Brandon Crump picked up a stat sheet Sunday night before Tennessee began practice and stared at the numbers next to his name. He grimly read them aloud: "Seven point three" (points per game); "five point oh (rebounds).''

An observer asked what numbers he would like to see in their place.

"Fifteen and nine,'' Crump responded.

Do the math and Crump played at about 50-percent capacity on UT's trip to the Maui Invitational.

Crump and the Vols (1-2) are back in Thompson-Boling Arena tonight. Wofford (2-1) visits for a 7:30 home opener, the first of eight home games in a stretch of nine before the SEC slate begins.

Regardless of whether UT is playing Maui-caliber teams like North Carolina or Wofford, the Vols need a bigger contribution than 7.3 points and 5.0 rebounds from their 6-foot-10 senior.

His scoring has progressed from 7.1 as a freshman to 11.0, to 14.8 last year. He's only 17 points shy of joining the 1,000-point club.

"We've got to have him,'' coach Buzz Peterson stressed. "We can't live and die with these outside shots.''

Crump was obviously unhappy with his showing at Maui for a number of reasons. But in hindsight, he and Peterson agree the problem wasn't that he wasn't giving effort. Rather, they both said, he was pressing too hard.

"There was pressure because the (NBA) scouts were there and pressure because I know I need to do well for my team to win,'' Crump said. "I just started rushing things because there's pressure for me to put up numbers.

"Even the Stanford game (a 69-57 UT win) I didn't play very good. I was missing jump-hooks and I usually don't miss those things.

"Nothing was falling for me. And I was getting frustrated I was in foul trouble.''

Peterson, for one, was caught off guard by Crump's sub-par Maui performance.

"When school started, in our first two weeks of practice, he was great,'' Peterson said, "the best I've seen him.

"Then we went out there and I think he put way too much pressure on himself about what he needs to be doing.

"If he will just relax, the game will come to him and his numbers will pick up and the team will be more effective.''

At Maui, Crump said he began to second-guess himself for losing weight in the off-season. Still, he thinks enhancing his ability to run the floor will pay off in the long run.

"I still see myself getting the ball in the post and getting the shots I want,'' he said.

"I know it was just a bad trip. I just need to relax and enjoy my last season here.''

Scouting Report: The Terriers lost 67-64 at Miami (Fla.) when a 3-point shot rimmed out. Wofford's wins came over Milligan and Bluefield.

The Terriers return all five starters from a team that lost 81-70 at UT last year. In that game, Wofford led with 7 minutes to play, but Scooter McFadgon carried the Vols out of harm's way with a 31-point debut.

Forward Howard Wilkerson is a preseason All-Southern Conference pick. Wofford assistant coach Dustin Kerns was a graduate manager at UT last season.

Mike Strange may be reached at 865-342-6276 or strange2@knews.com.