University of Tennessee Athletics
Tennessee vs. Mississippi State - Game Preview
January 10, 2005 | Men's Basketball
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| Mississippi State Bulldogs vs. Tennessee Volunteers
RADIO
TV LIVE STATS RANKINGS: THE COACHES: Mississippi State Bulldogs
Coach Peterson | Peterson on Crump | Peterson on MSU
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Tennessee Trends
- Following the Mississippi State game, five of Tennessee's next six games are on the road.
- Tennessee is 7-0 when leading or tied at halftime.
- More than 250 people from Maysville, Ky., made the trip to Knoxville to watch native son Chris Lofton play against Vanderbilt (1/8/05).
- Tennessee has shot 55.6 percent (50-of-90) from the free throw line in its last four games. The Vols shot 73.2 percent from the line in their first 10 games.
- Scooter McFadgon has registered double figure scoring in every game in which he has played this year.
- Five Vols are shooting better than 50 percent from the field. Brandon Crump (61.1), Andre Patterson (56.1), Chris Lofton (56.1), Major Wingate (54.5) and Jemere Hendrix (51.7) are all making more than half of their shots.
- Tennessee has shot 50 percent or better from the field in six of its last nine games.
- Brandon Crump became the eighth Vol ever to have 1,000 points, 500 rebounds and 100 blocked shots.
- C.J. Watson's 375 career assists are eighth all-time at Tennessee. He needs three assists to tie Fred Jenkins (1983-87) for seventh all-time.
- 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 51.4 percent (225-of-438) from the field over their last nine games.
- UT's starters have accounted for 79.7 percent (803 of 1,007 points) of the Vols' scoring this season.
- Ten different Vols have made a 3-pointer this season.
- C.J. Watson became the first Vol in five years to record 10 or more assists in a game when he registered a career-high 10 dimes against Nebraska (12/30/04).
- 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 1,339-872-2 in its 96th season of basketball.
- Tennessee was one of six teams without a senior in 2003-04. Of those six teams, only Tennessee and Wake Forest received postseason invitations.
- 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 four home wins this season to reach the 200-win milestone in Thompson-Boling Arena. The Vols are 196-80 in 18 seasons of play in Thompson-Boling Arena. UT, which has averaged 12 home wins in Buzz Peterson's first three seasons in Knoxville, has 16 home games on the schedule this year.
| Team Statistical Comparisons | ||
| Tennessee | Stat Category | Mississippi State |
| 71.9 | Points | 76.7 |
| 68.3 | Opponent Points | 61.8 |
| +3.6 | Scoring Margin | +14.9 |
| .479 | Field Goal % | .457 |
| .435 | Opponent Field Goal % | .377 |
| .410 | Three-Point % | .351 |
| .380 | Opponent Three-Point % | .280 |
| .680 | Free Throw % | .672 |
| 34.4 | Rebounds | 43.9 |
| 32.0 | Opponent Rebounds | 32.8 |
| +2.4 | Rebounding Margin | +11.1 |
| 14.4 | Assists | 16.2 |
| 15.5 | Turnovers | 14.7 |
| 3.8 | Blocks | 3.6 |
| 7.4 | Steals | 7.4 |
| 8-6 | Record | 14-2 |
| Individual Statistical Leaders | ||
| Tennessee | Stat Category | Mississippi State |
| McFadgon, 15.8 | Points | Roberts, 18.8 |
| Patterson, 6.1 | Rebounds | Roberts, 11.5 |
| Watson, 5.0 | Assists | Ervin, 6.2 |
| Crump, .611 | Field Goal % | Campbell, .553 |
| Lofton, .563 | Three-Point % | Edmondson, .471 |
| McFadgon, .813 | Free Throw % | Frazier, .844 |
Looking At Mississippi State
Mississippi State enters Wednesday's game with a 14-2 overall mark and a 2-0 record in SEC games ... The Bulldogs are coming off an 87-76 victory at intrastate rival Ole Miss Saturday ... The Rebels led early but a 21-4 MSU run helped the Bulldogs regain control of the game ... Winsome Frazier, Mississippi State's second leading scorer with 13.3 points per game, suffered an ankle injury in the first half against Ole Miss and did not return to the game ... National Player of the Year candidate Lawrence Roberts is leading the Bulldogs with 18.8 points and 11.5 rebounds per game ... A 6-foot-9 senior forward, Roberts has recorded 45 career double doubles ... Shane Power, a senior guard/forward, is third on the team with 10.1 points ... The Bulldogs are bringing an NCAA-best 16-game road winning streak into Wednesday's game ... Mississippi State has not lost a game on an opponents' home court since a 49-59 decision at Tennessee on March 5, 2003 ... MSU has won nine consecutive SEC road games ... The Bulldogs are riding an eight-game winning streak since a Dec. 5 loss to Arizona at the John R. Wooden Classic in Anaheim, Calif. ... State is holding opponents to just 28.0 percent 3-point shooting ... Rick Stansbury is 140-66 in his seventh season as the Bulldogs' head coach.
The Mississippi State Series
Tennessee leads the all-time series 69-38 ... The Vols hold a 40-9 all-time advantage when the series is played in Knoxville ... Mississippi State holds a narrow 26-23 advantage when the series is played in Starkville ... Last year 11th-ranked Mississippi State took an 82-60 win in Starkville on Jan. 28, 2004 ... Nine of the last 12 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 ... 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 its fifth ranked team in its last six games, Tennessee dropped a 60-82 decision at 11th-ranked Mississippi State Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2004 ... MSU's inside-outside combination of guard Timmy Bowers and forward Lawrence Roberts combined for 38 points in leading the Bulldogs ... The Bulldogs forced 21 Vol turnovers and converted 35 points off the giveaways ... Tennessee opened the game by taking a 7-2 lead but Mississippi State went on a 13-0 to regain a 13-7 advantage ... MSU led by as many as 27 points in the game ... Scooter McFadgon, who had been slowed by a wrist injury, scored 20 points on 6-of-13 shooting from the field ... Jemere Hendrix carded a career-high 14 rebounds to go with 11 points ... The Vols shot just 15.4 percent from 3-point range, including 0-of-10 in the second half.
Last Game: Vanderbilt Shoots Its Way To Win Over Vols
The Vanderbilt Commodores broke their school record with 18 3-pointers on their way to an 88-63 victory over the Vols Saturday, Jan. 8, at Thompson-Boling Arena ... The Commodores set a Thompson-Boling Arena record with their 18 treys and tied a record with just two free throws made ... The Vols started the game with a one-point deficit after being called for a technical foul for dunking during pre-game warmups and Vanderbilt making one of the two free throws ... Vanderbilt jumped out to a 7-1 lead at the first media time out and built a 10-point (38-28) lead at halftime ... The Vols were able to cut the Commodore's lead to eight points two times in the second half but VU responded with 3-pointers to stop any UT rally ... Scooter McFadgon led the Vols with 17 points while C.J. Watson contributed 16 points ... Andre Patterson had a game-high 10 rebounds ... Mario Moore led Vanderbilt with 18 points on 5-of-12 shooting from 3- point range ... Vandy shot 54.8 percent from the field and 56.3 percent from behind the 3-point arc.
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 nine games since then the Vols have converted 51.4 percent (225-of-438) of their field goals ... UT has shot 50 percent or better from the field in six of its last nine 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).
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 ... Fourteen games into the season the Maysville, Ky., native has not disappointed ... According to the Jan. 3 NCAA Statistics Lofton's 60.4 percent (32-of-53) 3-point shooting is best in the nation ... He is currently shooting 56.3 percent (36-of-64) from 3-point range ... His 2.57 3-pointers made per game rank fifth in the SEC ... Against New Mexico (12/18/04) he tied a school record by going 5-for-5 from 3-point range ... His 11.6 points per game ranks fourth on the UT roster so far this season ... 65.5 percent (36-of-55) of Lofton's field goals this season have come behind the 3-point line ... His 56.1 percent shooting from the field is second on 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.
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 ... Over his last five games, the Las Vegas native has made 46.3 percent (19-of-41) of his field goals and 50.0 percent (12-of-24) of his 3-pointers ... 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 nine games he is averaging 13.3 points on 69.1 percent (47-of-68 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 1,125 points in 102 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 is the eighth player in Tennessee history to record 1,000 points, 500 rebounds and 100 blocks.
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.
Pilfering Point Guard
C.J. Watson's 28 steals through 14 games leads the Vols ... 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 ... In the season opener he recorded a career-high five steals against Stanford in the Maui Invitational.
Patterson's Up To His Old Tricks
Andre Patterson's 6.1 rebounds per game leads the Tennessee team and his 56.1 percent shooting from the field is tied for second on the squad ... Over his last six game Patterson is averaging 7.8 points on 58.3 percent (21-of-36) shooting and 7.2 rebounds per game ... 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).
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 196-81 (.708) in its 18th season in Thompson-Boling Arena.
- Since the 1998 season, the Vols are 97-22 (.815) in Thompson-Boling Arena.
- Tennessee is 83-20 (.806) 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 43-15 against SEC teams at home over the last six seasons.
- UT has won 60 of its last 67 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) |
