streak came to an end against Xavier (12/11/04) when he went 4-of-6 from the line ... The Memphis native missed two of his first six free throws against the Cardinal but rallied to make his last two attempts to begin the streak ... It was the second-longest streak for him as he had a streak of 32 consecutive free throws made last year ... McFadgon is leading the SEC with his 90.0 percent (45-of-50) shooting from the free throw line this season.
Smith Moving Into Lineup
JaJuan Smith initially came to Tennessee as an invited walk-on but was awarded a scholarship prior to the start of the fall semester ... The Decatur, Tenn., native is earning that scholarship after a slow start to the season ... After playing just 11 minutes in UT's first four games, he has seen his role increase since then ... He has been the first Vol off the bench in two of Tennessee's last three games ... He is averaging 4.0 points in 12.0 minutes of action over his last three games ... In his first significant action of the young 2004-05 season against UT-Chattanooga (12/5/04) he doubled his previous output on the season with six points on 2-of-2 shooting from 3-point range in 13 minutes against the Mocs.
Pilfering Point Guard
C.J. Watson's 23 steals through 10 games are almost double that of any other Vol ... Last year it took Watson 14 games to reach the 23 steal mark ... Watson finished finished his sophomore season with 45 steals ... He has averaged 1.5 steals per game over his career ... He sealed the win against Xavier (12/11/04) when he took the ball from Dedrick Finn before he could get a shot off at the final buzzer.
Patterson's Up To His Old Tricks
Andre Patterson's 5.2 rebounds per game ranks second on the Tennessee team and his 58.6 percent shooting from the field is second on the squad, less than one percentage point behind leader Chris Lofton (59.4 percent) ... The transfer from UCLA, who is in his first season playing for the Vols, led the Bruins and the Pac-10 Conference win a 60.8 field goal percentage in 2002-03 and his 5.5 rebounds also led the team ... The Los Angeles native recorded a career-high 16 points against Belmont (12/20/04).
Hendrix Enjoys Best Game Of Season Against Belmont
Jemere Hendrix recorded a season-highs for scoring (8 points) and rebounding (6 rebounds) coming off the bench in the Vols' win over Belmont (12/20/04) ... The Covington, Ga., native earned three starting assignments for the Vols this year but has found his best success coming off the bench ... In three games as a starter he averaged 1.3 points and 2.0 rebounds while he is averaging 3.3 points and 3.3 rebounds coming off the bench.
Former Vols Earn Degrees
Jon Higgins (1999-2003) and C.J. Black (1996-2000) received their college degrees on Dec. 10, 2004 ... Higgins, who is currently playing professionally in France, received a degree in political science while Black, who has played professionally in the U.S. and Europe, received an interdisciplinary studies - urban studies degree as a part of Tennessee's Renewing Academic Commitments (RAC) program.
Vols Enjoy Success On And Off The Court In Hawaii
Tennessee's win over Stanford in the first round of the EA SPORTS Maui Invitational isn't the Vols' only victory in Hawaii so far ... Pee-Wee Gash was the champion of the EA SPORTS March Madness 2005 video game tournament Saturday, Nov. 20 ... Gash defeated North Carolina's Rashad McCants in the finals ... Buzz Peterson, along with a local youth, won a free throw shooting contest that featured the tournaments head coaches Sunday, Nov. 21 ... Peterson made all 10 of his attempts in the two rounds of the competition ... The event was to raise money for local Maui schools.
Vols Trio Earn Coaches Preseason All-SEC Honors
Tennessee was one of three SEC teams to have three players selected to the inaugural SEC men's preseason All-SEC first and second teams that were selected by the league's coaches ... Senior guard Scooter McFadgon was a first team selection while senior forward Brandon Crump and junior guard C.J. Watson were second team picks.
Crump, McFadgon & Watson Named Tri-Captains
Seniors Brandon Crump and Scooter McFadgon along with junior C.J. Watson have been named team captains for the 2004-05 season ... It is the first captaincy appointment for McFadgon while Crump and Watson were also captains last season ... In 95 years of Tennessee basketball prior to this season, only four players had been two-time captains ... V.H. Klein (1913-14), Harry Anderson (1935-36), Garland O'Shields (1945-46) and Johnny Darden (1978-79) are the only other Vols to serve two terms as captain.
Crump Attending Graduate School
Senior forward Brandon Crump received a degree in sport management in May 2004 and is currently pursuing a master's degree ... A true scholar-athlete, he ranked second on the team with 14.8 points per game while leading the Vols with 6.8 rebounds per game in 2004 ... In the classroom, he was named to the 2003-04 SEC Winter Academic Honor Roll and was selected as the Edamerica Scholar-Athlete of the month in February 2004.
Scooter Looks To Build On Free Throw Shooting
Scooter McFadgon broke one of Tennessee's oldest records last year when his 91.2 percent shooting at the free throw line dispatched a school record that had stood since 1969 ... The Memphis native connected on 134 of his 147 free throw attempts to lead the SEC and rank fifth in the nation ... His free throw success rate was the second-best in SEC history ... This year he enters his senior season as the league's second-leading returning scorer with 17.6 points per game ... Only Florida's Anthony Roberson averaged more points with 17.9.
What Returns
Who could blame Buzz Peterson for being excited when he looks at what is back from last year's team ... The Vols return an unprecedented amount of their production from last season's squad ... UT returns all five starters and a total of nine letterwinners from last year's squad ... In fact, nearly 80 percent of every statistical category returns from 2003-04 ... A total of 88.1 percent of UT's scoring is back from a team that averaged 71.1 points per game ... 85.5 percent of the team's rebounding returns and 83.0 percent of the Vols' assists are also back.
Home Court Advantage
Thompson-Boling Arena has provided the Vols with a definite home court advantage since the facility opened in time for the 1987-88 season.
- Tennessee is 195-79 (.712) in its 18th season in Thompson-Boling Arena.
- Since the 1998 season, the Vols are 96-20 (.828) in Thompson-Boling Arena.
- Tennessee is 82-18 (.820) since the 1999 season at home. UT recorded a 14-1 record in 1999, a 15-1 mark in 2000, 12-3 in 2001, 10-4 in 2002, 12-5 in 2003 and 14-3 in 2004.
- The Vols are 43-14 against SEC teams at home over the last six seasons.
- UT has won 59 of its last 65 home games against non-conference opponents.
Vols Sign Three In Early Period
Buzz Peterson announced that three players signed national letters of intent to play basketball at the University of Tennessee in the November signing period.
- Tyler Smith, a 6-foot-7, 230-pound forward from Pulaski, Tenn., was selected as one of the top 10 high school players in the nation when Street & Smith's named him a second team selection on the 2004 Boys High School All-America Team. As a junior at Giles County High School the first team all-state selection averaged 24 points, nine rebounds and five assists while leading the Bobcats to the state tournament. As a sophomore he earned tournament MVP honors after leading Giles County to a state championship. Rated a four-star prospect by Rivals.com, he was named the MVP of the all-star game at the adidas Superstar camp last summer in Atlanta.
- Matthew Dotson, a 6-foot-8, 210-pound forward from Centerville, Tenn., is rated a three-star prospect by Rivals.com. He was named the Class 3A Player of the Year for Hickman County High School's district last year. A big man who has a deft outside shooting touch that extends beyond the 3-point arc, he averaged 23 points and 14.5 rebounds as a junior.
- Damion Harris, a 6-foot-10, 275-pound center from Greenville, S.C., was a Class AAA All-State selection at Wade Hampton High School last season. As a senior in 2003-04 he led the Generals to the state tournament and as a junior he averaged 16 points, 14 rebounds and 6.5 blocks in leading Wade Hampton to the Class AAA Upper State finals. He first signed with the Vols last year, but is spending the 2004-05 season playing for Prince Avenue Prep in Pickens, S.C.
Preseason Honors & Predictions
| Team Predictions | |
| SEC Media | 3rd/SEC East |
| Athlon Sports | 3rd/SEC East |
| Street & Smith's | 3rd/SEC East |
| Basketball Time In TN | 3rd/SEC East |
| Lindy's Basketball | 3rd/SEC East |
| Blue Ribbon | 4th/SEC East |
| The Sporting News | 4th/SEC East |
| Basketball News | 4th/SEC East |
| Postseason Predictions | |
| Athlon Sports | NCAA Tournament |
| Basketball News | NCAA Tournament |
| Lindy's Basketball | NCAA Tournament |
| Individual Predictions | |
| Scooter McFadgon | First Team All-SEC (SEC Coaches) |
| First Team All-SEC (SEC Media) | |
| First Team All-SEC (Athlon Sports) | |
| First Team All-SEC (Basketball News) | |
| First Team All-SEC (Blue Ribbon CBY) | |
| Second Team All-SEC (The Sporting News) | |
| Second Team All-SEC (Lindy's Basketball) | |
| No. 9 "Slasher" nationally (Athlon Sports) | |
| No. 15 "SG" nationally (Lindy's Basketball) | |
| No. 16 "SG" nationally (The Sporting News) | |
| SEC's "Most Entertaining" (Lindy's Basketball) | |
| C.J. Watson | Second Team All-SEC (SEC Coaches) |
| Third Team All-SEC (Athlon Sports) | |
| SEC's "Best Playmaker" (The Sporting News) | |
| SEC's "Best Passer" (Street & Smith's) | |
| SEC's "Top Playmaker" (Lindy's Basketball) | |
| Brandon Crump | Second Team All-SEC (SEC Coaches) |
| Third Team All-SEC (Athlon Sports) | |
| Third Team All-SEC (Lindy's Basketball) | |
| Andre Patterson | No. 7 "Top Transfer" nationally (Lindy's Basketball) |
| Top Transfer (Athlon Sports) | |
| Top Transfer (Basketball News) | |
| SEC's "Best Transfer" (Street & Smith's) | |
| Chris Lofton | Top 100 Freshmen (Street & Smith's) |
