University of Tennessee Athletics
TENNESSEE VS. ALABAMA A&M -- GAME PREVIEW
December 24, 2005 | Men's Basketball
Dec. 24, 2005
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Tennessee Trends
- The Vols just completed a stretch of playing only one home game in a month. Between Nov. 26 and Dec. 26, Tennessee's only home game was Dec. 5 against Appalachian State.
- UT has recorded nearly twice as many steals as its opponents. The Vols have 80 steals compared to just 46 by their opponents.
- Tennessee's opponents are averaging 22.4 turnovers per game this year. East Tennessee State's (11/18/05) 33 turnovers are the most by a UT opponent since American-Puerto Rico (12/21/99) turned the ball over 40 times.
- UT has shot better than its opponent in five of its seven games this season. The only opponents to have a better field goal percentage than the Vols are Murray State (11/30/05) and Oklahoma State (12/22/05).
- Tennessee has shot 50 percent or better from the field in four of seven games.
- Chris Lofton and C.J. Watson have reached double- figure scoring in each of Tennessee's seven games this season.
- Tennessee's rebounding leader in five of its seven games this season has been 6-foot-4 or shorter. Dane Bradshaw (6-4) has led the team in rebounding three times while C.J. Watson (6-2) and Chris Lofton (6-2) have each led the Vols one time.
- The Vols play just three home games in the month of December. Tennessee hosts Appalachian State (Dec. 6), Alabama A&M (Dec. 27) and Lipscomb (Dec. 29) during the final month of the calendar year.
- The Vols are playing with just 10 scholarship players this season. UT's roster sports 11 scholarship players but Tony Passley will sit out the season under NCAA transfer guidelines.
- Not only is UT's roster short on scholarship players but it is also short on size. Tennessee's roster lists just four scholarship players -- Andre Patterson (6- 7), Ryan Childress (6-9), Damion Harris (6-10) and Major Wingate (6-10) -- taller than 6-foot-5.
- Six walk-ons are listed on the Vols' roster. Eddie DeBro is the only returning walk-on while Ben Bosse, Jonah Cox, Justin Jackson, Jordan Smith and Tanner Wild are each in their rookie season with the squad.
- The Vols play 18 of their 27 regular-season games within the state of Tennessee. UT will play games in Knoxville (14), Nashville (2) and Memphis (1). The SEC Tournament will also be in Nashville.
- The Vols return their 2004-05 statistical leader in 11 of 12 categories. Andre Patterson was UT's leading rebounder with 6.2 boards per game and C.J. Watson led the Vols with 155 assists last season. The only category the Vols don't return their leader from last year is scoring. Chris Lofton is Tennessee's top returning scorer after averaging 13.2 points as a freshman.
- The basketball court at Thompson-Boling Arena has been named "The Summitt" in honor of Pat Summitt, who recorded her 882nd career win in 2005.
- Tennessee has an all-time record of 1,351-885-2 in its 97th season of basketball.
- UT's 598 regular season Southeastern Conference victories rank third all-time in the SEC. Only Kentucky and Alabama have won more league games.
- Tennessee is 204-84 in its 19th season in Thompson-Boling Arena. The Volunteers have posted winning home records in 16 of their 18 previous seasons in the facility.
| Team Statistical Comparisons | ||
| Tennessee | Stat Category | Alabama A&M |
| 86.0 | Points | 66.8 |
| 74.0 | Opponent Points | 68.4 |
| +12.0 | Scoring Margin | -2.6 |
| .480 | Field Goal % | .408 |
| .480 | Opponent Field Goal % | .441 |
| .427 | Three-Point % | .258 |
| .399 | Opponent Three-Point % | .390 |
| .703 | Free Throw % | .602 |
| 33.3 | Rebounds | 39.8 |
| 36.7 | Opponent Rebounds | 39.0 |
| -3.4 | Rebounding Margin | +0.8 |
| 17.6 | Assists | 12.8 |
| 14.1 | Turnovers | 19.6 |
| 11.4 | Steals | 13.2 |
| 3.4 | Blocks | 8.4 |
| 6-1 | Record | 2-3 |
| Individual Statistical Leaders | ||
| Tennessee | Stat Category | Alabama A&M |
| Lofton, 18.3 | Points | Trotter, 14.8 |
| Bradshaw, 6.9 | Rebounds | Martin, 12.6 |
| Watson, 4.7 | Assists | Trotter, 4.8 |
| Patterson, .556 | Field Goal % | Gladness, .625 |
| Watson, .571 | Three-Point % | Hilton, .500 |
| Bradshaw, .929 | Free Throw % | Totter, 1.000 |
Looking At Alabama A&M
Alabama A&M dropped to 2-3 on the season with a 60-67 loss at Nebraska on Thursday, Dec. 22 ... The Bulldogs have fought hard but fallen in their last two games against quality opposition ... On Dec. 17 they also fell at Vanderbilt 58-74 ... Alabama A&M is led by the dynamic backcourt of Obie Trotter and Joe Martin ... Trotter has certainly lived up to his preseason billing as the SWAC's preseason player of the year by leading the Bulldogs with 14.8 points and 4.8 assists per game ... A 6-foot-1 senior, Trotter lit Vanderbilt up for 27 points earlier this season ... According to the Dec. 19 NCAA statistics, Trotter's 6.0 steals per game were best in the nation ... A preseason first team all-conference selection, Martin is equally as impressive as Trotter by averaging a double- double with 13.2 points and 12.6 rebounds ... The 6-4 senior's 12.3 rebounds through Dec. 19 ranked fourth nationally in the NCAA statistics ... Mickell Gladness, a 6-6 junior forward, has been a shot blocking machine with 3.0 rejections per game which ranks 11th in the nation ... As a team, the Bulldogs ranked first in the nation with 8.5 blocked shots per game through Dec. 19 ... Their 13.5 steals per game ranked second nationally in games through Dec. 19 .. Alabama A&M is the defending SWAC regular season and conference tournament champions and advanced to the 2005 NCAA Tournament ... In a preseason poll of the league's coaches, they were picked to repeat as conference champions ... Vann Pettaway is 386-184 in his 20th season coaching at his alma mater.
The Alabama A&M Series
This is the first meeting between the two schools ... This will mark just the second time the Vols have ever faced a member of the Southwestern Athletic Conference ... UT defeated Alabama State 71-45 on Dec. 14, 2004.
Last Game: Oklahoma State Gives Vols First Loss
Tennessee cut Oklahoma State's 16-point halftime lead to just one point but the Cowboys went on a 22- 7 run to finish the game and take an 83-79 win Thursday, Dec. 22, at the O'Reilly All-College Classic in Oklahoma City ... OSU's win ended Tennessee's six-game winning streak to start the 2005-06 season ... Tennessee's starting backcourt of C.J. Watson and Chris Lofton, who entered the game combining for 34.8 points per game, combined to score just two points in the first half ... After the halftime break, the duo caught fire, scoring 20 of the Vols' first 22 points of the second half ... JaJuan Smith drilled a 3-pointer from the corner to pull UT to 67-66 before the Pokes took off on their final run .. Lofton scored 19 of his game-high 21 points in the second half while recording a career-high five steals .. Watson, who was limited to a season-low 27 minutes of action, had 12 points while Andre Patterson came off the bench to score 10 points ... Byron Eaton and JamesOn Curry led the Cowboys with 16 points each while David Monds turned in a double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds ... Oklahoma State turned the ball over 21 times but made 63 percent of its field goals, including 70.8 percent in the second half ... OSU outrebounded the Vols 38-25.
Pearl's Start Second Best All-Time
| Coach (first season) | Start |
| 1. Jerry Green (1997-98) | 10-0 |
| 2. Bruce Pearl (2005-06) | 6-0 |
| 3t. Ray Mears (1962-63) | 5-0 |
| 3t. Emmett Lowery (1947-48) | 5-0 |
| 3t. John Mauer (1938-39) | 5-0 |
Great Starts
| Year | Start |
| 1. 1999-2000 | 11-0 |
| 2. 1997-98 | 10-0 |
| 3. 2000-01 | 9-0 |
| 4t. 1982-83 | 8-0 |
| 4t. 1956-57 | 8-0 |
| 6. 1964-65 | 7-0 |
| 7t. 2005-06 | 6-0 |
| 7t. 1970-71 | 6-0 |
Vitale Takes Notice Of Vols
ESPN commentator Dick Vitale took time in his weekly "Roundball Chatter" column on Dec. 16 to mention a pair of Vols by saying, "The backcourt of C.J. Watson and Chris Lofton is one of the most underrated in America..." ... Watson and Lofton are combining to average 34.6 points, 6.4 assists and 5.6 steals per game this season.
Ranking Note
For the first time since Feb. 19, 2001, the Tennessee Volunteers appeared in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll when they debuted at No. 23 in the Dec. 23 rankings.
Vols In The NCAA Stats
Tennessee has is prominently listed among the national leaders according to the Dec. 19 NCAA statistics. Following is where the Vols rank nationally:
- Scoring offense: 88.2 ppg / 4th
- 3-point percentage: 44.3 percent / 5th
- 3-pointers per game: 9.7 3pg / 7th
- Steals per game: 11.3 spg / 10th
- Assists per game: 18.5 apg / 18th
- Scoring margin: +16.7 ppg / 20th
- 3-pointers per game: Chris Lofton - 4.0 3pg / 6th
- 3-point percentage: Chris Lofton - 47.1 % / 29th
Assists And Turnovers In UT's Favor
Tennessee is leading the Southeastern Conference in assist/turnover ratio (1.24) and turnover margin (+8.29) ... The Vols have had more assists than turnovers in six of their seven games this year ... On the season, UT has 123 assists to 99 turnovers (1.24 assists-to-turnovers) ... Conversely, the Vols' opponents have had more turnovers than assists in against the Vols six of seven games (0.73 assists-toturnovers) .. The only team not to have more turnovers than assists was Appalachian State (12/5/05) with 19 assists and turnovers ... Florida ranks second in the league with a turnover margin of +3.20, more than five turnovers fewer than the Vols.Rally Vols
Tennessee has rallied from deficits of at least nine points in two of their last four games ... Murray State (11/30/05) built a nine-point lead early in the second half before the Vols rallied for a 64-53 victory in Nashville ... At one point during the Tennessee rally, Chris Lofton outscored the Racers 12-1 ... Appalachian State (12/5/05) took a 12-point lead with just over six minutes left in the first half but UT went on a 19-2 run to take a 48-46 lead at halftime ... Against Oklahoma State (12/22/05) the Vols rallied from a 16-point halftime deficit to cut the lead to one point but could never overtake the Cowboys.Watson & Lofton Earn Back-To-Back SEC Player Of The Week Honors
Chris Lofton was named the co-SEC Player of the Week on Dec. 19 after leading the Vols to a 95-78 upset at sixth-ranked Texas ... Lofton, who shared the award with Kentucky's Rajon Rondo, scored a gamehigh 21 points on 5-of-9 3-point shooting against the Longhorns ... It marked the second consecutive week a UT player earned the honor ... C.J. Watson took home player of the week honors Dec. 12 after scoring a season-high 23 points against Appalachian State Dec. 5.Watson Reaches 1,000 Points In Unique Way
history to reach the 1,000 career point milestone in a 17- point outing against Louisiana-Lafayette (11/22/05) ... Watson, who now has 1,080 career points, reached the milestone when he was fouled on a made 3-pointer and then scored his 1,000th point on the free throw. - Watson became just the third Tennessee player to have 1,000 points and 400 career assists (joining Allan Houston and Tony Harris).
Watson Leads SEC In Assists For Second Time In Three Years
C.J. Watson averaged 5.0 assists in 16 Southeastern Conference games in 2004-05 ... It marked the second time in three years the point guard has been the conference's assists leader in league games ... He also led the league with 5.44 assists against SEC foes as a freshman in 2002-03 ... His 493 career assists are fourth all-time at Tennessee ... Watson owns three of the top 13 single-season assist marks in Tennessee history. - He is shooting an SEC-best 57.1 percent from 3- point range.
- Watson's 4.7 assists per game are tied for fourth in the SEC.
Lofton Is A Triples Threat
Chris Lofton, a 6-foot-2 sophomore, took the SEC by storm as a freshman by leading the league in 3-point percentage (.465) and 3-pointers made per game (3.00 3pg) ... He ranked fourth nationally in 3-point accuracy on his way to earning a spot on the SEC All-Freshman team ... His 93 3-pointers were the most ever by an SEC freshman. - With 27 3-pointers already this season, Lofton ranks ninth on Tennessee's career lists with 120.
- He is currently leading the Southeastern Conference with 3.85 3-pointers per game.
- Against Murray State (11/30/05) he scored 12 consecutive points to help the Vols rally to a 64-53 win.
- His last two games he is averaging 21.0 points on 53.3 percent (16-of-30) shooting from the field.
Patterson Leading Vols In Field Goal Percentage
When Andre Patterson led the Vols with his 56.8 percent field goal shooting in 2004-05, it marked the second school he had led in field goal percentage ... As a sophomore at UCLA in 2002-03 he led the Bruins and the Pac-10 Conference with a 60.8 field goal percentage ... As a junior at UT last season, Patterson averaged 7.4 points per game while leading the Vols with 6.2 rebounds per game. - He is currently shooting 55.6 percent (30-of-54) from the field and is averaging 11.7 points per game off the bench.
- Patterson recorded a career-high 14 rebounds against Murray State (11/30/05) while recording his third career-double-double.
Asumnu Builds On Strong Finish To 2005
Senior guard/forward Stanley Asumnu started his senior season like he ended his junior year ... The Houston native scored a career-high 18 points on 8- of-11 shooting in the Vols' season-opening win over East Tennessee State (11/18/05) ... In seven games he is averaging 9.6 points per game ... The ultra-athletic Asumnu scored 24 points in 27 minutes of playing time over Tennessee's final four games of the 2005 season ... Against Georgia (3/5/05), the 6-foot-5 Asumnu scored a then career-high 14 points on 6-of- 6 shooting from the field in just 10 minutes of action. - It took Asumnu just seven games this season to score 67 points, surpassing the 63 points he scored in 26 contests as a junior.
Bradshaw Playing Power/Point
With only four scholarship players taller than 6-foot- 5 on the roster, junior guard Dane Bradshaw has been called upon to play big, quite literally ... The 6-4 backup point guard has earned starting assignments at power forward for each of the Vols' games this year ... Playing in the paint isn't anything new for the Memphis native ... In 2005 he drew difficult defensive assignments by guarding 6-8, 252-pound Brandon Bass against LSU (2/5/05) and 6-10 Jermareo Davidson of Alabama (2/9/05). - He recorded a career game against East Tennessee State (11/18/05) with 13 points and 12 rebounds to go with six assists.
- Bradshaw leads the team in rebounding (6.9 rpg) and free throw percentage (.929), is second in assists (3.7 apg) and is third in steals (2.3 spg) and blocks (0.6 bpg).
- His 2.29 steals per game are tied for third in the SEC.
- Three times this season he has led the Vols in rebounding, including a career-high 12 boards against ETSU (11/18/05).
Wingate Plays Through Pain
Major Wingate wasn't going to let anything stop him from playing against Louisiana-Lafayette on Nov. 22 .. After suffering a foot injury in practice two days earlier that left him on crutches, Wingate spent the next two nights in the training room rehabbing the injury so he could play ... When it came time to play, Wingate was there standing in the center circle ready for the jump ball ... The junior from Florence, S.C., scored 12 points and blocked three shots in 28 minutes of action against the Ragin' Cajuns ... Defensively, he held Louisiana's star center Michael Southall to just four points and four rebounds. - On the year he is averaging 11.9 points per game.
- Wingate has scored in double-figures in six of UT's seven games ... In two previous season at Tennessee he had reached double-figure scoring just three times.
- Against sixth-ranked Texas (12/19/05) Wingate played a key role in limiting LaMarcus Aldridge to just four field goals. Aldridge, who finished with 15 points total, scored just one point when Wingate was guarding him.
JaJuan Smith Setting Career Marks
JaJuan Smith, a 6-foot-2 guard from Decatur, Tenn., has seen his role grow from 8.0 minutes per game as a freshman last year to 23.6 minutes per game this season ... Already this year he has tied or established new career marks for scoring (12), rebounds (6), assists (6), steals (3), blocks (1) and minutes played (25) ... Smith, who has been the first player off the bench in each of Tennessee's games this season, is averaging 6.6 points per game ... His 16 assists are third on the team. - Smith had perhaps his best game of his career at sixth-ranked Texas when he came off the bench to score a career-high 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting from 3-point range.
Vols' Recruiting Class Ranked Among Top 10 In The Nation
Bruce Pearl's first recruiting class at the University of Tennessee has drawn rave reviews and has been rated as one of the best classes in the Southeastern Conference and among the top 10 classes in the nation. The Vols signed four players during the early signing period in November: Wayne Chism, Duke Crews, Marques Johnson and Josh Tabb.- Chism, a 6-foot-9 forward from Bolivar, Tenn., is a four-star prospect who is rated the No. 42 overall player in the country. As a junior he led Bolivar Central High School to the Class AA state title while averaging 13.6 points, 10 rebounds, seven blocks and 2.2 assists per game. At the Reebok ABCD Camp last summer he was rated the No. 2 center.
- One of the highest-rated players to sign with the Vols in recent years, Crews is a 6-7 forward from Hampton, Va. Rated the No. 14 player in the nation, he is considered a five-star prospect. As a junior he averaged 16 points per game while leading Bethel High School to a 22-4 record last year. Last summer Crews was rated as the No. 2 player at the 2005 Nike Camp in Indianapolis.
- Ranked among the top-50 players by several scouting services, Johnson is a 6-5 guard from Fort Wayne, Ind. A starter since his freshman season, the two-time all-conference selection has led Snider High School to a 50-15 record in his three years. As a junior he averaged 21 points, 6.2 rebounds and four assists.
- A four-star prospect, Tabb is a 6-4 guard from Harmony Christian Prep in Cincinnati. A two-time Class A All-State selection who is originally from Carbondale, Ill., Tabb averaged 21 points, five assists and six rebounds as a senior while leading Carbondale High School to the 2005 state championship game.
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 204-84 (.708) in its 19th season in Thompson-Boling Arena.
- Since the 1998 season, the Vols are 105-25 (.808) in Thompson-Boling Arena.
- The Vols are 47-16 against SEC teams at home over the last six seasons.
- UT has won 64 of its last 71 home games against non-conference opponents.
SEC Throwback Week
Each Southeastern Conference school has designated a previous year's uniform to be worn as a part of "SEC Throwback Week" ... The week of February 18-26 (Saturday through Sunday) has been designated as "SEC Throwback Week" ... Additionally, the uniforms will be worn during the SEC Tournament in Nashville ... Tennessee took a poll of fans on UTsports.com to determine which era to choose their uniforms ... The fans selected the Ernie & Bernie era so UT's uniforms will resemble those worn in the 1970s.
Five Of UT's Non-Conference Opponents Picked To Win Their Leagues
Tennessee's non-conference schedule features the favorites to win the Big 12, Conference USA, Ohio Valley, Sun Belt and SWAC regular season titles in polls of each respective league's coaches ... Eight of the Vols' 11 non-conference games will be against teams picked to finish no worse than second in their respective divisions ... Additionally, the Vols will play against four players who earned preseason player of the year honors from the league's coaches.
- East Tennessee State was picked to finish second in the Atlantic Sun Conference and was picked to win the league's postseason tournament. Tim Smith was named the league's preseason player of the year.
- Louisiana-Lafayette, a team that has been to the NCAA Tournament the last two years, is picked to win the Sun Belt Conference's West Division. Senior guard Dwayne Mitchell was a preseason first team all-conference pick.
- Murray State is tabbed to win the Ohio Valley Conference while Eastern Kentucky is picked second. Murray State junior Trey Pearson was named the league's preseason player of the year while EKU's Matt Witt earned preseason first team all-conference honors.
- Appalachian State was picked to tie for second in the Southern Conference North Division while D.J. Thompson earned a spot on the Preseason All-Southern Conference Men's Basketball Team.
- Texas is an overwhelming favorite to win the Big 12 Conference title while Oklahoma State is picked fourth. The Longhorns list two preseason first team all-conference selections (Daniel Gibson and P.J. Tucker) while the Cowboys had one (JamesOn Curry).
- Alabama A&M is predicted to win SWAC. Senior guard Obie Trotter was selected the league's preseason player of the year while Joseph Martin earned preseason first team all-conference honors.
- Memphis, led by preseason conference player of the year Rodney Carney, is the unanimous favorite to win the Conference USA title.
Parking
Limited individual game parking for the 2005-06 men's basketball season will be sold for $5 for the following parking lots on a first come, first served basis:
- Lot 23 Corner of Volunteer Blvd and Pat Head Summitt Street
- Lot 23B (next to Music Building) - Corner of Pat Head Summitt Street and Volunteer Blvd.
- Lot 4 and Lot 5 - Phillip Fulmer Way between Thompson-Boling Arena and Neyland Stadium
- Lot 30A - Peyton Manning Pass, off of Volunteer Blvd.
- Lot C15 - Chamique Holdsclaw Drive
- Lot 9A - Volunteer Blvd. between the Humanities Plaza & the Architecture Bldg.
- Lot C18/Staff 7 - accessed from Cumberland Avenue at 11th Street, or from Neyland Drive across from the Tennessee Grill
- Lot G10 on Neyland Drve between Thompson-Boling Arena and Neyland Stadium
Special parking arrangements for disabled persons may be requested by calling Parking Services at (865) 974-6031. The UT Athletic Department also provides FREE parking at the Ag Campus with a free shuttle service to and from Thompson-Boling Arena. The KAT shuttle begins 1 1/2 hours prior to game time, and runs for one hour postgame.
