Welcome to the thaw.
Had to happen sooner rather than later. Chris Lofton is too good a player to continue shooting the basketball the way he had been shooting. And in Tennessee’s 93-85 win over Alabama last night, Lofton proved that yes indeed, he is warming up.
The senior guard scored 23 points as the Vols, now 5-1 in the SEC, toppled the Tide in Tuscaloosa. It was Lofton’s third straight game of 20-or-more points. He drilled five-of-nine three-pointers, bringing his total to 17 made three-pointers in 32 attempts over his last three games. That qualifies has heating up. In Lofton’s previous three SEC games, the ex-Mason County star was a pedestrian 5-of-16 from behind the line.
Lofton was obviously starting to regain his touch the first half at UK on Jan. 22. He was quiet in the second as Kentucky rallied for the win. Tennessee coach Bruce Pearl claims that experience made Lofton realize he did have to score for this UT team to win. He’s certainly picked up the pace in the last two games, scoring a season-high 27 against Georgia and then 23 more last night.
Related links:
- Tennessee uses long-range shooting to down Alabama. [Birmingham News]
- Vols shoot past Tide. [Mobile Press-Register]
- With Lofton back in form, Tennessee looks tough. [Clarion-Ledger]
- Vols exorcise demons to win at Alabama. [Knoxville News-Sentinel]
Here is Lofton’s game-by-game breakdown in the SEC:
- Date Opp Min FG 3P FT O-D-R PF TP A TO BS S
- Jan. 9 Miss 30 3-9 2-5 2-2 2-1-3 0 10 2 1 1 1
- Jan. 12 @SC 28 2-6 1-5 0-0 0-3-3 3 5 0 4 0 0
- Jan. 17 Vandy 32 4-11 2-6 1-2 1-1-2 2 11 0 2 0 2
- Jan. 22 @UK 30 7-14 5-10 3-3 0-2-2 4 22 0 1 0 0
- Jan. 26 Ga 30 9-17 7-13 2-2 0-0-0 2 27 1 0 0 0
- Jan. 29 @Ala 33 8-13 5-9 2-2 2-1-3 1 23 2 1 0 0
John,
i am happy for lofton given he is a kentucky kid. however, i get tired of the national press (tv announcers) continuing to talk about how he was a Mr. Kentucky that got away. would i love to have THIS lofton on the current team? Absolutely. but my gut tells me that given tubby’s emphasis on defense, there is the strong likelihood that he never would have developed into the offensive power he is. living in tn, i have read articles about how much pearl worked with him on his shot – for better or worse, not sure that would have happened under tubby. also, (and i think you have done an article on this) how many mr kentuckys go on to the NBA? very few. sure i would love to see every mr kentucky at UK if for no other reason than to show the rest of the recruits what it means to wear the blue and white.
anyway, i wish lofton could be lauded for what he is – the best three point shooter in SEC history – not what he is not – a UK ball player.
Thanks for covering him as a great shooter.
Neal